Offbeat: Steve Ballmer signs MacBook Pro - running Windows, of course

While on a visit to Trevecca Nazarene University in Nashville, Tenn., this week, Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer put his John Hancock on a MacBook Pro, and the event was captured on video.

While meeting with a group of students, one of them asked the multi-billionaire: "Mr. Ballmer, would you sign my laptop?" The inquiry earned laughs from the group, as well as as the Microsoft executive. "It's got Windows on it," the student said, "I promise."

"Oh yeah," Ballmer said sarcastically, before taking the MacBook Pro and signing it with a marker. The autograph came with a note: "Need a new one?"

"It's all yours," Ballmer said as he handed the Apple machine back to the student.

Ballmer was in town for the Nashville Technology Council's annual meeting. The one-day visit from the Microsoft executive was part of a multi-city tour intended to promote the company as one that can solve problems for specific industries, the university said.

During his trip, Ballmer met with students from local colleges and universities, which is where he encountered the MacBook Pro. The full video of the event is embedded below:

The student also uploaded a photo of the signature to his personal Web site.

Ballmer gained attention last September when a Microsoft employee at a private company meeting snapped a picture of him using an iPhone. Ballmer grabbed the phone and made lighthearted remarks while the onlooking audience booed. He then put the phone on the ground and pretended to stomp on it.

After the incident, one Microsoft employee said of the situation: "You just don't pick up the CEO of Chevy in a BMW."