diff --git a/bin/apport b/bin/apport
index 3b370423..a9e7def4 100755
--- a/bin/apport
+++ b/bin/apport
@@ -18,6 +18,7 @@
 #    along with this program.  If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
 
 PKG="byobu"
+color 2>/dev/null || color() { true; }
 
 if [ "$1" = "--detail" ]; then
 	if ls /var/crash/*.crash >/dev/null 2>&1; then
@@ -35,4 +36,4 @@ if [ "$1" = "--detail" ]; then
 fi
 
 # Print {!} if a /var/crash/*.crash file exists
-ls /var/crash/*.crash >/dev/null 2>&1 && printf "$yk{!}$UNDO "
+ls /var/crash/*.crash >/dev/null 2>&1 && printf "$(color y k){!}$(color undo) "
diff --git a/bin/battery b/bin/battery
index e8d2638f..acc54a28 100755
--- a/bin/battery
+++ b/bin/battery
@@ -19,6 +19,7 @@
 #  along with this program.  If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
 
 PKG="byobu"
+color 2>/dev/null || color() { true; }
 
 search () {
 	local str expr
@@ -49,14 +50,14 @@ for bat in $(ls /proc/acpi/battery); do
 
 	percent=$( echo "$rem" "$full" | awk '{printf "%.0f",  100*$1/$2}')
 	if [ "$percent" -lt 33 ]; then
-		color="$Rk"
-		bcolor="$bRk"
+		color="$(color R k)"
+		bcolor="$(color b R k)"
 	elif [ "$percent" -lt 67 ]; then
-		color="$Yk"
-		bcolor="$bYk"
+		color="$(color Y k)"
+		bcolor="$(color b Y k)"
 	else
-		color="$Gk"
-		bcolor="$bGk"
+		color="$(color G k)"
+		bcolor="$(color b G k)"
 	fi
 	percent="$percent%"
 
@@ -76,6 +77,6 @@ for bat in $(ls /proc/acpi/battery); do
 			sign="$state"
 		;;
 	esac
-	printf "$bcolor%s$UNDO$color|%s|$UNDO " "$percent" "$sign"
+	printf "$bcolor%s$(color undo)$color|%s|$(color undo) " "$percent" "$sign"
 	break
 done
diff --git a/bin/cpu_freq b/bin/cpu_freq
index 0f49c441..53e8c93f 100755
--- a/bin/cpu_freq
+++ b/bin/cpu_freq
@@ -18,6 +18,7 @@
 #    along with this program.  If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
 
 PKG="byobu"
+color 2>/dev/null || color() { true; }
 
 if [ "$1" = "--detail" ]; then
 	cat /proc/cpuinfo
@@ -29,4 +30,4 @@ if [ -r "/sys/devices/system/cpu/cpu0/cpufreq/scaling_cur_freq" ]; then
 else
 	freq=$(egrep -i -m 1 "^cpu MHz|^clock|^bogomips" /proc/cpuinfo | awk -F"[:.]" '{ printf "%.1f", $2 / 1000 }')
 fi
-printf "$bcW%s$UNDO$cW%s$UNDO " "$freq" "GHz"
+printf "$(color b c W)%s$(color undo)$(color c W)%s$(color undo) " "$freq" "GHz"
diff --git a/bin/custom b/bin/custom
index a7cd9edd..b58184c0 100755
--- a/bin/custom
+++ b/bin/custom
@@ -20,6 +20,7 @@
 
 PKG="byobu"
 [ -d "$HOME/.$PKG/bin" ] || exit 0
+color 2>/dev/null || color() { true; }
 
