I believe you will find the dramatic images from “The Planets” a pleasure to have on your desktop.
Sophisticated, elegant images, for your sophisticated, elegant Mac system.
Shareware:
“The Planets” is shareware. If you continue to use it, please use the "Register" program that came with “The Planets” to send in your payment. The shareware fee is $10. You can pay in any one of a variety of ways, including by credit card.
You can even send your payment by email for instant registration. Just enter the information in "Register The Planets," click the "Copy" button, paste in your email program and send to sales@kagi.com.
For even faster turnaround, visit the following web site for online registration:
<http://order.kagi.com/?2SR&S> (secure)
<http://order.kagi.com/?2SR> (not secure)
When you are registered you will receive an email giving you a location to download 15 additional images for the “The Planets”. Twenty (20) images to rotate on your desktop.
Please refer to information at the end of this document for further instructions on how to register “The Planets” using the Kagi registration service.
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Putting “The Planets” on your desktop:
These images are meant to be used with Mac OS 8 and the Desktop Pictures control panel. The shareware application "Decor" allows pre-System 8 users to place “The Planets” on their desktop.
The whole Planets folder can be dropped onto the large screen "monitor" in the Desktop Pictures control panel. If you then click Set Desktop, the images in the Planets folder will randomly rotate on startup. I've found that sometimes you will get the same image appearing on successive startups, but eventually it rotates to a new one.
Alternatively, in the Desktop Pictures control panel, you can click Remove Picture, then click Select Picture and navigate to the Aurora folder. Choose an image and then click Set Desktop and the image will continue to appear on each startup. Sounds more complicated than it is when you do it.
If the images do not appear as expected, most likely it is an issue involving your system, for which Apple technical support should be contacted - 800 767 2775.
Apple online support: www.info.apple.com/
832x624 monitor resolution and "millions of colors" (Monitors & Sound control panel) is preferred. At most other resolutions the images will look good (exception: 1024x768 and 1000's of colors not recommended.) The more colors you give to the images in the Monitors & Sound control panel, the smoother the color transitions will be.
Images:
“The Planets” was inspired by the Mars mission.
Watching the spunky Sojourner rover disembark from the Pathfinder lander and then successfully explore a rock strewn valley of Mars was just thrilling! This series of shareware images is meant to express something of that: the Music of the Spheres.
"The Planets" is meant to express the beauty and mystery of the natural world; not to “illustrate” our solar system or render specific planets, but to express a feeling of the inviting landscape of time and space.
My background is in the fine arts. I gave as much attention (and took as much time) as I would on a painting to get these images as "right" as possible. This collection is an effort by an artist - not a software company - to connect to the public in a way that democratizes the fine arts in the same way paperback books democratized publishing. I've always wanted to remove the gallery "attitude" that often alienates the public from even looking at the fine arts, much less considering it as a part of our common daily experience (and inheritance).
The images in "The Planets" are meant to allow you to dream, as you would looking at the night sky. I hope these images will give you a good feeling as you engage in your day to day tasks on your trusty Mac.
Enjoy! ---------------------------------------Ira
Summary of Contact Information and Registration Options
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Registration options:
"The Planets" online Registration:
http://order.kagi.com/?2SR (not secure)
http://order.kagi.com/?2SR&S (secure)
Use the Register program included in the tryout download package.
Phone: You can call Kagi's main number: 1.510.658-5244 (24 hours a day, 7 days a week)
registration: <sales@kagi.com> send your registration and registration related questions here.
support: <admin@kagi.com> use this address only after you have registered.
internet: <http://www.kagi.com> read here for more information.
FAQ via email: <FAQ@kagi.com> send a message and receive the current FAQ as a reply.
Fax: 510-652-6589
How Kagi works:
Kagi does business via email . We receive postal mail, email, faxes and phone calls, and process registration payments. Kagi processes software product payments for several hundred authors and their programs. We need for you to use the Register program that came with your program since most of the payment processing is automated to keep costs low and frees us to help you when you need it.
The “Register” Application.
Your copy of Aurora should come with a small program called “Register”, which you use to create a personalized registration form to send to Kagi.
It is vital that you use the registration program since payments sent without the registration form it generates can be delayed or lost.
When you launch the Register program, a window appears asking for all the necessary information. If you have previously registered a program through Kagi your personal information will appear, double check to see that it is right.
Kagi registration, how it works:
After you register, Kagi automatically sends you an e-mail reply titled “Thanks for your registration”. You should print and save this message as your receipt. If you checked the “Postcard Receipt” box in the Register program, Kagi will send you a postcard with this information. Again, if you do not have an e-mail address, you must request a “Postcard Receipt“ since otherwise you will not receive any reply.
It can take Kagi up to a week to process a registration from the date they receive it (please make sure to factor in the delivery time if you use postal mail). If you do not receive the “Thanks for your payment” e-mail message, contact Kagi at <admin@kagi.com> or the postal address given on the registration form to ask about the status of your registration. Keep in mind that some registrations can get lost in the mail on the way to Kagi. Please make sure to seal the envelope and write your email address on the check. Also, sometimes the e-mail reply gets lost as well. If you do not receive an email confirmation of your payment, contact Kagi with the *Kagi needs this data, listed below.
How Kagi can respond to you:
After processing we will send all registered users an email that will give you more information about Kagi and your program. Email and fax registrations will be sent an acknowledgment that we received your registration request. Because of the low percentage that Kagi charges for payment processing we will not respond with a phone call, unless you have an "800" number or receive collect calls, and we do not send faxes. The only mail that we send is postcard receipts that have been paid for.
How to get help from Kagi if you need it:
If you do not get a response from your registration request in a reasonable amount of time, email four days, faxes six days, postal mail a few weeks, please send the message below to us with the information entered. This way we can help you as quickly as possible:
*Kagi needs this data:
Anything that you can provide us with would be helpful, such as when and how you sent your payment and any previous email messages sent. Please tell us exactly what you want us to do/send to you.
Payment-method: Card , Check and check #, cash invoice or First Virtual
Register-to: Registrants name
Time/Invoice: if original had this number
Email: email address
Addr: If used
Card-name: card holder's name
Credit-card#: first 10 digits
Program: program name & cost
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After all that exhausting reading, how about some tasty Warranty ‘n Disclaimers, so flavor-filled and crispy:
These desktop pictures are distributed as is, without any warranty or promise of technical support. These images seem to work as expected, at least on my computer, but the artist disclaims any liability of any kind for any loss of data, damages, etc. or any consequential effect.
This software is provided as-is. There is no warranty, express or implied.
These images cannot be modified in any way. You cannot resell or distribute these images without written permission. These images can only be used for their intended purpose - as desktop picture images to be viewed on screen.
Desktop Pictures: The Planets cannot be renamed or included in another package (software, shareware collection, book, magazine,) without the artist's prior written permission. You cannot redistribute "The Planets" in altered form, i.e., you may not add or remove elements of the collection nor distribute any altered version of the original elements.
"The Planets" must be registered if you continue to use it. Once registered, you can use the images on as many computers as you like as long as you are the sole user of the software (e.g. A single person installing the images on both his / her work and home machine, for personal use.)
Alternatively, you can install the images on only one computer for use by several people.
Title, ownership rights and intellectual property rights shall remain with Ira Altschiller.
By retaining the images or making use of them, you are agreeing to the terms of this document. If you do not wish to, or cannot, comply with the terms in this document, you must destroy all copies of the images in your possession.
