Apple’s operating systems have always been filled with surprises, and macOS is probably one of the ones with the most. Although not as common as before, there are still those little secrets or Easter eggs that developers hide in the software. Let’s go over nine that very few know.
Curiosities and surprises throughout the system
- Sosumi: The alert sound “Sosumi” created by Jim Reekes carries a fascinating story. It is a clever reference to the legal dispute with the Beatles’ record label, also named Apple, which couldn’t engage in music due to rights issues. In response to the lawsuit, Reekes presented the name as a meaningless Japanese word, although it clearly sounds like “so sue me.”
- Creation date of an incomplete download: When downloading any file from the internet and pausing the process, the partial file will show the creation date as January 24, 1984, which is when Steve Jobs introduced the first Macintosh.
- Blue Screen of Death: In a shared network, Windows PCs are represented in macOS Finder with the iconic “Blue Screen of Death,” a playful taunt at the failures of the rival operating system.
- The iconic glasses of Steve Jobs in Safari’s Reading List icon: The design appears to be based on Steve Jobs’ characteristic round frameless glasses, offering a subtle tribute to the Apple CEO.
- The quote “Here’s to the crazy ones”: This tribute to the iconic “Think Different” campaign speech can be found in various places in macOS, such as screen preferences and some emojis, keeping the company’s philosophy alive.
- Clarus the Dogcow: In the macOS Emoji keyboard, searching the word “moof” returns images of a dog and a cow, referencing the dogcow Clarus, an important part of Apple’s user interface history.
- Voice Memos app icon: The icon’s design represents the waveform of someone saying “Apple.” If we record that same word in the app, we’ll see the match.
- EP profile in the user image: When changing the user profile picture, you can find an avatar of a vinyl record with tracks that pay homage to Steve Jobs’ favorite expressions: “Magic,” “Revolution,” “Boom,” and “Unbelievable.”
- Historical calendars in Terminal: For history enthusiasts or fans of the Lord of the Rings saga, Terminal offers a list of important dates with the appropriate command. A nod to the playful origins of the operating system that we can explore by typing “cat /usr/share/calendar/calendar.history” or “cat /usr/share/calendar/calendar.lotr” if we are fans of the Lord of the Rings.
Although Apple has matured as a company and a lot of time has passed since the first operating system up to iOS 17 or macOS Sonoma. Now, Easter eggs are not as prominent as in the past, but the presence of these little secrets still offers moments of delight and surprise for users who decide to delve a bit deeper into the Apple operating system. Did you know about all of these?