 [ -d "/var/run/screen/S-$USER" ] && DIR="/var/run/screen/S-$USER" || DIR="$HOME/.byobu"
 NOW=$(date +%s)
@@ -39,9 +40,9 @@ for i in $(ls "$HOME/.$PKG/bin/"[0-9]*_* 2>/dev/null); do
 	output=$(cat "$CACHE.$script")
 	if echo "$output" | grep -qs "$ESC{"; then
 		# User has formatted the colors
-		echo "$output"
+		printf "$output"
 	else
 		# Default to inverted coloring
-		echo "$INVERT$output$UNDO "
+		printf "$(color invert)$output$(color undo) "
 	fi
 done
diff --git a/bin/disk b/bin/disk
index 19643b23..06f5638c 100755
--- a/bin/disk
+++ b/bin/disk
@@ -18,6 +18,7 @@
 #    along with this program.  If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
 
 PKG="byobu"
+color 2>/dev/null || color() { true; }
 
 if [ "$1" = "--detail" ]; then
 	df -h -P
@@ -33,4 +34,4 @@ esac
 
 disk=$(df -h -P "$MP" 2>/dev/null || df -h "$MP")
 disk=$(echo "$disk" | tail -n 1 | awk '{print $2 " " $5}' | sed "s/\([^0-9\. ]\)/ \1/g" | awk '{printf "%d%sB,%d%", $1, $2, $3}')
-printf "$MW%s$UNDO " "$disk"
+printf "$(color M W)%s$(color undo) " "$disk"
diff --git a/bin/ec2_cost b/bin/ec2_cost
index 814db8fd..c87399dc 100755
--- a/bin/ec2_cost
+++ b/bin/ec2_cost
@@ -19,6 +19,7 @@
 
 DETAIL=0
 PKG="byobu"
+color 2>/dev/null || color() { true; }
 
 for arg in $@; do
 	case "$arg" in
@@ -82,4 +83,4 @@ if [ "$DETAIL" = "1" ]; then
 	exit 0
 fi
 
-printf "$KG~\$$UNDO$bKG%s$UNDO " $total_cost
+printf "$(color K G)~\$$(color undo)$(color b K G)%s$(color undo) " $total_cost
diff --git a/bin/fan_speed b/bin/fan_speed
index 47a4fe7a..ef706ffd 100755
--- a/bin/fan_speed
+++ b/bin/fan_speed
@@ -19,6 +19,7 @@
 #
 
 PKG="byobu"
+color 2>/dev/null || color() { true; }
 
 DIR="/sys/class/hwmon"
 if [ "$1" = "--detail" ]; then
@@ -32,7 +33,7 @@ fi
 for i in $(find $DIR/*/*/ -type f -name "fan1_input"); do
 	speed=$(cat "$i")
 	if [ "$speed" -gt 0 ]; then
-	        printf "$BOLD1%s$UNDO$NONE%s$UNDO " "$speed" "rpm"
+	        printf "$(color bold1)%s$(color undo)$(color none)%s$(color undo) " "$speed" "rpm"
 		exit 0
 	fi
 done
diff --git a/bin/hostname b/bin/hostname
index 1b8133b6..7dacef4a 100755
--- a/bin/hostname
+++ b/bin/hostname
@@ -18,6 +18,7 @@
 #    along with this program.  If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
 
 PKG="byobu"
+color 2>/dev/null || color() { true; }
 
 if [ "$1" = "--detail" ]; then
 	hostname -f
@@ -27,4 +28,4 @@ fi
 . "$HOME/.$PKG/status"
 [ "$whoami" = "1" ] && at="@"
 
-printf "$BOLD2%s%s$UNDO" "$at" $(hostname -s 2>/dev/null || hostname)
+printf "$(color bold2)%s%s$(color undo)" "$at" $(hostname -s 2>/dev/null || hostname)
diff --git a/bin/ip_address b/bin/ip_address
index 9c607a8b..a47fad19 100755
--- a/bin/ip_address
+++ b/bin/ip_address
@@ -18,6 +18,7 @@
 #    along with this program.  If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
 
