Something I always enjoyed when I was younger was finding Easter Eggs.  I also remember the first time I found Easter Eggs in software.

I was really excited and thought I had found something unique.  Most of the time though it seems these fun little things are only in games.  Personally I would like to change that, or maybe just have it happen more often.

Of course games have more leeway for these kind of shenanigans.  One of the first games I remember finding one is Adventure.  This was a game for the Atari 2600 created by Warren Robinett.  Being the kind of guy I am I have played Adventure on just about everything it has been released on; from the original Atari 2600 to the Nintendo DS and now the Atari Vault on Steam.  I took this screenshot while playing it on the Atari Vault.

Personally I think we developers could have some fun with our users if we added some Easter Eggs from time to time.  Of course these Easter Eggs should have no impact on the application where they are hidden.  Otherwise you just introduced a feature, and who really wants to do that?

Some users might find it fun as well.  They might even welcome it in their daily routine.  You just need to keep it fun, not potentially offensive, and not to impact the actual intent of the application.

I have really only encountered one application I use at work that has any kind of an Easter Egg, and that is SQL Compare.  They have added a neat little slider puzzle.  First it will display the image and then it will mix the image and you can play.

In the end I believe as Enterprise developers we usually do not have the time for such things.  Of course it might be safer if you brought it up to your manager, but for the right corporate environment it could be fun.

Have you ever found an Easter Egg in a professional non-game application?