For kids, Easter is defined by the egg hunt, where decorated artificial eggs of various sizes - filled

with candy and toys - are hidden both indoors and outdoors. And needless to say, taking part in an
Easter Egg hunt, and then finding a few is always lots of fun. But since the dawn of the PC, Easter
Eggs have taken on another meaning. Now, it is also the term used to describe hidden messages,
inside jokes or features that might be found in a website, a computer program or a game. And of
course, accidentally discovering these are as much fun. Here are some of our favourites...
In websites

The English Wikipedia has over 41 lakh pages. But did you know that it has a page that's been left
blank intentionally: en. wikipedia. org/wiki/Special:BlankPage. You can now tell people you have
seen the first page of the online encyclopaedia. Kickstarter is an online platform that allows budding
entrepreneurs to seek funding from netizens for their creative projects, which could range from
films, games, and music to art, design, and technology. And it's a professionally done-up website
too. But scroll down to the end of the home page at www. kickstarter. com, and click on the scissors
icon for a little mindless surprise. The Oatmeal is an irreverent humour site maintained by a certain
Matthew Inman who writes, draws and even codes for it. So it's hardly surprising that Inman, with
his brand of cheeky wit, has an Easter Egg on theoatmeal. com. Head to the site, and right click in
your browser window to select the option to View Page Source. Mwaarrrrr! The Black Acre Brewing
Company is a brewery and tap room located in Indianapolis, USA. But more than its beers, the
company is famous for the Easter egg on its homepage at blackacrebrewing. com. When prompted
by the pop-up, select the option that says 'I am under 21'. Then sit back and enjoy a remixed blast
from the past.

In Facebook

>> Speak like a pirate, or upside down!

In Facebook's Settings page, in the 'General' tab, you will find options to change the language. And
there are two cool variants in that. First, there's English (Upside Down), which will invert all the text
in Facebook. It's a freaky effect, and a good way to prank someone who doesn't know better. And
then there's English (Pirate), which uses pirate lingo throughout your profile. So you can 'scour for
scallywags, islands or general thingies' in the search bar, and 'update your plunderin' in the status
bar by stating 'what be troubling ye'. We particularly liked the birthday events being tagged as
'Zuckerberg (or any name) survived another year today'.

>> Profile Pics In Chat

When you are chatting with a friend on Facebook, here's a neat trick to pull. Type their profile name
between two pairs of square brackets - [[ firstname. lastname ]] - and Facebook will turn that into
the person's profile picture. It's a neat trick and usually gets squeals of "Show me how to do that!"
To find the person's profile name, check the URL when you click on their profile page;it's whatever
you see after "www. facebook. com/".

>> A Weird Emoticon

One fine morning, Chris Putnam, an engineer, hacked into Facebook and changed the code so that
all the profile pages looked like MySpace. But instead of hauling him up, Facebook decided to hire
him. The prank earned him quite a status along with a special credit: type :putnam: in Facebook chat
or a comment, and check it out.

In Youtube

>> Do The Harlem Shake

YouTube users went crazy over the Harlem Shake phenomenon this year, with everyone who's
anyone making short dance videos. In fact, YouTube also decided to get in on the viral craze. Search
for do the harlem shake in YouTube, sit back, and enjoy. . .

In operating system

>> Star Wars (Window 7)

Did you know that you can watch the ASCII version of Star Wars on your Windows machine? Here's
how. Go to Start > Control Panel > Programs and Features Once you're there, select the 'Turn
Windows features on or off' option In the 'Windows Features' box that pops up, scroll down to
'Telnet Client' and 'Telnet Server' and check both options. Click 'OK'. Now, go to Start, and in the in
the search box, type telnet and run the program. In the black window, type o (the letter) and press
Enter. Then type towel. blinkenlights. nl and enjoy the show.

>> God Mode (Window 7)

In computer gaming, God Mode is a cheat code that gives a player each and every possible power, as
well as unlimited 'lives' making him or her invincible in the game. In Windows 7, this mode puts
hundreds of OS settings at your fingertips in one single location.
To turn on God Mode, create a new folder and name it GodMode. {ED7BA470-8 E54-465 E-825 C-
99712043 E01C}.
After that, the folder will include each and every configurable option in Win 7. Now use these
powers responsibly.

>> The Northern Light Ribbons (Window 7)

People who've seen the Northern Lights natural phenomenon swear by its eerie beauty. Sadly, most
of us will never have the opportunity to see them. Still, users of Windows 7 have access to a cheap
imitation. Go to Start, and in the search box, type cmd. In the cmd. exe window that appears, type
ribbons. scr /p65552. Hit Enter, and the show begins. To get out of the window, just close it from
your taskbar.