 PKG="byobu"
+color 2>/dev/null || color() { true; }
 
 if [ "$1" = "--detail" ]; then
 	/sbin/ifconfig | grep "inet addr" | sed -e 's/^\s*//' -e 's/\s*$//'
@@ -37,4 +38,4 @@ fi
 
 ipaddr=`/sbin/ifconfig "$interface" | grep "inet addr:" | sed -e "s/^.*inet addr://" -e "s/ .*$//"`
 
-printf "%s$BOLD2%s$UNDO" "$space" "$ipaddr"
+printf "%s$(color bold2)%s$(color undo)" "$space" "$ipaddr"
diff --git a/bin/load_average b/bin/load_average
index 0e995b92..d6d99579 100755
--- a/bin/load_average
+++ b/bin/load_average
@@ -18,10 +18,11 @@
 #    along with this program.  If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
 
 PKG="byobu"
+color 2>/dev/null || color() { true; }
 
 if [ "$1" = "--detail" ]; then
 	cat /proc/loadavg
 	exit 0
 fi
 
-printf "$Yk%s$UNDO " $(awk '{print $1}' /proc/loadavg)
+printf "$(color Y k)%s$(color undo) " $(awk '{print $1}' /proc/loadavg)
diff --git a/bin/logo b/bin/logo
index 802c1797..5e248740 100755
--- a/bin/logo
+++ b/bin/logo
@@ -18,6 +18,7 @@
 #    along with this program.  If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
 
 PKG="byobu"
+color 2>/dev/null || color() { true; }
 
 if [ "$1" = "--detail" ]; then
 	MARKUP="false"
@@ -30,63 +31,63 @@ print_logo() {
 	distro=`echo "$1" | sed 'y/ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ/abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz/' `
 	case "$distro" in
 		*ubuntu*)
-			$MARKUP && printf "$bkr%s$ky%s$bkY%s" "\\" "o" "/" || printf "\\o/"
+			$MARKUP && printf "$(color b k r)%s$(color k y)%s$(color b k Y)%s" "\\" "o" "/" || printf "\\o/"
 		;;
 		*altlinux*)
 			logo="alt"
-			$MARKUP && printf "$Yk%s" "$logo" || printf "$logo"
+			$MARKUP && printf "$(color Y k)%s" "$logo" || printf "$logo"
 		;;
 	 	*arch*)
 			logo=" A "
-			$MARKUP && printf "$bwb%s" "$logo" || printf "$logo"
+			$MARKUP && printf "$(color b w b)%s" "$logo" || printf "$logo"
 		;;
 		*centos*)
 			logo="****"
-			$MARKUP && printf "$gw*$mw*$yw*$bw*" || printf "$logo"
+			$MARKUP && printf "$(color g w)*$(color m w)*$(color y w)*$(color b w)*" || printf "$logo"
 		;;
 		*debian*)
 			logo=" @ "
-			$MARKUP && printf "$wr%s" "$logo" || printf "$logo"
+			$MARKUP && printf "$(color w r)%s" "$logo" || printf "$logo"
 		;;
 		*fedora*)
 			logo=" f "
-			$MARKUP && printf "$bw%s" "$logo" || printf "$logo"
+			$MARKUP && printf "$(color b w)%s" "$logo" || printf "$logo"
 		;;
 		*foresight*)
 			logo="<@>"
-			$MARKUP && printf "$bWg%s" "$logo" || printf "$logo"
+			$MARKUP && printf "$(color b W g)%s" "$logo" || printf "$logo"
 		;;
 		*gentoo*)
 			logo=" > "
-			$MARKUP && printf "$bcw%s" "$logo" || printf "$logo"
+			$MARKUP && printf "$(color b c w)%s" "$logo" || printf "$logo"
 		;;
 		*mandriva*)
 			logo=" (* "
-			$MARKUP && printf "$bkc ($bky* " || printf "$logo"
+			$MARKUP && printf "$(color b k c) ($(color b k y)* " || printf "$logo"
 		;;
 		*redhat*)
 			logo=" RH "
-			$MARKUP && printf "$Rk%s" "$logo" || printf "$logo"
+			$MARKUP && printf "$(color R k)%s" "$logo" || printf "$logo"
 		;;
 		*rockhopper*)
 			logo="palm"
-			$MARKUP && printf "$kw%s" "$logo" || printf "$logo"
+			$MARKUP && printf "$(color k w)%s" "$logo" || printf "$logo"
 		;;
 		*slackware*)
 			logo=".S "
-			$MARKUP && printf "$uBk%s" "$logo" || printf "$logo"
+			$MARKUP && printf "$(color u B k)%s" "$logo" || printf "$logo"
 		;;
 		*suse*)
 			logo="SuSE"
-			$MARKUP && printf "$Wg%s" "$logo" || printf "$logo"
+			$MARKUP && printf "$(color W g)%s" "$logo" || printf "$logo"
 		;;
 		*xandros*)
 			logo=" X "
-			$MARKUP && printf "$Wr%s" "$logo" || printf "$logo"
+			$MARKUP && printf "$(color W r)%s" "$logo" || printf "$logo"
 		;;
 		*)
 			logo="[B]"
-			$MARKUP && printf "$bkW%s" "$logo" || printf " $logo "
+			$MARKUP && printf "$(color b k W)%s" "$logo" || printf " $logo "
 		;;
 	esac
 }
diff --git a/bin/mail b/bin/mail
index 73f91b5a..914b71e7 100755
--- a/bin/mail
+++ b/bin/mail
@@ -18,6 +18,7 @@
 #    along with this program.  If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
 
