A funny thing happened the other day. Well, it wasn’t funny for the person it happened to but it was hilarious for me. Ever seen an iPod die? I did the other day. The death itself wasn’t funny - it renders an amazing collection of music unpalyable for the time being. It was more about the way Apple’s programmers choose to convey technological adversity.

It doesn’t really look like those iPods are eating chocolate, or doing something that really puts a smile on your face, like karaoke. On my friend’s iPod, there was even a little message saying ‘please visit www.apple.com/support/ipod’. Please visit. Stop by and say G’day. Drop in and have a cuppa. It’s the personal touch that counts at Apple.

What made the whole thing so funny to me was the little iPod caricature. In 1986, my family bought a little beige box called… the Macintosh Plus. You paid extra for that ‘Plus’. From that point on, I would define myself as being from the computing left, continually having to justify my choice of electronic lifestyle as though it were unnatural. I know there are those of you who have followed the light for as long as I have. It is to you that I ask this question: remember this picture?

Many a time I cursed this picture becuase it usually happened right in the middle of an intenese Dark Castle session (greatest game EVER for the macintosh, as we light-siders like to remember them as). A couple of times it was even the first thing that I saw upon startup, a truly terrifying moment that most certainly meant a week without the computer. As if the picture wasn’t funny enough, what about the soundtrack that accompanied it? The ‘Hawaiian Death Chimes’ as they were affectionately known. I swear my father could hear that chime even in the backyard whilst mowing the lawn. Also a terrifying moment that meant hiding in your room for a week. Silence is golden. As a child, from my father, silence was a WMD.

It’s distressing when technology fails us. I wish my friend’s iPod a speedy recovery and hope this post helps him see the lighter side of a traumatic time. Just like Apple would want him to.

Note: my father was pretty cool when we were growing up. Very techno savvy. I just couldn’t handle the silence when I did something wrong. I must say though, it works a treat for me these days.

Just a little more, this was a great alert to let you know your computer had just shat itself. Credit to David Schaub for digitising these alerts.