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I'd like to write a program which displays dynamically-generated slideshows on the desktop, replacing the wallpaper. The point is to display live photo-streams from the web, updating the wallpaper automatically as new images are posted.

I'm currently looking for the best way to display the images. The simplest thing is to just update the wallpaper by issuing a command to gsettings, for example:

gsettings set org.gnome.desktop.background picture-uri file:///new_wallpaper.png

But this approach isn't perfect:

1) (minor) There's a perceptible lag between issuing the command and the update.

2) (major) There's no smooth transition from the old wallpaper to the new wallpaper, so the effect is jarring.

Do I have a better option? A simple fade transition would be sufficient for my needs. In the future, though, I'll want an interactive canvas, so the user can click on an interesting photo and have the relevant link opened in a browser.

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  • There is already a fade effect while changing the wallpaper.
    – hytromo
    Aug 20, 2012 at 9:18
  • @hakermania, there isn't a fade effect when using the command I listed. If you know of a command-line way to change the wallpaper that has a fade effect, please share it. Aug 21, 2012 at 17:35
  • But it has a fade effect. It really does, see this video: ubuntuone.com/6MNoKBsfaFyyRVlUvwG3Ik By the way, I'm one of the developers of Wallch.
    – hytromo
    Aug 21, 2012 at 19:59
  • @hakermania, that's interesting. I just double-checked on my own machine and didn't get a transition. Maybe it's because I'm using XMonad with Unity? Well, at least it will work for most people. Aug 22, 2012 at 20:28
  • If you've set XMonad to handle your desktop, then this is what causes the fade effect not to be present.
    – hytromo
    Aug 22, 2012 at 21:53

1 Answer 1

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You may install wallch and also have a look at this very similar question.

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