 PKG="byobu"
+color 2>/dev/null || color() { true; }
 
 mailfile="/var/spool/mail/$USER"
 if [ "$1" = "--detail" ]; then
@@ -25,4 +26,4 @@ if [ "$1" = "--detail" ]; then
 	exit 0
 fi
 
-[ -s "$mailfile" ] && printf "$wk[M]$UNDO " || exit 0
+[ -s "$mailfile" ] && printf "$(color w k)[M]$(color undo) " || exit 0
diff --git a/bin/mem_available b/bin/mem_available
index dced60a0..2a69784f 100755
--- a/bin/mem_available
+++ b/bin/mem_available
@@ -18,6 +18,7 @@
 #    along with this program.  If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
 
 PKG="byobu"
+color 2>/dev/null || color() { true; }
 
 if [ "$1" = "--detail" ]; then
 	free
@@ -38,4 +39,4 @@ else
 	mem="$mem"
 	unit="KB"
 fi
-printf "$bgW%s$UNDO$gW$unit%s$UNDO%s" "$mem" "$comma" "$whitespace"
+printf "$(color b g W)%s$(color undo)$(color g W)$unit%s$(color undo)%s" "$mem" "$comma" "$whitespace"
diff --git a/bin/mem_used b/bin/mem_used
index 87a21c9b..908ac722 100755
--- a/bin/mem_used
+++ b/bin/mem_used
@@ -18,6 +18,7 @@
 #    along with this program.  If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
 
 PKG="byobu"
+color 2>/dev/null || color() { true; }
 
 if [ "$1" = "--detail" ]; then
 	cat /proc/meminfo
@@ -25,4 +26,4 @@ if [ "$1" = "--detail" ]; then
 fi
 
 f=$(free | awk '/buffers\/cache:/ {printf "%.0f", 100*$3/($3 + $4)}')
-printf "$bgW%s$UNDO$gW%%$UNDO " "$f"
+printf "$(color b g W)%s$(color undo)$(color g W)%%$(color undo) " "$f"
diff --git a/bin/menu b/bin/menu
index 910bf579..d0ed1492 100755
--- a/bin/menu
+++ b/bin/menu
@@ -19,6 +19,7 @@
 
 [ "$1" = "--detail" ] && exit 0
 PKG="byobu"
+color 2>/dev/null || color() { true; }
 
 [ -r "$HOME/.$PKG/keybindings" ] && bindings="$HOME/.$PKG/keybindings" || bindings="$HOME/.screenrc"
 
