Get your GodMode water bottle

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I just about did a spit take when I saw this listing at the Microsoft Company Store.

Yes, that says "I’m in GodMode." And yes, it contains the GUID that unlocks a secret list of Control Panel shortcuts. [*] The description is equally priceless:

32 oz BPA free water bottle with GodMode code screenprinted on face. Hand washable. Do not place in microwave.Color:Translucent Orange

I’m thinking of getting a case of these for Christmas presents.

[*] More GodMode stuff here.

Published by Ed Bott

Tech journalist. Author of 25+ books. ZDNET Contributing Editor since 2006. Contact info: https://edbott.com/contact-me/

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8 thoughts on “Get your GodMode water bottle”

  2. On one hand, I’m still amazed at the resonance the God Mode thing has/had with people. It didn’t work properly on 64-bit and didn’t really do anything useful. It certainly didn’t make the user invincible as the name people gave it suggests. (None of which is a criticism of Windows; the feature wasn’t intended to be seen.)

    On the other hand, I think it demonstrates that Windows could benefit from more thought/time/attention when it comes to the Control Panel. Let’s face it, it’s a Byzantine, inconsistent mess. For people who configure the OS as soon as they install it, it gives a terrible first impression.

    Finding certain control panels is like playing some kind of point & click puzzle and it remains a hassle even when you know the (new) route to things. (e.g. It takes too many mouse-clicks and windows to disable & re-enable a network adapter now unless you set up some kind of shortcut.)

    Having a consistent look & feel for all the control panels would also improve things. Right now their look seems to be based on the OS they first appeared on and MS have never bothered to put time into overhauling many of the old control panels.

    Not worth the time, they might say, but clearly a lot of people care about this stuff or the God Mode meme wouldn’t’ve taken off like it did.

  3. …and if the only find time to re-write one control panel, make it the one for configuring power management settings, for the love of god. That tree control of drop-downs makes things that should take one line and one click into a multi-row, multi-click, redundantly headlined, insanely nested disaster of a UI. 😀

  5. A bit of a sacrilege …… don’t you think? I kind of felt Mr . Gates was gaining God’s grace by spreading his wealth around the World to help those less fortunate. But to sell something like this, makes me wonder where his head really is. Does he feel he is god?

  6. Uh, Chris? Bill Gates retired from Microsoft some time ago.

    And if you follow the link, you will see this is mostly a joke, referring to a special shortcut that can be created that some users (not Microsoft) dubbed as GodMode. It’s a wee bit of fun. Don’t make it something bigger than it is.

  8. @Leo: I’ve watched XP converts stare blankly at Control Panel trying to figure out how to navigate to a particular applet. My response: Search! Much easier and faster. More here: http://w7io.com/?p=8

    Btw, I agree that several of the applets need to be cleaned up/streamlined/made consistent.

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