Easter egg (media) 239803 225786704 2008-07-15T11:52:47Z Gwernol 266416 Reverted edits by [[Special:Contributions/Briankervin|Briankervin]] ([[User talk:Briankervin|talk]]) to last version by Rjwilmsi <!-- THIS IS AN EXAMPLE OF AN EASTER EGG --> {{Citations missing|date=February 2008}} {{otheruses4|hidden messages (for example, in computer software)|a similar phenomenon|Intertextuality}} <!-- [[Image:Adventure_Easteregg.PNG|thumb|right|The first Easter egg.]] --> {{Hidden messages}} A virtual '''Easter egg''' is an intentional [[hidden message]] or feature in an object such as a [[film|movie]], [[book]], [[Compact disc|CD]], [[DVD]], [[computer program]], or [[video game]]. The term draws a parallel with the custom of the [[Easter egg hunt]] observed in many [[Western civilization|Western]] nations. This practice is analogous to hidden signature motifs such as [[Diego Rivera]] including himself in his murals or [[Alfred Hitchcock]]'s legendary [[List of Hitchcock cameo appearances|cameo appearance]]s. An early example of these kind of "Easter eggs" is [[Al Hirschfeld#Nina|Al Hirschfeld's "Nina."]] [[Atari|Atari's]] [[Adventure (Atari 2600)|''Adventure,'']] released in 1979, contained what is thought to be the first video game "Easter egg": the name of the programmer ([[Warren Robinett]]). In computer programming, the underlying motivation is often to put an individual, almost artistic touch on an intellectual product which is by its nature standardised and functional. <!-- although Warren Robinett's motivation was more likely to gain recognition, since video game programmers were routinely uncredited then. --> {{Fact|date=November 2007}} ==Computer-related Easter eggs== ===Software-based=== Easter eggs are messages, videos, graphics, sound effects, or an unusual change in program behavior that sometimes occur in a software program in response to some undocumented set of commands, mouse clicks, keystrokes or other stimuli intended as a joke or to display program credits. They are often located in the "About" box of a software. For example, two easter eggs exist in the "About" box of Adobe Photoshop 7: an alternative "Liquid Sky" splash screen and the ability to speed up credits to view funny quotations. An early use of the term ''Easter egg'' was to describe a message hidden in the [[object code]] of a program as a joke, intended to be found by persons disassembling or browsing the code. Easter eggs found in some [[Unix]] [[operating system]]s caused them to respond to the command "[[make (software)|make]] love" with "not war?" and "why" with "why not" (a reference to ''[[The Prisoner]]'' in [[BSD|Berkeley Unix]] 1977). The TOPS-10 operating system (for the DEC PDP-10 computer) had the "make love" hack before 1971; it included a short, thoughtful pause before the response. This same behavior occurred on the [[RSTS/E]] operating system where the command "make" was used to invoke the [[Text Editor and Corrector|TECO]] editor, and TECO would also provide this response. The largest Easter egg is purported to be in the Atari 400/800 version of ''[[Pitfall II: Lost Caverns]]'', which contains an entire game that was more complex and challenging than the original Pitfall II. Many [[personal computers]] have much more elaborate eggs hidden in [[read-only memory|ROM]], including lists of the developers' names, political exhortations, snatches of music, and (in one case) images of the entire development team. Easter eggs in the 1997 version of [[Microsoft Office]] include a hidden [[flight simulator]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://eeggs.com/items/718.html|title=Excel 97 Flight to Credits|work=The Easter Egg Archive}} </ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://eeggs.com/items/29841.html|title=Excel 97 Flight Simulator – For later versions of Microsoft Excel|work=The Easter Egg Archive}} </ref> in [[Microsoft Excel]] and a [[pinball]] game<ref>{{cite web|url=http://eeggs.com/items/763.html|title=Pinball in Word 97|work=The Easter Egg Archive}} </ref> in [[Microsoft Word|Word]]. See main article [[Easter eggs in Microsoft products]]. The [[Palm OS|Palm]] operating system has elaborately hidden animations and other surprises. The Debian GNU/Linux package tool [[apt-get]] has an Easter egg involving an [[ASCII]] cow when variants on "apt-get moo" are typed into the shell. Many new video games contain easter eggs, like Microsoft's very popular Halo series. An Easter Egg is found on all Microsoft Windows Operating Systems prior to XP. In the 3D Text [[screen saver]], entering the text "volcano" will display the names of all the known volcanoes that exist in the world. Microsoft removed this Easter Egg in [[Windows XP|XP]] but added others. One which continues till Windows XP is to simultaneously hold the [[Alt key|Alt]], [[Shift key|shift]] and the number 2 keys in the [[Solitaire]] game to produce a forced win.