@@ -31,4 +32,4 @@ else
 	key="F9"
 fi
 
-printf " $kw%s:<$UNDO$bkw$key$kw>" `gettext "Menu"`
+printf " $(color k w)%s:<$(color undo)$(color b k w)$key$(color k w)>" `gettext "Menu"`
diff --git a/bin/network b/bin/network
index 08093f18..cb46722b 100755
--- a/bin/network
+++ b/bin/network
@@ -18,6 +18,7 @@
 #    along with this program.  If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
 
 PKG="byobu"
+color 2>/dev/null || color() { true; }
 
 # Allow interface overrides in $HOME/.$PKG/status
 if [ -n "$MONITORED_NETWORK" ]; then
@@ -57,5 +58,5 @@ for i in up down; do
 			unit="MB/s"
 		fi
 	fi
-	printf "$symbol$bmw$rate$UNDO$mw$unit$UNDO "
+	printf "$symbol$(color b m w)$rate$(color undo)$(color m w)$unit$(color undo) "
 done
diff --git a/bin/processes b/bin/processes
index 49289a18..193d4f48 100755
--- a/bin/processes
+++ b/bin/processes
@@ -18,10 +18,11 @@
 #    along with this program.  If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
 
 PKG="byobu"
+color 2>/dev/null || color() { true; }
 
 if [ "$1" = "--detail" ]; then
 	ps -ejH
 	exit 0
 fi
 
-printf "$byw%s$UNDO$yw&$UNDO " $(ls -d /proc/[0-9]* 2>/dev/null| wc -l)
+printf "$(color b y w)%s$(color undo)$(color y w)&$(color undo) " $(ls -d /proc/[0-9]* 2>/dev/null| wc -l)
diff --git a/bin/reboot_required b/bin/reboot_required
index e0af70b3..930cc5ad 100755
--- a/bin/reboot_required
+++ b/bin/reboot_required
@@ -18,6 +18,7 @@
 #    along with this program.  If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
 
 PKG="byobu"
+color 2>/dev/null || color() { true; }
 
 reboot="/var/run/reboot-required"
 [ -d "/var/run/screen/S-$USER" ] && DIR="/var/run/screen/S-$USER" || DIR="$HOME/.byobu"
@@ -30,7 +31,7 @@ case "$1" in
 		[ -e "$reboot" ] && printf "Yes" || printf "No"
 	;;
 	*)
-		[ -e "$reboot" ] && printf "$bW($UNDO$bbW%s$UNDO$bW)$UNDO " "R"
-		[ -e "$reload" ] && printf "$bW<$UNDO$bbW%s$UNDO$bW>$UNDO " "F5"
+		[ -e "$reboot" ] && printf "$(color b W)($(color undo)$(color b b W)%s$(color undo)$(color b W))$(color undo) " "R"
+		[ -e "$reload" ] && printf "$(color b W)<$(color undo)$(color b b W)%s$(color undo)$(color b W)>$(color undo) " "F5"
 	;;
 esac
diff --git a/bin/release b/bin/release
index 146d4f1f..311d5c45 100755
--- a/bin/release
+++ b/bin/release
@@ -18,6 +18,7 @@
 #    along with this program.  If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
 
 PKG="byobu"
+color 2>/dev/null || color() { true; }
 
 if [ "$1" = "--detail" ]; then
 	cat /etc/issue
@@ -54,4 +55,4 @@ else
 	DISTRO="Byobu"
 fi
 
-printf "$BOLD2%s$UNDO " "$DISTRO"
+printf "$(color bold2)%s$(color undo) " "$DISTRO"
diff --git a/bin/temp_c b/bin/temp_c
index bb3239e0..0af30ee5 100755
--- a/bin/temp_c
+++ b/bin/temp_c
@@ -19,6 +19,7 @@
 #
 
