Google 'Barrel Roll' Search Sets Screens Spinning

Another round of applause for Google
By Mary Papenfuss,  Newser Staff
Posted Nov 4, 2011 1:01 AM CDT

Relax. It's not your head that's spinning, it's your computer screen. Google has launched a trick search that sends a screen image rolling in a circle when users type in the search words: "Do a barrel roll." The 360-degree gimmick that set Twitterverse tongues wagging yesterday works on the Firefox and Google Chrome browsers (and iPhones). It was designed primarily to "entertain users," Google told ABC News, but also to highlight the abilities of the browser presentation feature CSS3. The big spin is also triggered when users type in: "Z or R twice"—a homage to the Nintendo game Star Fox, notes the Daily Mail. Toggling the Z or R buttons in the 1990s game also sent screen images into orbit. (More Do a barrel roll stories.)

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