Microsoft users familiar with the sinking feeling that comes from being confronted with the “blue screen of death” that is the backdrop to error messages could be in for a surprise in the future, thanks to a colour change.
Those on Microsoft’s beta testing scheme – the Windows 10 Insiders Program – are now seeing a green screen rather than a blue one when things go wrong.
In betas – which are unfinished pieces of software being tested by users to find bugs – faults and issues can be a fairly regular occurrence.
Microsoft said the change has been introduced to help it distinguish between the error reports in consumer-available Windows 10 and the beta versions currently being tested, so the tech giant knows how pressing an issue is.
The change was made as part of a new beta version of Windows 10 that appeared on Monday, and comes ahead of Microsoft’s next major update to Windows 10 for consumers – the Creators Update – which is due to be released in the spring.
R.I.P #BSOD! The #Windows10 Preview Build 15002 kills
Blue screen of death & replaces with Green screen of death https://t.co/N86e9I4pRh pic.twitter.com/8EL4mnBfZG— Anis (@0xUID) January 10, 2017
It is worth noting that not all updates made in beta versions will end up going live to consumers – the aim of the Insiders Program is to establish exactly which features work and which don’t. Among the other changes in the latest beta version, alongside the green screen, was a tweak to the Start menu that enables users to place tiles into folders.