 PKG="byobu"
+color 2>/dev/null || color() { true; }
 
 DIR="/proc/acpi/thermal_zone"
 if [ "$1" = "--detail" ]; then
@@ -31,6 +32,6 @@ fi
 
 for i in $MONITORED_TEMP `ls $DIR/*/temperature 2>/dev/null`; do
 	t=$(sed -e "s/^[^0-9]\+//" -e "s/\s.*$//" "$i")
-	printf "$bkY%s$UNDO$kY\260C$UNDO " "$t"
+	printf "$(color b k Y)%s$(color undo)$(color k Y)\260C$(color undo) " "$t"
 	break
 done
diff --git a/bin/temp_f b/bin/temp_f
index 52415d45..963a9211 100755
--- a/bin/temp_f
+++ b/bin/temp_f
@@ -19,6 +19,7 @@
 #
 
 PKG="byobu"
+color 2>/dev/null || color() { true; }
 
 DIR="/proc/acpi/thermal_zone"
 if [ "$1" = "--detail" ]; then
@@ -27,6 +28,6 @@ fi
 
 for i in `ls $DIR/*/temperature 2>/dev/null`; do
 	t=$(sed -e "s/^[^0-9]\+//" -e "s/\s.*$//" "$i" | awk '{printf "%.0f", $1 *9/5 + 32}')
-	printf "$bkY%s$UNDO$kY\260F$UNDO " "$t"
+	printf "$(color b k Y)%s$(color undo)$(color k Y)\260F$(color undo) " "$t"
         break
 done
diff --git a/bin/updates_available b/bin/updates_available
index 099f6180..caa24f64 100755
--- a/bin/updates_available
+++ b/bin/updates_available
@@ -18,6 +18,7 @@
 #    along with this program.  If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
 
 PKG="byobu"
+color 2>/dev/null || color() { true; }
 
 if [ "$1" = "--detail" -o "$1" = "--short" ]; then
 	if which apt-get >/dev/null; then
@@ -37,13 +38,13 @@ print_updates() {
 	s=$2
 	if [ -n "$u" ]; then
 		if [ "$u" -gt 0 ]; then
-			printf "$brW%d$UNDO$rW!" "$u"
+			printf "$(color b r W)%d$(color undo)$(color r W)!" "$u"
 			if [ -n "$s" ]; then
 				if [ "$s" -gt 0 ]; then
 					printf "!"
 				fi
 			fi
-			printf "$UNDO "
+			printf "$(color undo) "
 		fi
 	fi
 }
diff --git a/bin/uptime b/bin/uptime
index 6a310266..37c110da 100755
--- a/bin/uptime
+++ b/bin/uptime
@@ -21,6 +21,7 @@
 #
 
 PKG="byobu"
+color 2>/dev/null || color() { true; }
 
 if [ "$1" = "--detail" ]; then
 	uptime
@@ -28,7 +29,7 @@ if [ "$1" = "--detail" ]; then
 fi
 
 u=$(sed "s/\..*$//" /proc/uptime)
-printf "$wb"
+printf "$(color w b)"
 if [ "$u" -gt 86400 ]; then
 	echo "$u" | awk '{printf "%dd%dh", $1 / 86400, ($1 % 86400)/3600 }'
 elif [ "$u" -gt 3600 ]; then
@@ -38,4 +39,4 @@ elif [ "$u" -gt 60 ]; then
 else
 	printf "%ds" "$u"
 fi
-printf "$UNDO "
+printf "$(color undo) "
diff --git a/bin/users b/bin/users
index c65f3299..4bcabd1b 100755
--- a/bin/users
+++ b/bin/users
@@ -21,6 +21,7 @@
 #
 
