Desktopcolors.com - Archive of classic OS desktop background colors
Show HN: Desktopcolors.com – A museum for solid background colors of classic OS
Desktopcolors.com is a digital museum dedicated to the solid background colors that shipped with classic operating systems and desktop environments. From Windows 95's iconic teal to the platinum-era patterns of Mac OS 8, this archive catalogs the palettes that defined computing eras. Each entry provides the hex code, release year, and a link to explore the full color set. Whether you're a designer seeking retro inspiration, a nostalgia enthusiast, or a developer curious about historical UI choices, Desktopcolors.com offers a unique, browsable collection that celebrates the visual identity of software history.
Every solid desktop background color shipped by classic operating systems and desktop environments—a museum of the hues that greeted millions at boot.
- danirod
One nerdy detail about old operating systems and graphics cards: due to the way the VGA color palette works, the teal background used in Windows 98 and earlier versions of Windows was actually lighter than #008080 if the computer was configured to use 16 colors (not 256 colors):
https://twitter.com/bakertechsrvcs/status/162629846037367193...
https://xcancel.com/bakertechsrvcs/status/162629846037367193...
Another nerdy detail: the default background color on Windows XP was different depending on whether the theme was Luna or Classic. On Classic it is the same one as Windows 2000, but for Luna it is more blueish. I understand the denial, but it will be the 25st anniversary of the XP release in a few months, so it probably qualifies as classic by now.
- colinhb
Some overlooked iconic backgrounds/color-schemes for me:
NeXTSTEP: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NeXTSTEP#/media/File:NeXTSTEP_...
Plan9/Rio: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plan_9_from_Bell_Labs#/media/F...
- flowercalled
I can understand using an llm to build your website. But I can't understand using it to write copy, especially when it's so unnecessary here.
- torh
My favorite was the blue in Windows 2000. Never cared much for the green in Windows 95/98. When installing Windows 98 later (because games) I would try to set up the same blue. Instead of getting it correct, I guessed, and ended up with #336699 which was easy to remember and "close enough". I see now that it's closer to Haiku (almost perfect, #336698) than Windows 2000.
- consumer451
This isn't a "desktop," but C64's dark blue background appears to be RGB (64, 50, 133). That was the color of my early childhood.