<ref>David Hoye (March 13, 2003), "[http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_product=SB&p_theme=sb&p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_topdoc=1&p_text_direct-0=0F9C5967DFAD25DD&p_field_direct-0=document_id&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&s_trackval=GooglePM 'Easter egg' hunts can turn up surprises]" (subscription required). ''[[The Sacramento Bee]]''.</ref> A number of early [[Microsoft]] programs had hidden animated stuffed animal characters which could be revealed by following a complicated sequence of inputs. An early version of Microsoft Excel contained a hidden ''[[Doom (video game)|Doom]]''-like action game called "The Hall of Tortured Souls". Windows 3.1 has a hidden developer credits page, which can be accessed by following a sequence of right-clicking and entering code words which is passed around by word-of-mouth. ===Non-software=== While computer-related Easter eggs are often found in [[software]], occasionally they exist in [[hardware]] or [[firmware]] of certain devices. On some [[personal computer|PC]]s, the [[BIOS]] [[Read-only memory|ROM]] contains Easter eggs. Notable examples include several early [[Apple Macintosh]] models which had pictures of the development team in the ROM (accessible by pressing the programmer's switch and jumping to a specific memory address, or other equally obscure means), and some errant 1993 AMI [[BIOS]] that on [[13 November]] proceeded to play "Happy Birthday" via the PC speaker over and over again instead of booting. Similarly, the [[Radio Shack]] [[Color Computer]] 3's ROM contained code which would display the likenesses of three [[Microware]] developers on a <ctrl><alt><reset> keypress sequence - a hard reset which would discard any information currently in the dynamic memory.<ref>[http://www.coco25.com/wiki/index.php/CoCo3_Easter_Egg TRS-80 CoCo Wiki] on the "3 Mugateers" ROM bitmap.</ref> Perhaps the most famous example of a hardware Easter egg is in the [[Hewlett-Packard|HP]] ScanJet 5P, where the device will play the ''[[Ode to Joy]]'' or ''[[Für Elise]]'' by varying the [[stepper motor]] speed if users power the device up with the scan button depressed. This is achieved through software intervention. Another Easter egg is found in the [[Kurzweil Music Systems|Kurzweil]] K2x musical keyboard series ([[Kurzweil K2500|K2500]], [[Kurzweil K2600|K2600]] and others): if users type "Pong" while in search mode they can play the game ''[[Pong]]''. The EEPROM of Nagra smart cards for the [[Dish Network]] [[satellite television]] system contain the phrase "NipPEr Is a buTt liCkeR". Nipper was a hacker who broke old security routines on the cards, and this text is included as a fallback to old security routines, where the phrase was hashed against an input text to verify the card. Several [[oscilloscopes]] have been known to contain Easter eggs. One example includes the HP 54622D known to have Asteroids clone (and even saves high scores in [[NV-RAM]]). ==Chip and PCB-based Easter eggs== {{main|Chip art}} Many [[integrated circuit]] (chip) designers have included ''[[chip art|hidden artwork]]'', including assorted images, phrases, developer initials, logos, and so on. This artwork, like the rest of the chip, is reproduced in each copy by [[lithography]] and [[etching]]. These are visible only when the chip package is opened and examined under magnification, so they are, in a sense, more of an "[[in-joke|inside joke]]" than most of the Easter eggs included in software. Originally, the Easter eggs served a useful purpose as well. Not unlike [[cartography|cartographers]] who may insert [[trap street]]s or nonexistent [[landscape]] features as a [[copyright infringement]] detection aid, IC designers may also build non-functional circuits on their chips to help them catch infringers. Easter eggs, however benign, if directly copied by the [[defendant]], could be used in [[mask work]] infringement litigation. Changes to the copyright laws (in the USA, the Semiconductor Chip Protection Act of 1984, and similar laws in other countries) now grant automatic exclusive rights to [[mask work]]s, and the Easter egg no longer serves any practical use. [[Western Digital]]'s [[MyBook]] Pro has several words on the metal band that wraps around 3 sides in [[Morse Code]]. The code reads: PERSONALRELIABLEINNOVATIVESIMPLE INNOVATIVEPERSONALDESIGNRELIABLE INNOVATIVEDESIGNPERSONALDESIGN SIMPLEINNOVATIVE The [[Commodore International|Commodore]] [[Amiga]] models 500, 600 and 1200 each featured Easter eggs, in the form of titles of songs by [[The B-52's]] etched on the [[motherboard]]s. The 500 says "[[Rock Lobster (song)|Rock Lobster]]", the 600 says "[[June Bug (song)|June Bug]]", and the 1200 says "[[Channel Z (song)|Channel Z]]". The [[Amiga OS]] software includes a variety of hidden messages as well.