Microsoft’s ‘ugly’ Windows XP-themed Christmas sweater unveiled

Microsoft’s Ugly Sweater 2023 Windows features iconic wallpaper

Microsoft releases a new and highly sought-after Windows-themed “ugly sweater” every holiday season. Last year there was a Clippy sweater. A year earlier, a Paint-themed sweater was released. This year, Windows Ugly Sweater received the default Windows XP wallpaper, also known as “Bliss”.

The Bliss wallpaper is considered the most viewed photo in the world. It depicts a green hill under a cloudy blue sky and was used as the default wallpaper on millions of Windows computers between 2001 and 2008.

Microsoft’s ‘ugly’ Windows XP-themed Christmas sweater unveiled

The image was taken by photographer Charles O’Rear in 1996 before Microsoft bought the rights to it in 2000 for a rumored “low six-figure” sum. Incredibly, O’Rear claims that the photograph has not been digitally altered. The hill is located next to a busy highway in Sonoma, California, although these days it’s home to a vineyard and doesn’t look much like the iconic photo.

Microsoft says all proceeds will go to The Nature Conservancy, an organization dedicated to “conserving the lands and waters on which all life depends.”