# The Red Ring of Death
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-red-ring-of-death/438368
**Category:** The Game Room
**Created:** [February 20, 2008, 10:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-red-ring-of-death/438368 "2008-02-20T10:24:59Z")
**Posts on this page:** 13
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)
#### Post date: [February 20, 2008, 10:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-red-ring-of-death/438368/1 "2008-02-20T10:24:59Z")
[Pwned!](http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/technology/2008/02/red_ring_of_death_returns.html)
> [@](#):
>
> Microsoft wants consumers to believe that its problems with the Xbox 360 console in terms of hardware failure are over.
>
> But wandering through the Game Developers Conference halls and it’s clear that the problem persists.
>
> On Microsoft’s own stand at the show one of the demo consoles has a rather familiar problem - the red ring of death. There’s no way of knowing if this particular console was manufactured before or after Microsoft identified the problems with the machines.
😃😃😃
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### Author:  [@Pushkin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pushkin)
#### Post date: [February 20, 2008, 11:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-red-ring-of-death/438368/2 "2008-02-20T11:17:21Z")
It must make one proud to work for a company that has entered not just one but two highly notable error warnings into popular culture 🙂
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### Author:  [@Ranchoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranchoth)
#### Post date: [February 20, 2008, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-red-ring-of-death/438368/3 "2008-02-20T20:20:12Z")
[QUOTE=Pushkin]
It must make one proud to work for a company that has entered not just one but two highly notable error warnings into popular culture 🙂
[/QUOTE]
That end with “…of death,” to boot. Bob Howard couldn’t do better.
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### Author:  [@Madd\_Maxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Madd_Maxx)
#### Post date: [February 20, 2008, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-red-ring-of-death/438368/4 "2008-02-20T20:30:47Z")
If only HD-DVD ended with “of Death” they would have the trifecta.
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### Author:  [@bouv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bouv)
#### Post date: [February 20, 2008, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-red-ring-of-death/438368/5 "2008-02-20T20:57:48Z")
[QUOTE=Madd Maxx]
If only HD-DVD ended with “of Death” they would have the trifecta.
[/QUOTE]
While MS has been steadfastly behind HD-DVD from the start, it was devolved by Toshiba. So not quite as bad, but still…it did die…_sniff_ ☹
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### Author:  [@tanstaafl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tanstaafl)
#### Post date: [February 20, 2008, 11:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-red-ring-of-death/438368/6 "2008-02-20T23:19:07Z")
[QUOTE=bouv]
While MS has been steadfastly behind HD-DVD from the start, it was devolved by Toshiba. So not quite as bad, but still…it did die…_sniff_ ☹
[/QUOTE]
Yes, but a surprisingly large percentage of the HD-DVD install base was on the XBox. From engadget, the number of HD-DVD devices worldwide…
> [@engadget](#):
>
> ```
> * Xbox 360 drives (worldwide) - 300k
> * PCs with HD DVD (worldwide) - 300k
>
> ```
>
> Standalone players/recorders:
> \* US - 600k units
> \* Europe - 100k units
> \* Japan - 30,000 units
That’s close to 1/4th of the total units out there.
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### Author:  [@chrisk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chrisk)
#### Post date: [February 20, 2008, 11:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-red-ring-of-death/438368/7 "2008-02-20T23:28:50Z")
[QUOTE=Ranchoth]
That end with “…of death,” to boot. Bob Howard couldn’t do better.
[/QUOTE]
And several less notable ones…
[ol]
[li]Black screen of death (Windows 3.x)[/li][li]Green screen of death (Microsoft Xbox 360)[/li][li]Yellow screen of death (uncaught exception on dot net framework websites)[/li][li]Red screen of death (Vista)[/li][li]White screen of death (pocket PC, possibly also old versions of Windows.)[/li][/ol]
Do you see a pattern here? 😃
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### Author:  [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)
#### Post date: [February 21, 2008, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-red-ring-of-death/438368/8 "2008-02-21T02:06:30Z")
[QUOTE=chrisk]
[li]Red screen of death (Vista)[/li][/QUOTE]
What the hell, mine does a BlueSOD. :mad:
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### Author:  [@fluiddruid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fluiddruid)
#### Post date: [February 21, 2008, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-red-ring-of-death/438368/9 "2008-02-21T03:48:27Z")
Now that **The Game Room** has been opened, I am going to move this thread.
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### Author:  [@Palooka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Palooka)
#### Post date: [February 21, 2008, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-red-ring-of-death/438368/10 "2008-02-21T04:04:58Z")
[QUOTE=Ferret Herder]
What the hell, mine does a BlueSOD. :mad:
[/QUOTE]
The RSOD only happened on boot loader errors.
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### Author:  [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)
#### Post date: [February 21, 2008, 4:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-red-ring-of-death/438368/11 "2008-02-21T04:24:28Z")
[QUOTE=Palooka]
The RSOD only happened on boot loader errors.
[/QUOTE]
Ah, ok - now I don’t feel like I have a substandard crashing OS… uh, wait.
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### Author:  [@Rick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick)
#### Post date: [February 21, 2008, 6:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-red-ring-of-death/438368/12 "2008-02-21T06:45:23Z")
[QUOTE=Ferret Herder]
What the hell, mine does a BlueSOD. :mad:
[/QUOTE]
That is one of the features on VISTA premium. User customizable screens of death. Blue, red, which ever color you wish.
😃
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### Author:  [@garius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garius)
#### Post date: [February 22, 2008, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-red-ring-of-death/438368/13 "2008-02-22T15:08:29Z")
Please - as far as errors go, its all about the Amiga and its [unwelcome visitor from the east](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guru_Meditation).