<ref>[http://www.amigahistory.co.uk/messages.html AmigaOS Easter Eggs] from the Amiga History Guide</ref> Several models of [[S3 Trio]] 64v+ graphics cards have [[the Beatles]] lyrics printed faintly along the edge of the card. The circuit board under the bottom most plate of HP LaserJet 1100 printer has the following text printed on it: "This Product is Dedicated in Memory of our Good Friend Ming-Zen Kuo". ==Easter eggs on DVDs== Easter eggs are also found on movie [[DVD]]s. In some cases, an extra click to the right or left, or going up in the menu instead of going down to select a choice will bring up a hidden feature, including [[concept art]], humorous [[outtakes]], or [[deleted scenes]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.dvdeastereggs.com/faq.php|title="DVD Easter Eggs - Hidden Features on DVDs"|work=DVD Easter Eggs|accessmonthday=March 22 |accessyear=2008}}</ref> ==Security concerns== Because of the increase in [[malware]], many companies and government offices forbid the use of software containing Easter eggs for security reasons. With the rise of [[cybercrime]] and the prevalence of the Easter egg's "cousin", the [[logic bomb]], there is now concern that if the programmer could slip in undocumented code, then the software cannot be trusted. This is of particular concern in offices where personal or confidential information is stored, making it sensitive to theft and [[ransom]]. For this reason, many developers have stopped the practice of adding Easter eggs to their software. Microsoft, who has in the past created some of the largest and most elaborate Easter eggs such as the ones in [[Microsoft Office]], no longer allows Easter eggs in their software as part of their [[Trustworthy Computing]] initiative.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://blogs.msdn.com/larryosterman/archive/2005/10/21/483608.aspx |title=Why no Easter Eggs? |author=Larry Osterman |date=[[October 21]] [[2005]] |accessdate=2006-07-29 |work=Larry Osterman's WebLog |publisher=MSDN Blogs }}</ref> ==In fiction== A DVD easter egg is a plot point in "[[Blink (Doctor Who)|Blink]]", a 2007 episode of the science fiction series ''[[Doctor Who]]''. Appropriately enough, the actual video footage used for the easter egg is included as an easter egg with the episode on its DVD box set release.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://freemaagyeman.com/forums/topic/doctor-who-series-three-boxset-blink-easter-egg|title="Doctor Who Series 3 Boxset Blink Easter Egg « Freema Agyeman Forums"|work= |accessmonthday=March 22 |accessyear=2008}}</ref> ==See also== *[[Hidden track]] *[[Undocumented feature]] *[[Easter eggs in Microsoft products]] *[[The Book of Mozilla]] ==Notes== {{reflist}} ==External links== *[http://www.networkworld.com/newsletters/sec/0327sec1.html Easter eggs and the Trusted Computing Base] &ndash; Network World article outlining the concern over Easter eggs *[http://smithsonianchips.si.edu/chipfun/graff.htm Chip Fun: Microchip-based Easter eggs] &ndash; From the National Museum of American History; photos by Integrated Circuit Engineering Corp. *[http://peeknpoke.gazaxian.com/downloads/PeeknPoke_issue5.pdf Lee's PeeknPoke Issue 5] &ndash; PDF retro game magazine with [[Atari 2600]] hidden Easter egg feature *[http://www.softwaretipsandtricks.com/eastereggs/ Software Tips and Tricks] &ndash; Details on Easter eggs found in operating systems and applications. *[http://www.eggheaven.com Egg Heaven] &ndash; Gives details on virtual Easter eggs in software, games and other popular media products. *[http://www.dvdeastereggs.com/ DVD Easter Eggs] &ndash; Lists many Easter eggs in DVDs *[http://www.eeggs.com/ The Easter Egg Archive] &ndash; large archive of all kinds of Easter eggs. *[http://www.answers.com/topic/easter-egg-virtual Easter egg: Information from Answers.com] &ndash; Includes history of Easter eggs. 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