How-to: "Night Mode" toggle button on Windows 7 PC
This is simple and very nice. In some lighting conditions, "night mode" (white text on dark grey) is easier to read or at least gives my eyes a needed break for a few minutes. Now, I have a button on my Windows 7 taskbar which switches to "Night Mode." Note that these directions might be slightly different for Windows Vista and would be completely different for Windows XP.
Regular mode:
"Night Mode":
Directions:
Windows "Aero" must be enabled. Also, "Magnifier" - a standard Windows feature - must be installed. Unless you have specifically disabled these, both should be enabled already.
- Open the Start menu, click All Programs, click Accessories, click Ease of Access, and click Magnifier. (Alternatively, you can start typing "Magnifier" in the text box in the Start Menu and it will appear.)
- By default, Magnifier should open with a zoom of 200x. A small Magnifier control window will open, as well. If only a magnifying glass appears on your screen, click the lens to expand it to the Magnifier control window. If nothing appears, click the new Magnifier button on your taskbar (it looks like a computer screen with a magnifying glass) to show the control window.
- Press the large MINUS to reduce the zoom to 100%. I'm assuming, of course, that you don't want to zoom at all.
- Click the gear icon on the control window to open Magnifier Options.
- Check "Turn on color inversion" in Magnifier Options and click OK.
- Minimize Magnifier (you might have to click the magnifying glass to get the control window again).
- To make a permanent "Night Mode" button on your taskbar, right-click the Magnifier button on the taskbar (it looks like a computer screen with a magnifying glass). In the menu that appears, click "Pin this program to taskbar." Drag it to move it wherever you would like it.
And there it is...a Night Mode button. The easiest way to return to regular mode is to right-click the Magnifier button on your taskbar and click "Close Window" in the menu that appears.
Now that I have this button up, I use it frequently, even for reading things on the Internet. Hope at least someone finds it as useful as I have.
Blessings,
Pete
Comments
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Thanks Peter. I thought Logos was 'bullet-proof' (appearance). Didn't know about this. Also slows battery drain.
"If myth is ideology in narrative form, then scholarship is myth with footnotes." B. Lincolm 1999.
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Peter Keay said:
Windows "Aero" must be enabled.
Magnifier works on Windows 7 with Windows Classic color personalization.
Personally experienced automatic resizing if tried to use Magnifier with Logos maximized and have Magnifier invert the entire screen (snaps to fill screen, then resizes windows on desktop to smallish band along the bottom).
Keep Smiling [:)]
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Right, but if you don't want the "band", you need to enable Aero
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That would probably leave the menu bars and such un-inverted and so leave bright elements on the screen, so I think I'm content with the way it is
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Liam Walsh said:
Any way to do this on a Mac?
Ctrl-Opt-Cmd-8. (You might need to turn it on in Preferences first).
EDIT: This is with a Swedish UI, but some googling indicates that it should be the same with the American UI.
Mac Pro (late 2013) OS 12.6.2
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I also found a free Mac app called Nocturne here: http://www.macupdate.com/app/mac/24898/nocturne It allows you to adjust from white to gray scale if the white on black is too harsh on the eyes. It also allows for color inversion and black and white. Pretty cool for reading in the dark.
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thanks Peter Keay you are a life saver
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Thank you Peter. That was quick and easy.
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