The first Windows 98 Easter egg

Like many Easter eggs, this one shows off the software’s developers. But it’s not a simple list of names — it’s a little multimedia slide show. Also unusual is that you can find this hidden treat in two different ways.

Method #1:

Double-click on the time in the tray at the right end of your Windows 98 taskbar. Click on the Time Zone tab to take you to the map of the world. Figure out, maybe with the help of an atlas, where the following cities are located: Cairo, Egypt in northeast Africa, Memphis in the southeast United States and Redmond (home of Microsoft) in the American northwest. Now hold down the Ctrl key all the way through the next steps. Click on the Time Zone map where Cairo should be and, holding the mouse button down, drag the cursor to where Memphis is. Let go of the mouse button, without moving the cursor. Press the button again and drag the cursor from Memphis to Redmond. Let go of the button and you can also release the Ctrl key now. The show should be starting.

You may have to try this several times before you get the positions exactly right to make this trick work.

Method #2:

Find the file Weldata.exe. It should be in your Windows directory, in the Application Data\Microsoft\Welcome subdirectories. Right-click on the file and select Create Shortcut. Click on the Shortcut tab. In the Target box, type a space after what’s there already and add You_are_a_real_rascal (don’t leave out the underscores between the words) to the end of what’s in there already. In the Run box, select Minimized. Click OK to close up the dialogue box. To start the show, just click on the shortcut.

Free *Cheap Trick* of the Week: September 6, 1999