Computer Prank Ideas
Brought to you by the readers of ZUG.

Contributed by ZUG reader pranksta:
Send an e-mail to someone with this link.

Contributed by John Hargrave:
Why not send one of those sweet and loveable Hallmark e-cards, but in the part where it lets you write a customized message, write something really horrible and severe?

"One of my testicles was recently crushed in a piece of industrial machinery. Just wanted you to know."
"Blackness and depression fill my every waking moment. I long for the sweet release of death."
"Happy Arbor Day, fucknut."

Contributed by ZUG reader Robert:
Once we were pulling an all-nighter in a computer lab, working on Macs which were too crude to require logins at the time. We finished our assignment at around 4:00 am, and as a parting gift to the early starters the following morning, we logged every computer onto the hamsterdance website. That's around 40 computers all playing that friggin' hamster tune at nearly full volume!

Contributed by ZUG reader Gonzo:
This one is simple, but very effective -- even more so if the victim has been on vacation, and away from computers for a while. Simply switch the "M" and "N" keycaps on their keyboard. Most office workers these days only partially touch-type. It's a big bonus if their password contains an "M" or and "N." Their frustration at not being able to log in is hilarious.

Contributed by ZUG reader Robert:
I used to work at a large telco in the UK, and every single printer in every part of the UK that was part of this network could be accessed from anywhere within the company. So I could theoretically send a print job to an office 300 miles away, and the unsuspecting recipient would see all manner of ZUG's Printer Pranks appear seemingly from nowhere.

Contributed by Peppermint:
A fun prank to play on people who have to look at the keyboard while typing. Pry the keys off their keyboard, switching the T, H, and E keys with the S, E, and X keys. Whenever they go to type the word "THE," they will end up instead with "SEX."

Contributed by ZUG reader Victoria:
Scotch tape their phone handset down. Believe it or not, a lot of people don't notice this. Or, if they have an older mouse, scotch tape the bottom of the mouse. They move their mouse back and forth, and nothing happens. Some of them even slam it around, trying to get it to work.

Contributed by John Hargrave:
I think the GE Imaginationeeringariumoleum could be a fun computer prank -- draw a naughty photo and have GE send it to your boss.

Contributed by ZUG reader killbot:
While my old roommate was away, I would often drag as many .exe shortcuts into his startup folder as robotically possible. It's a bitch when 30 programs simultaneously try to load every time you start your computer. Poor, poor Windows users.

Contributed by ZUG reader Marko:
A subtle little thing. If you have two computers in close proximity, switch all the cords between the two. Then turn both on. Imagine the fun when someone puts in a CD and can't access his files, while the woman in the next cube suddenly sees "John's Nude Pixx" in her D: drive.

Contributed by ZUG reader Mike:
A quick and easy prank. Wait for someone to walk away from their PC. Click Start -> Settings -> Control Panel -> Mouse. Select the "Pointers" tab and change the first cursor (Normal Select) from an arrow to the same thing they use for the "Busy" cursor. See how long they will stare at their screen waiting for the computer to finish what it's doing.

Contributed by ZUG reader SpecialKake:
Whenever someone stays logged in here at work, I make a shortcut called "I kiss little boys" or something stupid, then copy it, and repaste it onto the desktop about 5 million times. Easy to clean up if you know what you're doing, but people usually try to delete them one by one.

Contributed by ZUG reader snapcracklepop:
Carefully cut a piece of black construction paper so that it exactly covers the glass on a computer monitor. Using double-sided tape, fasten the paper to the monitor. Chuckle as they turn on the computer, and see nothing but a black screen.

