Published by Patrick Gebhardt
Last updated on March 03, 2022
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9 minute read
You know what they say: The internet is for GIFs and Memes. Well, that’s not wrong per se, but there’s also plenty of tedium. You’re sitting at Starbucks and wait minutes for that Wi-Fi connection to load a page; you’re juggling different passwords, or trying hard to find the perfect meme to describe your morbid mood. Luckily, the web offers plenty room for distraction and diversion. It’s full of awesome nuggets – thanks to developers who made it their mission to put both enjoyable distraction and curiosity back into our daily lives. And yes, we’re talking about Easter eggs!
Easter eggs are secret features, gems, or moments of surprise buried in software and throughout the web. They're designed to catch you off guard and make you smile and, in the best case, astonished at the stupidity of mankind. The only basic requirement: You need to find them. So here’s our, anything but alltime, map (Part 1) to the favorite Easter eggs of our team.
To every Post-Millennial: Imagine a world where Google was just a search engine. Unthinkable, right? Sometime around 2000, a couple of Google developers got bored enough to initially hide some fun within the search feature. This one is already well-known: Chrome's “unable to connect” dinosaur can actually turn into a game. All you need to do is press the space bar.
Did some nasty Pterosaurs hit you? With this one you can feel like you're flying as well. Type “do a barrel roll” into the Google search bar and watch the whole page roll over.
But obviously, we’re not here for fun. So step up your game and ask Google the hard questions! Query “What is the loneliest number” and Google's calculator will tell you that it is “1”. And the calculator returns the only acceptable answer when you desire “the answer to life, the universe, and everything”.
You know when you're standing in a bathroom with lots of mirrors and you look into one and see your reflection repeated into infinity? That's called either an acid trip or recursion. By recursion, we mean a procedure that can repeat itself indefinitely. If you google the word “recursion”, Google will suggest the following at the top of its list of search results: “Did you mean: recursion.” If you click Google's suggestion, a new page will load, but “Did you mean: recursion” will remain at the top of your results list.
So now we’re done with Google search, let’s destroy it once and for all. Just search “zerg rush”. Work done.
Google Maps
In classic Google Maps, request walking directions from “The Shire” to “Mordor”. You'll get a caution that reads “One does not simply walk into Mordor”. Thanks for that advice.
If you search for Loch Ness, United Kingdom, the little street view man turns into a Loch Ness monster. Green, somehow subtle, and (unlike the next one) completely useless.
Still at Loch Ness, and that hint may bring some benefits to your life. On your next trip from Fort Augstus to Urquhart Castle, we recommend the fastest method on the back of the world-famous monster (it will take between 22 and 30 minutes).
Obviously, Google Maps is a powerful and helpful service. But if you enjoy ice cream, we would advise you to show some patience! If you’re looking at directions on Google Map and ask “Are we there yet” on an Android multiple times, eventually the edgy answer will be “If you ask me again, we won’t stop for ice cream!”
The Useless Web
There are countless sites on the web that serve some kind of purpose. They contain important information, they try to boost the sales of a company, they peddle toys for children (and adults), and one is even Donald Trump’s Twitter page. All are, more or less, useful. Except this one: The Useless Web is the cumulation of futility. You would struggle hard to find something dumber than The Useless Web, therefore we highly recommend regular visits!
PRTG Network Monitor
To finish this list (for now), let’s have a look at one of the Easter Eggs hidden in our own product: PRTG. If you haven’t used our free PRTG app for Android so far, check it out and don’t forget to click the ‘about dialog’ (not just once). Something happened? Do tell!
Facebook, more hidden PRTG functions and the history of Easter eggs
There is more. A lot more. Facebook has some nice hidden functions and PRTG has funny things to discover too. So expect a sequel in a few weeks’ time, including the complex history of Easter eggs, and maybe also consider our Sensor Story contest in the meanwhile.
You there!
