Desktop background and screen saver keep changing

[kkshaw]

I'm running Win XP Home with automatic updating.

I've always had my desktop background set to <none> (i.e., BSOD Blue), and my wife has installed a panda-cam screen-saver.

The desktop background and screen saver have suddenly started changing every few minutes. I've gone into Control Panel | Display and reset the desktop to <none> and pressed "Apply," and done the same for the screen saver, but the settings don't "stick" on the next boot.

I have cable modem broadband and run Norton Antivirus with an auto-update subscription and a weekly total scan, plus the current free version of ZoneAlarm.

How do I get off this annoying merry-go-round?

[HansV]

Check what starts automatically on your PC. You can use free utilities such as Sysinternals Freeware - Autoruns or the System Startup tool in Spybot-Search&Destroy (the latter is less comprehensive than the first one, but it gives recommendations about the safety of the entries)

[viking33]

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and my wife has installed a panda-cam screen-saver.

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I assume this is a separate screen saver program?
Have you checked for options in that program that may be over riding the Windows settings?

[DocWatson]

If you can't adjust the setting in the program by right clicking on the desktop, selecting properties>screensaver.settings, I'd suggest that you uninstall the Panda Cam software.