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I calibrated my monitor with a spyder3express recently and wondered, do I need to run the spyder3express software in the background? Could Winxp load the profile when it loads up? I am trying to save some memory ....

Does anyone know?

Thanks for your input on this.

I'm sure DaveB will come in with a definitive answer, but AFAIK WinXP will load the profile (for a single monitor) on startup. The mini app will be the reminder after XX weeks to recalibrate. Certainly this was the way my EyeOne worked. Now defunct as I have a Wide gamut monitor & it doesn't work so well. Sigh.

Yes, it should automatically load the profile on startup - otherwise how does the screen display get to be correct? I wouldn't worry about the memory overhead, it won't be running the package in the background, just making sure Windows is pointing to the correct profile.

Thanks Greg and Murray,

Murray Foote wrote:just making sure Windows is pointing to the correct profile

How do I do that?

I have disabled adobe gamma and in the process of trying to wipe it off completely..

Just create the profile. The Spyder3 software should automatically load it on startup. You should be able to see it there under Control Panel/ Display/ Advanced Settings.

I haven't installed a Spyder3express system but....

Many of these systems these days are installing software (e.g. accessible via the system tray or menu bar) that will let you check on the calibration status and invoke a recalibration without having to drill down to the executable. Also if you've enabled continuous monitoring of the ambient light levels this software will periodically probe the Spyder and manipulate the video card to brighten/darken the screen (personally I don't like the compromises this introduces, and turn this feature off!).
Yes the general answer is you can turn this software off.

If you look at the Startup menu (under Start->Programs->Setup) you'll see the list of programs run when you login. There're also some other ways programs can get invoked at login, but this old system still works, and you'll probably find two programs in there related to the Spyder. One to intialise the graphics card with data from the system's default monitor profile, and one to start the background Spyder Utility. Don't drop the initialisation program!
It may be in the per-user Start folder, or it may be in the "All Users" folder (these are merged into the actual menu). To find where the menu folders are on your system, and thence delete the offending shortcut, right-click on the Start button and select an Explore option.

On the PC this init program is often also the one that checks how old the profile is and reminds you to recalibrate. Startup programs on the Mac are there just to do this check, not to initialise the graphics card (the OS does that in a standard way).

Let me know if this makes sense when you look at the actual setup on your system.