A few minutes ago I was reading about someone yelling at their computer sign-off noise. Their sound bite was nothing I would even have known about, but it made me giggle.
When my computer starts, It’s Peter Venkman (Ghostbusters): “Generally you don’t see that kind of behavior in a major appliance.”
When I shut down, Marvin the Martian (Warner Brothers) says: “Where’s the ‘kaboom?’ There was supposed to have been an Earth-shattering ‘kaboom!’”
When people sign on IMs, it’s an Ogre yelling, “We’re being attaaaaacked!” from Warcraft II.
When they sign off, it’s the “YAAAAAaaaaa!!!” from people falling down a level on Toejam & Earl.
When I get email, it’s the sung “Sega!” from the beginning of Sonic the Hedgehog I and II. It’s really loud, too, and usually scares the hell out of me.
So what kinds of things do y’all use? I know a lot of people stick with less intrusive system sounds. I’ve heard a few people’s systems, though, and it’s neat to see what sounds people use to personalize their machines.
Right now, it’s Homestarrunner doing “Entrance of the Gladiators” for the bootup, and Strong Bad saying “It’s about time. Why don’t you go outside or something? … Nerd!” on shutdown.
Mine start up (multiple PCs, office and home) with the theme from ‘Fractured Fairy Tales’, and shut down to the Bullwinke & Rocky end theme. I have too many sound effects in between to even list.
My computer makes the THX sound when it starts up. The first IM I get from people sets off Weebl saying “Mmmmm pie.” My error messages are Chris the Ninja Pirate saying “Yarr!” I don’t use many other sounds.
For a while I had a fully custom Starcraft Terran theme on my computer. My favorites: minimizing and maximizing of windows were the bunkers loading and unloading. Startup sound was the full Goliath system check. Default windows clicks were replaced with all the nice bloops and bleeps. And I think my shutdown noise was the Terran Academy.
I’ve gone for a Trek Original Series sound theme;
Startup; Lieutenant Uhura, “Hailing frequencies open Sir”
Shut down; Spock, “Live long and prosper”
People signing onto MSM; The opened hailing frequencies whistle.
(Email is the whistle again.)
Recycle bin; Tricorder humm.
The various questions and alerts get different alert sounds.
Can’t think of the others off the top of my head tho.
I’ve also got the THX sound on startup, and shutdown is Iago (the parrot from Disney’s Aladdin) yelling “I can’t take it anymore!”
I used to have an awesome Transformers scheme. Shut down was Starscream crying “Get this thing off meeeee!” I had all sorts of quotes from Soundwave for errors and the like: “Alert! Alert!” “System Malfunction!” “Mechanical Error!” etc, plus the transformation sound for emptying the recycle bin.
Cthulhu-
Startup was a combination of various animal noises that sounded like a giant frog monster snoring.
Shutdown- the sound of a large object entering water
Nightbreed- I strongly recommend this film. It was marketed as a slasher flick. It’s actually a fantasy film for adults. A man dreams of a fabled city of monsters where legends walk and all your sins are forgiven.
Startup- Lylesburg, spiritual leader of the Nightbreed “The tribes of the moon embrace you.”
Program has perfomed an illegal operation and will be shut down- Father Ashwell, an alcoholic priest who’s largely lost his faith “You’re an abomination. You have to die.”
Shutdown- Lylesburg “What is below, remains below. That is the law.”
at work, i had very … ahhh… themed sounds for the few audibles i had set.
Boot-up (Start Win-Doze): Theme from The Twilight Zone (original series version)
Error: Thunderclap
Shut down: Bugs Bunny clip from the end of unknown Loony Tunes cartoon –
“Weeeell, goodbye!”
<closing music for several bars>
“And don’t think it hasn’t been a little slice of Heaven.
'Cause it hasn’t!”
<end theme music> – you can practically SEE the WB logo slamming on the hatch door as he ducks back in the second time.
of course, since they’ve gone around replacing all the PCs and standardizing everything, i’m lucky i even have an individual wallpaper anymore.
bastards.
i miss my sign-off sounds.
oh, and on the previous old home PC, for a while the shut-down sound was a capture of one the old Battlestar Gallactica Cylons saying “By your command.”
