Googling like a boss

So there I was, sitting outside and enjoying the awkward  weather these days when it hit me. And so the new post idea was born. Since you are reading this blog you probably know that google offers not only search and advertising in it, but also a wide array of other products. Want to do a blog - blogger, got tired of Facebook, but still want to be social - Orkut, want to manage your documents online - google docs, want to create a site - google sites, want to easily create a 3D model of your future house - sketch up. And the list goes on. You might think that Google is like the boss of internet or even a very serious and mean overlord that tries to control the internet. And you would be partially right. With the right part being the overlord think. And the wrong one? Well one thing google is not is being serious. Geeks working at Google are usually incorporating a secret or two in their work, you just need to know where to look and you will find yourself a dose of laughter or awesomeness. So here we go (a list is not in any order):

1. Something spooky after 3 AM.

Every day at 3.14 AM PST certain iGoogle themes become.. well spooky. Selecting the “beach” theme will mean the Loch Ness Monster makes a mysterious appearance for one minute every day at that time. UFOs will hover over the skyline in “City Scape” and the Yokai, from Japanese folklore, show up in “Tea House”.

2. Calculating some extra fun

Searching for the number of horns on a unicorn makes the Calculator app spring into life with the answer “1,” which is the same number it returns if you ask Google what the loneliest number is. Searching for “once in a blue moon” brings up “1.16699016 × 10^-8 hertz.” And, always a classic, searching for “the answer to life, the universe, and everything” will trigger the Calculator display “42,” which we all know is a reference to Douglas Adams’s The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.

3. Mighty Chuck Norris 

Just type in "find Chuck Norris" and hit I'm feeling lucky button

4. Everyone loves teddy bears and ninjas

Google programmers have messed around with code for both Picasa and Google Reader to yield some surprising results. Taking Picasa first, when in the desktop software, hitting control-shift-y will make a teddy bear appear. Hitting the same combo again will give the first teddy a new buddy, and so on. It’s since been revealed this was the childhood bear of photographer and photoblogger Noah Grey who worked with Google on the project. Reader, meanwhile, gets an even more comprehensive Easter egg. With a reference to the old Konami video game cheat code — that, depending on the game, would give you 30 lives or other bonuses — hitting up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, b, a, will make your RSS feed reader go into “ninja” mode.

6. Language of choice 

Elmer, Pirate, Klingon

7. Flying like a F16

Buried in the free mapping program Google Earth is a nifty flight simulator that lets you either hop into the cockpit of an F16 fighter jet or a lightweight SR22 propeller-powered airplane. To access the flight simulator in Google Earth, open the program and press Ctrl-Alt-A on your keyboard (Command-Option-A on a Mac). 

8. Feeling goth?

Type Google Gothic and hit I'm feeling lucky.

There are numerous other hoaxes hidden in Google world. Just to give your search a start I will provide some links: 1, 2, 3 and pay attention to Google Aprils Fool day jokes, they are always awesome. And just for the final touch of awesomeness visit this site. 

P.S. if this picture means something to you, then you are a true google fan, just like me CaptainEE.