MSKBHahaha

July 7, 2004 9:59 AM

Funny Microsoft Knowledge base articles. Cookies Lost After Upgrading to Windows XP, Calculator Does Not Reliably Subtract Two Numbers in Windows, etc...
posted by srboisvert (11 comments total)

That second one ( 12.52 - 12.51 = 0.0099999999 ) isn't actually as funny as it might sound. You'd get similar results from most code doing floating point arithmatic. The concept is called underflow and is a result of how computers do math with floating point numbers. No, I don't understand the details either, but wikipedia has more, if you're so inclined.
posted by malphigian at 10:15 AM on July 7, 2004

real and not so real.
posted by quonsar at 10:39 AM on July 7, 2004

Define "funny"
posted by Outlawyr at 10:54 AM on July 7, 2004

"The putt-putt shadow in world two above the teddy boom pod is wrong."

NOW they tell me! I could've saved thousands of dollars in therapists' fees.
posted by mr_crash_davis at 11:13 AM on July 7, 2004

KB Article 34191

Funny Knowledge Base Articles Not Actually All That Amusing

SYMPTOMS

When you click the above links referring to Microsoft Windows 98, Windows Millennium Edition (Me), Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition. Windows XP Professional, or other Microsoft products, expecting Funny, you will find an unexceptional collection of bug reports instead of the Funny.

CAUSE
This issue occurs because most of the reportedly amusing Knowledge Base articles depend on one of the following as the source of the Funny:
* Puns based on the names of common system tools or components, e.g. "SATAN," "Shiva", or "lost cookies."
* Bug reports referring to games software, which would be amusing if they did not refer to games software, e.g. "user commits suicide."
* Perfectly straightforward bug reports for which the source of Funny is known only to the author of the list, e.g. floating point underflow, localization errors.

RESOLUTION
To resolve this problem, obtain the latest service pack from one of the preceding and/or following MetaFilter threads. One of them must surely contain the Funny.
posted by ook at 11:15 AM on July 7, 2004

Q172668: Barney Fun on Imagination Island Error "ERROR: Barney Not Found."

That's not a bug, it's a feature.
posted by DevilsAdvocate at 11:49 AM on July 7, 2004

If something is modded '5: Funny' on slashdot, you can be fairly sure it isn't.
posted by toby\flat2 at 12:40 PM on July 7, 2004

hmm , the outlook express upgrade that wipes your contacts list , the activesync upgrade for your mobile that crashes your hard drive.

hilarious.
posted by sgt.serenity at 12:56 PM on July 7, 2004

http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=131109
posted by AaRdVarK at 1:09 PM on July 7, 2004

Summary
In the scientific mode of the Microsoft Windows Calculator application, the square root button (sqrt) disappears.
Solution:
If you don't know how to get a square root with a "raise x to the power of y" button, you have no business using a scientific calculator. Go back to the kiddy pool.
posted by CrunchyFrog at 1:52 PM on July 7, 2004

I saw this the other day on del.icio.us. Check out this one. Hilarious.
posted by ed\26h at 2:15 AM on July 8, 2004