Scoble says that Steve Ball, group program manager for the Windows Audio Video Excellence team (hell of title) is reading all the blog, newsgroup, and beta feedback about the Vista sound.
For those of you not familiar, the Windows Audio Video Excellence team has decided that the default, startup sound for Windows Vista will not be configurable. They’re considering allowing “advanced users” to disable the sound. How considerate.
Hey Steve, here’s some feedback. Don’t you ever, ever, tell me I can’t turn a sound off. I know Microsoft probably paid a shit-ton of money to get just that sound, and good for you. But you know what, after hearing it for maybe a week, I’m going to want it off. Every corporate IT person in the world will want it off. You know why?
Imagine a Tuesday morning in late 2008. It’s 7:56am. 500 people on a floor all start arriving for work. For the next 20 minutes the entire floor will echo with, what will be by that time, the insipid sound of Windows Vista booting up. Again. And all we have to look forward to is Wednesday when the whole damn thing happens again. And again. And again.
While many people are able to turn off their speakers, I can rattle off about 25 people from the top of my head who couldn’t. They will play the Vista sound at full volume. Over. And over. And over.
Run Like Hell was a good song, too. Until they played it to death.
Let us turn off the sound. For the love of God, let us turn off that sound.