For decades there’s been one particularly colored screen you never want to see appear on your PC; the Blue Screen of Death. Microsoft’s famous screen has been a familiar indicator for a big problem with your hardware also since the inception of the OS, but it’s getting a facelift with Windows 11.
Or at least its recognizable color is getting changed. With Windows 11 there will no longer be a blue screen accompanying a critical crash, with a new black screen taking its place (via The Verge). This saves you from having to remember another acronym and is likely a result of Microsoft’s shift towards similarly styled screens for start-up and shutdown.
Curiously, the color is really the only facet of the screen that is changing. The ASCII sad face is still there, as well as the error logs and handy QR code that can help you diagnose whatever issues you’re having. Microsoft changed to this design with Windows 7, making the error dump a little easier on the eye, and hasn’t changed it drastically since.
Given all the other UI elements that Windows 11 is overhauling–from the center-justified taskbar, new application icons, and more–it’s strange that the BSOD will remain as an old-looking relic from Windows past. Then again, Microsoft is likely hoping you won’t see it enough to have it be a bother anyway.
Windows 11 launches later this year and features some exciting features for PC gaming, including Auto HDR, Direct Storage, and a new Xbox app for Games Pass titles.
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