How to Change Wallpaper in Classic Mac OS

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This wikiHow shows how to change the wallpaper in every version of Classic Mac OS, from System 1.0 to Mac OS 9.2.2.

Method 1
Method 1 of 5:

Mac OS 8.5 to 9.2.2

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  1. 1
    Open the Appearance window. Click the Apple icon at top-left corner, resembling a rainbow Apple icon on color Macs, or a black Apple icon on monochrome Macs. In the Apple menu, hover over Control Panels and click Appearance . [1]
  2. 2
    Click the Desktop tab. It's the fourth tab at top of window. [1]
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  3. 3
    Select a pattern. Scroll through a list of patterns and select one you like. Click Set Desktop to change the current wallpaper to the selected pattern. [1]
  4. 4
    Set a picture as a wallpaper. Click Place Picture... , then in the selection window, browse through the list of pictures, then select a picture and click Open . Then click Set Desktop to change the current wallpaper to the selected picture. [1]
    • You may want to adjust the position of the picture. Click the dropdown below Remove Picture and choose one of the options:
      • Tile on Screen - This creates a tile of multiple pictures arranged horizontally and vertically. Recommended for pictures of 256x256 or less resolution.
      • Center on Screen - This centers the picture.
      • Scale to Screen - This scales the picture to fit the screen.
      • Fill Screen - This stretches the picture to all sides to fill the screen.
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Method 2
Method 2 of 5:

Mac OS 8.0 to 8.1

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  1. 1
    Open the Desktop Pictures window. Click the Apple icon at top-left corner, resembling a rainbow Apple icon on color Macs, or a black Apple icon on monochrome Macs. In the Apple menu, hover over Control Panels and click Desktop Pictures . [2]
  2. 2
    Scroll through a gallery of patterns. Use the scrollbar below pattern to scroll and select a pattern you like. [2]
  3. 3
    Click Set Desktop . It's at bottom-right corner of the window. This will set your desired pattern as the wallpaper. [2]
  4. 4
    Set a picture as a wallpaper. Click Picture tab at left and click Select Picture... , then in the selection window, browse through the list of pictures, then select a picture and click Open . Then click Set Desktop to change the current wallpaper to the selected picture. [2]
    • You may want to adjust the position of the picture. Click the dropdown to the left of Remove Picture and choose one of the options:
      • Tile on Screen - This creates a tile of multiple pictures arranged horizontally and vertically. Recommended for pictures of 256x256 or less resolution.
      • Center on Screen - This centers the picture.
      • Scale to Screen - This scales the picture to fit the screen.
      • Fill Screen - This stretches the picture to all sides to fill the screen.
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Method 3
Method 3 of 5:

System 7.5 to Mac OS 7.6.1

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  1. 1
    Open the Desktop Patterns window. Click the Apple icon at top-left corner, resembling a rainbow Apple icon on color Macs, or a black Apple icon on monochrome Macs. In the Apple menu, hover over Control Panels and click Desktop Patterns . [3]
  2. 2
    Scroll through a gallery of patterns. Use the scrollbar below pattern to scroll and select a pattern you like. [3]
  3. 3
    Click Set Desktop Pattern . It's at bottom-right corner of the window. This will set your desired pattern as the wallpaper. [3]
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Method 4
Method 4 of 5:

System 7.0 to 7.1.2

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  1. 1
    Open the Control Panels window. Click the Apple icon at top-left corner, resembling a rainbow Apple icon on color Macs, or a black Apple icon on monochrome Macs. In the Apple menu, click Control Panels .
  2. 2
    Open the General Controls window. The options are sorted alphabetically, so click on the General Controls option at the middle of the window.
  3. 3
    Draw your own pattern. Use the mouse to draw in the 8x8 square grid in top-left corner.
    • If you have a color Mac, use the palette below "Desktop Patterns" to draw with different colors. Double-click on a color to customize the color.
  4. 4
    Set the pattern as wallpaper. Click on the preview to the right of 8x8 square grid to select a wallpaper.
  5. 5
    Choose an existing pattern. Click on the white box just above the preview, to the right of the grid to cycle through patterns. Click on preview to set as wallpaper.
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Method 5
Method 5 of 5:

System 6.0.8 and earlier

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  1. 1
    Open the Control Panels window. Click the Apple icon at top-left corner, resembling a rainbow Apple icon on color Macs, or a black Apple icon on monochrome Macs. In the Apple menu, click Control Panels .
  2. 2
    Draw your own pattern. Use the mouse to draw in the 8x8 square grid in top-left corner (System 3.0-6.0.8) or bottom (System 1.0-2.1).
    • If you have a color Mac running System 6.0 or later, use the palette below "Desktop Patterns" to draw with different colors. Double-click on a color to customize the color.
  3. 3
    Set the pattern as wallpaper. Click on the preview to the right of 8x8 square grid to select a wallpaper.
  4. 4
    Choose an existing pattern. Click on the white box just above the preview, to the right of the grid to cycle through patterns. Click on preview to set as wallpaper.
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      References

      1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Pogue, D. (2000). Mac OS 9 (pp. 53–57). Pogue Press.
      2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Danuloff, C. (1997). The Mac OS 8 book : the ultimate Macintosh user’s guide (4th ed., pp. 99–101). Research Triangle Park, NC : Ventana.
      3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Macintosh System 7.5 Upgrade Guide (p. 66). (1994). Apple Inc. https://vintageapple.org/macbooks/pdf/Macintosh_System_7.5_Upgrade_Guide_1994.pdf

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