Microsoft's Blue Screen of Death is the curse of Windows. Not just its appearance, mid way through some serious game play or spreadsheeting, but the messages themselves - digital monologues on the existence of a problem, its possible causes and how you can fix it.
Yeah, right. Just shut down and re-start like everybody else.
With Windows 8 Microsoft has
re-engineered BSOD for the era of Twitter and texting - unhappy smilies and chirpy one-liners.
Based on some Microsoft research, though, it seems you could be seeing more of the Windows 8 BSOD if you buy a PC from an OEM who's fiddled with the chip to make it go that little bit faster. Also, beware the temptation to buy a PC from an unrecognized PC maker.
A Microsoft Research report, published in April 2011 but only just coughed to the top of the web ahead of the Windows 8 launch, has found that overclocked CPUs are substantially more likely to make a Windows PC crash than chips left untouched. The message: pick your PC wisely and resist home-brew fiddling.
