Got prying eyes surrounding you? Matrix Screen Locker (MSL) might be the solution - a very nice, very handy piece of security software that is as fun to watch as it is useful.
Run as a tray applet, MSL allows you to enter a custom password upon installation. When the icon is clicked, the desktop is transformed into a beautiful representation of Tank's screen from the movie "Matrix": green, vertically scrolling ASCII characters in an endless, completely random array. This waterfall effect stays in place until the correct password is entered (via a left-click dialog box), and is not affected by end-around methods such as CTRL-ALT-DEL. A loaded Windows screensaver will start at the designated time, but MSL will resume if the keyboard or mouse is activated, and startup options are also available.
The program is system friendly, consuming approximately 3½ megabytes of memory. The author states that if processor cycles become too intensive, MSL will revert to a blank screen, but I never saw this happen: my baseline machine, a 233mHz/64mb platform with Windows 98SE, suffered no hiccups at all while running MSL for hours.
The program can be circumvented by booting into Safe Mode and uninstalling; however, for normal, everyday desktop security purposes, Matrix Screen Locker fits the bill perfectly with an aesthetic and unique approach. |
