News: Lighting the way for Diwali

Many orkut users (and a number of our engineering and operations staff) are celebrating the festival of Diwali this week. Never one to miss an important occasion, orkut wanted to find a unique way to recognize this national holiday. In India, lots of people pass around sweets and snacks to celebrate.

In keeping with this tradition, here's something new and 'sweet' when you log in: just in time for the annual festival of lights, you'll see a Diwali theme that transforms the site before your eyes! If you're located in India and have signed into orkut in the last day or so, you may have noticed something different about your profile: a small lamp icon next to your email address at the top of the page. If you click on the lamp (also called a diya) or the "Happy Diwali!" message, you'll be rewarded with a fun scene of firecrackers and celebrations set against an outline of some famous Indian landmarks.

Last year, our team posted a Diwali doodle on the login page, but we decided to go a step further this year by creating orkut's very first profile theme. We also thought it would be fun to let you discover this option on your own, instead of automatically changing it for everyone. If for some reason, you'd prefer the usual orkut look, simply click on the lamp or the message again, and ta-da, back to normal. But keep in mind that the theme will only last for a few more days, so enjoy it while you have it.

Who knows, maybe you'll see more themes in the future for special occasions. Until then, happy holidays to you all!

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