The Windows Insider program is one designed to let users test out new features before getting to the public, but it's incredibly rare for a person to want access to test out a bug. That happened, however, just last month, as users were hit with the nostalgic tones of the Windows Vista start-up instead of the current one.
In an effort I can only assume is to mess with me specifically, Microsoft has fixed the 'bug' responsible in the Canary channel of the preview build and will now play the standard Windows 11 boot sound instead. The bug change says the "sound was unexpectedly being used instead of the Windows 11 boot sound."
For some context on how strange this bug really is, Windows Vista originally launched for the public in January 2007, and mainstream support (which includes new features) ended in 2012. Extended support for the OS ended in 2017, which means it hasn't received security updates in over eight years now.
Vista is widely considered one of the worst versions of Windows ever, due to tough hardware requirements (sound familiar?) and driver problems. The boot-up sound, however, is iconic. The swell of the violin and the plinks and plonks of synth are a lot more pleasant than the light chime of Windows 11 I hear every day.
The Vista boot-up sound is the same jingle played on boot-up of Windows 7, but Microsoft specifically cites it as the Windows Vista sound, and Vista was technically first.
As far as my nostalgia is concerned, this is the second most iconic bootup sound behind Windows XP. However, my nostalgia is linked to its use in Windows 7, as I've never actually used a PC with Vista. I managed to go straight from XP to Windows 7, which I'm thankful for, if user reports are anything to go by.
As well as fixing the sound bug, the latest update changed a bug that would stop audio playing for a few moments after casting to a TV, as well as fixing crashes that happened when interacting with the power and battery settings menu. As well as fixing a few more problems, the latest update acknowledges problems it will be working on in the future.
I am a little sad to see the Vista boot-up go, but searching for how to change it back did send me down a rather fun rabbit hole. As pointed out by Windowsreport, you can edit the registry on your PC in order to give you the ability to change your startup sounds without requiring any extra downloads or shady apps.
Though the option to change the Vista sound isn't available in the sounds folder, I can now say my computer gives me a small 'tada' when I boot it up, so at least something good came out of this strange bug.
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