In the upper right-hand corner of the Microsoft Internet Explorer browser window is the very familiar lowercase e, a graphic that revolves and turns into a globe. For some Internet users, the famous Explorer logo, is too familiar and the animation too monotonous. If you ever wished you could replace the Explorer logo with something more fun, Throbbers are for you.
Throbbers
Throbbers are small animation files that you can use to replace the Explorer logo.
Building a Throbber for a Windows-based version of Explorer is very simple. Just follow these easy steps:
1. Construct a Windows RGB-encoded bitmap that's 48 pixels wide and 48n pixels high, where n is the number of frames. This is the reverse of the structure you use for Netscape's 48m.bmp Throbber. The bitmap can have any name. (Note: You can make Throbbers for Explorer with frames of any size, as long as they're square.) Using REGEDIT, open the Registry and move to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\ Internet Explorer\Toolbar
2. Create (or change) a string with the name BrandBitmap and give it the fully qualified name of the Throbber file. For example, if the BMP is named DBTHROB2.BMP in the directory C:\THROB, you'd enter C:\THROB\DBTHROB2.BMP as the name. By the way, you can also change the background of the toolbar by repeating step 2 but creating a string called BackBitmap. Give this the name of a bitmap (preferably a small one--it will be tiled automatically), and Explorer will replace the boring background. If you use a large bitmap, you'll see only the top of it. You can always revert to the original background and Throbber by giving the strings null values--that is, deleting whatever value they currently have.
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