 PKG="byobu"
+color 2>/dev/null || color() { true; }
 
 if [ "$1" = "--detail" ]; then
 	ps -ef | grep "sshd;.*@" | grep -v grep
@@ -30,4 +31,4 @@ fi
 # Note: we'd like to use pgrep -c, however, this isn't available in
 # busybox and some distro's pgrep (and it doesn't exit non-zero).
 count=`pgrep -f "sshd:.*@" | wc -l` || exit 0
-[ $count -gt 0 ] && printf "$bwr%d$UNDO$wr#$UNDO " $count
+[ $count -gt 0 ] && printf "$(color b w r)%d$(color undo)$(color w r)#$(color undo) " $count
diff --git a/bin/whoami b/bin/whoami
index 6f40f7c7..f4f578d1 100755
--- a/bin/whoami
+++ b/bin/whoami
@@ -17,9 +17,11 @@
 #    You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License
 #    along with this program.  If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
 
+color 2>/dev/null || color() { true; }
+
 if [ "$1" = "--detail" ]; then
 	grep "^$USER:" /etc/passwd
 	exit 0
 fi
 
-printf "$BOLD2%s$UNDO" $(whoami)
+printf "$(color bold2)%s$(color undo)" $(whoami)
diff --git a/bin/wifi_quality b/bin/wifi_quality
index 6142e823..afdfe6a7 100755
--- a/bin/wifi_quality
+++ b/bin/wifi_quality
@@ -18,6 +18,7 @@
 #    along with this program.  If not, see <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/>.
 
 PKG="byobu"
+color 2>/dev/null || color() { true; }
 
 if [ "$1" = "--detail" ]; then
 	/sbin/iwconfig 2>/dev/null
@@ -28,4 +29,4 @@ iwconfig=`/sbin/iwconfig 2>/dev/null`
 bitrate=`echo "$iwconfig" | grep "Bit Rate." | sed -e "s/^.*Bit Rate.//" -e "s/ .*$//g"`
 [ -z "$bitrate" ] && bitrate="0"
 quality=`echo "$iwconfig" | grep "Link Quality." | sed -e "s/^.*Link Quality.//" -e "s/ .*$//g" | awk -F/ '{printf "%.0f", 100*$1/$2}'`
-printf "$bCk%s$UNDO$Ck%s,$UNDO$bCk%s$UNDO$Ck%%$UNDO " "$bitrate" "Mbps" "$quality"
+printf "$(color b C k)%s$(color undo)$(color C k)%s,$(color undo)$(color b C k)%s$(color undo)$(color C k)%%$(color UNDO) " "$bitrate" "Mbps" "$quality"
diff --git a/byobu-status b/byobu-status
index e00de9ae..628ae2b3 100755
--- a/byobu-status
+++ b/byobu-status
@@ -30,7 +30,29 @@ find_script () {
 	fi
 }
 
+# Define colors
+ESC="\005"
+color() {
+	case $1 in
+		"")     true ;;
+		esc)    printf "$ESC" ;;
+		undo)   printf "$ESC{-}" ;;
+		bold1)  printf "$ESC{=b }" ;;
+		bold2)  printf "$ESC{+b }" ;;
+		none)   printf "$ESC{= }" ;;
+		invert) printf "$ESC{=r }" ;;
+		*)
+			if [ "$#" = "2" ]; then
+				[ "$MONOCHROME" = "1" ] && printf "$ESC{ }" || printf "$ESC{= $1$2}"
+			else
+				[ "$MONOCHROME" = "1" ] && printf "$ESC{=$1 }" || printf "$ESC{=$1 $2$3}"
+			fi
+		;;
+	esac
+}
+
 # Source configurations
+[ -r "$HOME/.$PKG/color" ] && . "$HOME/.$PKG/color"
 [ -r "/etc/$PKG/statusrc" ] && . "/etc/$PKG/statusrc"
 [ -r "$HOME/.$PKG/status" ] && . "$HOME/.$PKG/status"
 [ -r "$HOME/.$PKG/statusrc" ] && . "$HOME/.$PKG/statusrc"
@@ -53,7 +75,6 @@ case "$P" in
 		done
 	;;
 	color)
-		[ -r "$HOME/.$PKG/color" ] && . "$HOME/.$PKG/color"
 		[ -z "$FOREGROUND" ] && FOREGROUND="k"
 		[ -z "$BACKGROUND" ] && BACKGROUND="W"
 		printf "$ESC{= $BACKGROUND$FOREGROUND}"
diff --git a/debian/changelog b/debian/changelog
index 3118bf12..89bbb661 100644
--- a/debian/changelog
+++ b/debian/changelog
@@ -63,6 +63,14 @@ byobu (2.40) unreleased; urgency=low
     uninstall utilities in /usr/bin
   * bin/*: drop sourcing of /etc/byobu/statusrc, as this is done in
     byobu-status now
+  * bin/apport, bin/battery, bin/cpu_freq, bin/custom, bin/disk,
+    bin/ec2_cost, bin/fan_speed, bin/hostname, bin/ip_address,
+    bin/load_average, bin/logo, bin/mail, bin/mem_available, bin/mem_used,
+    bin/menu, bin/network, bin/processes, bin/reboot_required,
+    bin/release, bin/temp_c, bin/temp_f, bin/updates_available,
+    bin/uptime, bin/users, bin/whoami, bin/wifi_quality, byobu-status,
+    statusrc: define and use a color function for all status indicators,
+    gives infinite flexibility
 
