In a surprise announcement today, Microsoft President Steve
Ballmer revealed that the Redmond-based company will allow computer
resellers and end-users to customize the appearance of the Blue
Screen of Death (BSOD), the screen that displays when the Windows
operating system crashes.
The move comes as the result of numerous focus groups and customer
surveys done by Microsoft. Thousands of Microsoft customers were
asked, What do you spend the most time doing on your
computer?
A surprising number of respondents said, Staring at a Blue Screen
of Death. At 54 percent, it was the top answer, beating the second
place answer Downloading XXXScans by an easy 12 points.
We immediately recognized this as a great opportunity for
ourselves, our channel partners, and especially our customers,
explained the excited Ballmer to a room full of reporters.
Immense video displays were used to show images of the new
customizable BSOD screen side-by-side with the older static
version. Users can select from a collection of BSOD Themes,
allowing them to instead have a Mauve Screen of Death or even a
Paisley Screen of Death. Graphics and multimedia content can now be
incorporated into the screen, making the BSOD the perfect conduit
for delivering product information and entertainment to Windows
users.
The BSOD is by far the most recognized feature of the Windows
operating system, and as a result, Microsoft has historically
insisted on total control over its look and feel. This recent
departure from that policy reflects Microsofts recognition of the
Windows desktop itself as the ultimate information portal. By
default, the new BSOD will be configured to show a random selection
of Microsoft product information whenever the system crashes.
Microsoft channel partners can negotiate with Microsoft for the
right to customize the BSOD on systems they ship.
Major computer resellers such as Compaq, Gateway, and Dell are
already lining up for premier placement on the new and improved
BSOD. Ballmer concluded by getting a dig in against the Open Source
community. This just goes to show that Microsoft continues to
innovate at a much faster pace than open source. I have yet to see
any evidence that Linux even has a BSOD, let alone a customizable
one.