>> Easier Way to Win in Solitaire (Win XP)

Those who haven't upgraded their systems from Windows XP can try out this Easter Egg. In Solitaire,
select the 'Timed game' and 'Standard' scoring options, then play for over 30 seconds. After that,
press Alt + Shift + 2 (above the 'q', and not the keypad 2). This will end the game, add a bonus to
your score, and play the crazy celebration where you see the cards jumping to the front in waves as
they do when a game is completed successfully. After the celebration, when you are asked 'Deal
Again?', select 'No', and press Alt + Shift + 2. Again, your bonus is added to your score, and the
celebration begins once more.

>> Presidential Secrets (Win XP)

Start Notepad. Type bush hid the facts. Save the document with any name. Close the file. Open it
again. And see how your text has changed.

>> Droid Humour (Android)

Do you have an Android phone or tablet running version 2. 3 Gingerbread or above? Head to your
device's settings and scroll all the way down to 'About Phone' or 'About Tablet'. In that, look for
'Android version' or 'Firmware version'. Tap it repeatedly and let the magic begin.
And there's more to come after you unlock the hidden Easter Egg. On 4. 1 Jelly Bean, tap what you
see on screen and then long-press it. On 4. 0 Ice Cream Sandwich, long-press the screen.

In Google

>> Google Search

Google has some of the best Easter Eggs there are. Go to www. google. com, and then type each of
the following search terms:
Anagram
Binary
Do a barrel roll
Tilt
Askew
Conway's Game of Life
Recursion
Zerg rush
While some of the Easter Eggs like askew and barrel roll are quite apparent, others like anagram,
recursion and binary are beautifully understated.
Google is an engine that even provides you with answers to existential questions. Type answer to
life, the universe and everything into the search box and it returns with 42. People who are fans of
Douglas Adams' The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy will recognize the reference. Other seekers will
have to keep looking for the answer.
Similarly, search for the number of horns on a unicorn, once in a blue moon, a bakers dozen and the
loneliest number.

>> I <3 Calculator

Google's Calculator is capable of quite a few complex calculations. Search for sqrt(cos(x))*
cos(300x)+sqrt (abs(x)) -0. 7)*( 4-x *x)^ 0. 01, sqrt(6-x ^2), -sqrt (6-x ^2) from -4. 5 to 4. 5 to see a
great heart shaped graphic.

>> Google Earth's Flight Sim

This one's an oldie but a goldie. Google Earth has detailed maps of the whole world, most of it
rendered in 3D. And while you can zoom in and zoom out, how awesome would it be to fly over it in
a jet fighter? Hit Ctrl+Shift+A while the program is running to activate the hidden flight simulator
mode. Choose your preferred aircraft and get into the cockpit. The controls aren't easy to get a
handle on easily, so don't forget to look them up in the Help section.

>> Google Translator?

Google is available in several languages to make it easier for anyone to use the world's favourite
search engine. In fact, it even takes care of extra-terrestrials and cartoon characters. There are
special web pages that remake Google's menus and buttons to add a little humour. Try these out:
www. google. com/intl/xx-hacker www. google. com/intl/xx-elmer www. google. com/intl/xx-
piglatin www. google. com/intl/xx-pirate www. google. com/intl/xx-klingon

The Konami code

If you ever played Contra on NES (Nintendo Entertainment System), you know the cheat code that
gave you 999 lives: This code was used by developer Konami in several games and became a cult hit -
so much so that the geeks who grew up on Contra started incorporating it in websites they
developed. Type the code with your keyboard and you'll see some magic. . . www. cubeecraft. com:
Unlocks special character Bill "Mad Dog" Rizer, the hero from Contra, as a special download on the
origami site.
zeno. name: Takes you to a special page acknowledging you as a fellow geek. www. geekandhype.
com: A reference to another geekculture artefact, "All your base are belong to us". digg. com:
Changes the Digg logo into a reference for the TV show Arrested Development. www. smbc-comics.
com: Creator Zach Weiner displays his love for the old video game Gradius, where the Konami Code
originated, along with his underwear. www. gamespot. com: Takes you to NES' Contra page. shirtoid.
com: Watch the background change into an ode to the pixellated glory of yore. For a full list, head to
konamicodesites. com. And yes, you'll be prompted to enter the Konami Code to get access to it!