  -- Dustin Kirkland <kirkland@ubuntu.com>  Tue, 10 Nov 2009 10:18:20 -0600
 
diff --git a/statusrc b/statusrc
index 8f49c3ed..65d406d9 100644
--- a/statusrc
+++ b/statusrc
@@ -59,65 +59,3 @@ wifi_quality=0
 #MONITORED_TEMP=/proc/acpi/thermal_zone/THM0/temperature
 #DISTRO=Ubuntu
 # END_CUT_HERE
-
-# Define colors
-ESC="\005"
-UNDO="$ESC{-}"
-BOLD1="$ESC{=b }"
-BOLD2="$ESC{+b }"
-NONE="$ESC{= }"
-INVERT="$ESC{=r }"
-
-bw="$ESC{= bw}"
-bW="$ESC{= bW}"
-cW="$ESC{= cW}"
-gw="$ESC{= gw}"
-gW="$ESC{= gW}"
-mw="$ESC{= mw}"
-rW="$ESC{= rW}"
-kw="$ESC{= kw}"
-kW="$ESC{= kW}"
-ky="$ESC{= ky}"
-kY="$ESC{= kY}"
-wb="$ESC{= wb}"
-wk="$ESC{= wk}"
-wr="$ESC{= wr}"
-yk="$ESC{= yk}"
-yw="$ESC{= yw}"
-
-Ck="$ESC{= Ck}"
-Gk="$ESC{= Gk}"
-KG="$ESC{= KG}"
-MW="$ESC{= MW}"
-Rk="$ESC{= Rk}"
-Wg="$ESC{= Wg}"
-Wk="$ESC{= Wk}"
-Wr="$ESC{= Wr}"
-Yk="$ESC{= Yk}"
-
-bbW="$ESC{=b bW}"
-bcw="$ESC{=b cw}"
-bcW="$ESC{=b cW}"
-bgW="$ESC{=b gW}"
-bky="$ESC{=b ky}"
-bkY="$ESC{=b kY}"
-bkc="$ESC{=b kc}"
-bkr="$ESC{=b kr}"
-bkY="$ESC{=b kY}"
-bkw="$ESC{=b kw}"
-bkW="$ESC{=b kW}"
-bmw="$ESC{=b mw}"
-brW="$ESC{=b rW}"
-bwb="$ESC{=b wb}"
-bwr="$ESC{=b wr}"
-byw="$ESC{=b yw}"
-bCk="$ESC{=b Ck}"
-bGk="$ESC{=b Gk}"
-bKG="$ESC{=b KG}"
-bMW="$ESC{=b MW}"
-bRk="$ESC{=b Rk}"
-bWg="$ESC{=b Wg}"
-bWk="$ESC{=b Wk}"
-bYk="$ESC{=b Yk}"
-
-uBk="$ESC{=u Bk}"