Google: Do a Barrel Roll

[Saeed]

Got a moment to kill? Try this:

Go to Google’s homepage. Type in the words “Do a barrel roll.” Click Enter.

(Brief pause while you try it. Then please come back.)

Did the Earth move for you? The image in your browser should — well, it should have done a barrel roll. Is it a takeoff on Apple’s iPhones and iPads with their built-in accelerometers — those little gizmos that tell a device when it’s been moved, turned on its side, propped up with one end on top? One blogger suggested Google is invoking Nintendo’s “Star Fox.”

No such notions, says Google, which sent us this explanation:​

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“Today’s fun query, ‘do a barrel roll,’ was created by a Google software engineer with the primary goal of entertaining users — while showcasing the power of CSS3, a presentation feature of modern browsers.The “do a barrel roll” query, which causes the search page to spin, will remain in place for a while.”​

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(By the way, you may not see the effect in older browsers. Newer ones support HTML5, the newest version of the code that makes online content work.)​

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Twitter has been lighting up as people discover “Do a Barrel Roll.”​

A few sample comments:​

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“Google is being nerdy again and I love it.”​

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“It will bring you joy for approximately 5 seconds.”​

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“You won’t be disappointed. Or maybe you will if you are a grump.”​

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Source​

 

[Brett Peters]

Haha Nice, Defiantly was not expecting that to happen.

 

[Kim]

Fun

My son just said.. Yeah it's like a huge meme Mum.... well I had never seen it before!

 

[Digital Doctor]

Cool !
http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/do-a-barrel-roll

 

[Saeed]

Fun

My son just said.. Yeah it's like a huge meme Mum.... well I had never seen it before!

Lol!

Google released it as an Easter egg on Nov 3, 2011. Don't worry, it's pretty recent.

 

[Kim]

Lol!

Google released it as an Easter egg on Nov 3, 2011. Don't worry, it's pretty recent.

lol hahaha.. so it's a day old at most and already the kids are like.. meh seen it.

Going to be harder and harder to amuse this generation, they are so used to everything being exciting and new ALL THE TIME.

 

[Trombones13]

The "do a barrel roll" meme itself comes from Star Fox (see DD's link above); its recent implementation on Google started today as far as I'm aware.

 

[Saeed]

lol hahaha.. so it's a day old at most and already the kids are like.. meh seen it.

Going to be harder and harder to amuse this generation, they are so used to everything being exciting and new ALL THE TIME.

How does "releasing the latest features of their skins / framework in the form an awesome video and then uploading it on Facebook" sound?

 

[Paul B]

Type 'askew' and hit enter.

Type 'google gravity' DO NOT HIT ENTER, move your cursor down and click the 'I'm feeling lucky' link on the right hand side.

 

[Saeed]

Type 'askew' and hit enter.

Type 'google gravity' DO NOT HIT ENTER, move your cursor down and click the 'I'm feeling lucky' link on the right hand side.

Had seen the gravity one before, but the askew was new to me.

 

[Mopquill]

This is pretty neat. It wasn't working for me at first, and then I realized it was because I was on Opera. It seems to work on Firefox and Chrome.

And Brogan, those two things are pretty neat as well. =]

 

[CurveGotti]

Type 'askew' and hit enter.

Type 'google gravity' DO NOT HIT ENTER, move your cursor down and click the 'I'm feeling lucky' link on the right hand side.

LoL do the gravity one and then the askew one for a real mess HAHA

 

[a legacy reborn]

LOL! I <3 Google.

 

[Carl]

tilt is another (just the same as askew tbh)

 

[Onimua]

Type 'askew' and hit enter.

Type 'google gravity' DO NOT HIT ENTER, move your cursor down and click the 'I'm feeling lucky' link on the right hand side.

Then try searching with the form after.

 

[grant sarver]

Type 'askew' and hit enter.

Type 'google gravity' DO NOT HIT ENTER, move your cursor down and click the 'I'm feeling lucky' link on the right hand side.

You can click/drag stuff around too. Grab the "Google" and use it to bash stuff around!

 

[AdamD]

Ahh, it's the simple things in life, hehe.

 

[Kim]

I love that even a monolith like Google can have a little whimsey and allow their engineers to do fun stuff.

 

[EQnoble]

They get to do a lot more fun than just this stuff...in fact more than I have seen at any company. (there is also a bunch more of those hidden special queries that do awesomeness to the search page)

Check it Inside the Mind of Google

 

[Paul B]

Type in xx- followed by klingon/pirate/piglatin (and lots of others) then click I Feel Lucky.