# Story Behind the Famous Windows XP Wallpaper! **URL:** \ **Category:** Uncategorized\ **Created:** [February 26, 2021, 7:06am UTC](https://forum.kirupa.com/t/story-behind-the-famous-windows-xp-wallpaper/646353 "2021-02-26T07:06:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 13\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![kirupa](https://yyz1.discourse-cdn.com/flex011/user_avatar/forum.kirupa.com/kirupa/32/11616_2.png) [@kirupa](https://forum.kirupa.com/u/kirupa)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2021, 7:06am UTC](https://forum.kirupa.com/t/story-behind-the-famous-windows-xp-wallpaper/646353/1 "2021-02-26T07:06:29Z")
[https://www.sfgate.com/travel/article/Windows-XP-Bliss-Hill-Sonoma-Charles-O-Rear-15976588.php](https://www.sfgate.com/travel/article/Windows-XP-Bliss-Hill-Sonoma-Charles-O-Rear-15976588.php) I have read various iterations of this story over the years, and it is still a great read when it resurfaces 😀 ---
**Author:** ![steve.mills](https://yyz1.discourse-cdn.com/flex011/user_avatar/forum.kirupa.com/steve.mills/32/14961_2.png) [@steve.mills](https://forum.kirupa.com/u/steve.mills)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2021, 12:00pm UTC](https://forum.kirupa.com/t/story-behind-the-famous-windows-xp-wallpaper/646353/2 "2021-02-26T12:00:27Z")
That’s a blast from the past. I think in 95 I had a 386(Mhz) computer, then later a 686 on Windows 98 and in 2000 it was like Wow! you can get a Ghz processor and Window XP… 😀 ---
**Author:** ![steve.mills](https://yyz1.discourse-cdn.com/flex011/user_avatar/forum.kirupa.com/steve.mills/32/14961_2.png) [@steve.mills](https://forum.kirupa.com/u/steve.mills)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2021, 12:27pm UTC](https://forum.kirupa.com/t/story-behind-the-famous-windows-xp-wallpaper/646353/3 "2021-02-26T12:27:18Z")
Who remembers, Alta Vista and Ask Jeeves? ---
**Author:** ![senocular](https://yyz1.discourse-cdn.com/flex011/user_avatar/forum.kirupa.com/senocular/32/7217_2.png) [@senocular](https://forum.kirupa.com/u/senocular)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2021, 1:21pm UTC](https://forum.kirupa.com/t/story-behind-the-famous-windows-xp-wallpaper/646353/4 "2021-02-26T13:21:02Z")
I miss my tower’s turbo button. ---
**Author:** ![tbo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7feea3/32.png) [@tbo](https://forum.kirupa.com/u/tbo)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2021, 1:59pm UTC](https://forum.kirupa.com/t/story-behind-the-famous-windows-xp-wallpaper/646353/5 "2021-02-26T13:59:20Z")
I’ve heard the birds chirp the windows xp sound on that hill ---
**Author:** ![senocular](https://yyz1.discourse-cdn.com/flex011/user_avatar/forum.kirupa.com/senocular/32/7217_2.png) [@senocular](https://forum.kirupa.com/u/senocular)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2021, 2:39pm UTC](https://forum.kirupa.com/t/story-behind-the-famous-windows-xp-wallpaper/646353/6 "2021-02-26T14:39:00Z")
Ah the cacophony [![]( " - YouTube") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s-IOYdXferc) ---
**Author:** ![steve.mills](https://yyz1.discourse-cdn.com/flex011/user_avatar/forum.kirupa.com/steve.mills/32/14961_2.png) [@steve.mills](https://forum.kirupa.com/u/steve.mills)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2021, 2:50pm UTC](https://forum.kirupa.com/t/story-behind-the-famous-windows-xp-wallpaper/646353/7 "2021-02-26T14:50:03Z")
Do you remember mouses/ mice with the rubber balls that you could unscrew from the bottom, I used to throw the rubber ball at my brother… 😁 ---
**Author:** ![kirupa](https://yyz1.discourse-cdn.com/flex011/user_avatar/forum.kirupa.com/kirupa/32/11616_2.png) [@kirupa](https://forum.kirupa.com/u/kirupa)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2021, 5:43am UTC](https://forum.kirupa.com/t/story-behind-the-famous-windows-xp-wallpaper/646353/8 "2021-02-27T05:43:37Z")
Yes to everything you all have mentioned here! A few more: 1. Mice with cords 2. USB speakers 3. Turbo buttons 4. Pentium II, Pentium MMX, Pentium Pro, Pentium III 5. Windows NT ---
**Author:** ![tbo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7feea3/32.png) [@tbo](https://forum.kirupa.com/u/tbo)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2021, 6:03am UTC](https://forum.kirupa.com/t/story-behind-the-famous-windows-xp-wallpaper/646353/9 "2021-02-27T06:03:38Z")
I really don’t have much memory of the turbo button, but looking at images it does bring up a vague memory of what i think was indeed a turbo button that I ignored. It sounds so very spinal tap _“this goes to 11”_ Next gen machines should have not one, but 2 turbo buttons. 🚀 ---
**Author:** ![steve.mills](https://yyz1.discourse-cdn.com/flex011/user_avatar/forum.kirupa.com/steve.mills/32/14961_2.png) [@steve.mills](https://forum.kirupa.com/u/steve.mills)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2021, 6:52am UTC](https://forum.kirupa.com/t/story-behind-the-famous-windows-xp-wallpaper/646353/10 "2021-02-27T06:52:18Z")
I still use a mouse and keyboard with a cord (who can be bothered with batteries 😁) and I still have USB speakers. And my internet is CAT6 to the modem… 😁 ---
**Author:** ![tbo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7feea3/32.png) [@tbo](https://forum.kirupa.com/u/tbo)\ **Post date:** [February 27, 2021, 10:21am UTC](https://forum.kirupa.com/t/story-behind-the-famous-windows-xp-wallpaper/646353/11 "2021-02-27T10:21:32Z")
same, but when the world wireless system comes on-line we can untether ourselves. [https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7b/Tesla\_Broadcast\_Tower\_1904.jpeg](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7b/Tesla_Broadcast_Tower_1904.jpeg) ---
**Author:** ![bracknelson123](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e480ec/32.png) [@bracknelson123](https://forum.kirupa.com/u/bracknelson123)\ **Post date:** [March 25, 2021, 4:36am UTC](https://forum.kirupa.com/t/story-behind-the-famous-windows-xp-wallpaper/646353/12 "2021-03-25T04:36:10Z")
Charles O’Rear was the photographer who took this extraordinary pic. A pic which we know as Bliss, with his camera and while he was going to visit his girlfriend in 1996, from his RZ67 camera. The hill is situated in Sonoma country, California. But sad these hills does not look like it was before. ---
**Author:** ![radmo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e9c0ed/32.png) [@radmo](https://forum.kirupa.com/u/radmo)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2022, 7:52am UTC](https://forum.kirupa.com/t/story-behind-the-famous-windows-xp-wallpaper/646353/14 "2022-01-07T07:52:07Z")
I do. Seems so looooong ago now hey?