Sponsored message
Audience-funded nonprofit news
radio tower icon laist logo
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
Subscribe
  • Listen Now Playing Listen

This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.

This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.

Arts & Entertainment

TED Conference Speaker Has Best Computer Fail Ever

With our free press under threat and federal funding for public media gone, your support matters more than ever. Help keep the LAist newsroom strong, become a monthly member or increase your support today.

Imagine you are invited to give a TED talk at the big conference in Long Beach. But just as your talk on the topic of the "unexpected" gets underway, you're plagued with that Apple computer "spinning beach ball of death" and your total AV package is frozen. Gulp.

That's exactly want happened to speaker Colin Robertson, whose presentation was derailed...with unexpected results.

[SPOILER ALERT]

Sponsored message

Okay, so Colin isn't Colin, and the TED talk gone awry, if you haven't watched the whole video yet, was actually an Improv Everywhere "scene" put on with the help of the TED organizers.

After the initial awkward phase, and the audience clearly feeling bad for the guy on the stage, the presentation started to get a little ridiculous.

Improv Everywhere explains:

The crowd started to catch on that something was not right as the error messages starting piling on top of each other. Errors from older Mac operating systems starting popping up, one accompanied by the classic “eep” sound. Then two additional spinning beach balls appeared. At this point, performers secretly placed in the crowd popped open umbrellas that looked exactly like the spinning beach ball.

Ultimately, the "skit" made use of rainbow wigs, streamers, and people dressed up as a human "spinning beach ball" to make the point, and the joke: The unexpected can be wonderful!

At LAist, we focus on what matters to our community: clear, fair, and transparent reporting that helps you make decisions with confidence and keeps powerful institutions accountable.

Your support for independent local news is critical. With federal funding for public media gone, LAist faces a $1.7 million yearly shortfall. Speaking frankly, how much reader support we receive now will determine the strength of this reliable source of local information now and for years to come.

This work is only possible with community support. Every investigation, service guide, and story is made possible by people like you who believe that local news is a public good and that everyone deserves access to trustworthy local information.

That’s why we’re asking you to stand up for independent reporting that will not be silenced. With more individuals like you supporting this public service, we can continue to provide essential coverage for Southern Californians that you can’t find anywhere else. Become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.

Thank you for understanding how essential it is to have an informed community and standing up for free press.
Senior Vice President News, Editor in Chief

Chip in now to fund your local journalism

A row of graphics payment types: Visa, MasterCard, Apple Pay and PayPal, and  below a lock with Secure Payment text to the right