Contributed by ZUG reader The Joe Dick:
Change the keyboard input maps on their computer! In Windows 2000:

Go to Start Menu > Settings > Control Panel > Keyboard
Click the "Input Locales" tab
Click the "Change" button
Click "Add" to add a new keyboard input map or language
Click OK

Contributed by John Hargrave:
A more elaborate Word prank is to use the "AutoCorrect" feature to turn everyday words into wacky variations. In Word 2002, go to Tools > AutoCorrect Options. Make sure "Replace text as you type" is checked. In the box below, you can add new words. You want to use common words, but not too common. Here are some suggestions:

dear:rear
thanks:yanks
sincerely:sinqueerly
test:testicle
hello:yo yo yo (or "what up")
person's name:Batman (or Wonder Woman)

Contributed by John Hargrave:
The old homepage replacement trick. In Internet Explorer, go to Tools > Options, then change the homepage to some totally random photo on the Web. Don't use a page, just a photo. For instance: http://web.mit.edu/tetazoo/img/2001/jamie-with-weird-hat.jpg

Contributed by ZUG reader Robert:
Hewlett-Packard LaserJet printers usually have a digital display that says "Ready" until they actually print. Most people don't know that the display can be customized! Using the printer job language that HP employs, you can send a series of commands to the printer to change the default mesage to one of your choice. Refer to this site for the necessary commands. It allows 2 lines, with 20 characters per line. In Windows NT, you have to perform these print commands at the command line, so you'll also need to map a network printer to a local printer port. Use the "net use" command:

net use lpt1 \\network\printername

Contributed by ZUG reader Mythology:
Pry open the keyboard of a co-worker, and remove the rubber punching pad. The computer will still see the keyboard, but nothing will happen when your prankee punches the keys.

Contributed by ritty:
Go to the Windows Control Panel and double-click "Mouse." Switch the right mouse button so that it's activated by the left mouse button, and vice-versa. For even more fun, make the mouse go as slowly as you can, then laugh as it takes them forever to switch it back.

Contributed by ZUG reader iamasham:
One of my sister's co-workers messed with the color and brightness of her monitor, changing it all black and dark. She turned on her monitor and saw nothing. She kept restarting her computer, to no avail. She finally called the help desk and they sent someone to check it out. The techie looked at it for a few seconds, then adjusted the monitor's colors. As he walked away, rolling his eyes, her co-workers were laughing in the background.

Contributed by ZUG reader SheCabbage:
We hijacked one of the tech support guys' machines while he was out sick, took a screenshot of his Windows desktop, made that his wallpaper, then hid all of his icons and the taskbar. When he started up his computer the next day, he clicked and clicked on everything, to no avail.

Contributed by ZUG reader jl234:
First, do a web search for "Windows shutdown utility." I found one called "Quick Shutdown." Download it onto a co-worker's PC when they are away. It puts an icon on the desktop that you just double-click to shut down the PC. Then change the icon to something like Internet Explorer, or some other commonly-used program. It's funny to watch them constantly shutting down their PC and not knowing why.

Contributed by ZUG reader billybobjoe:
In Windows, go to Start > Settings > Control Panel > Mouse. Change the click settings on all the mouse buttons to "none," although you'll have to put one of them on "click" (preferably the wheel button or another one that is not used often). The next person to use the mouse will be totally confused and probably will get pissed at the computer and throw it out the window. Other than that, no risk of property damage.

Contributed by ZUG reader chumblespuzz:
Open the mouse settings in the Windows control panel. Change "double click speed" so that it's as fast as it can go. Watch in glee as it takes them forever to do a successful double-click ... including opening the mouse settings to change it back!

Contributed by ZUG reader chippermonkey:
This only works on Windows 95: delete the Start button! To do this, click the Start button twice. Then hold ALT and push the hyphen key. Close, and it's gone! (Just restart the computer to get it back.)

Contributed by ZUG reader mnky_sht:
Find the "Scrolling Marquee" screen saver (usually c:\windows\system\Scrolling Marquee.scr), create a shortcut, and put the shortcut into the StartUp folder, so that the screen saver will be automatically activated when Windows starts up. After you've done this, go into Display Properties for the screen saver, and set a password. For more fun, customize the text that is to scroll across the screen, such as, "I wonder what the password is?!" or "John slept with the boss' wife." When your victim finally gets the bright idea to reboot the computer, the screen saver will pop up automatically!

Contributed by ZUG reader blandysnorhal:
If you work in an office or computer lab with a shared printer, print out a few copies of this graphic. Then put it back into the printer's blank paper tray (i.e., the tray where you load the paper). You'll know the prank has worked when you either see or hear someone discovering their work has been "sharked." Their nuisance = your laughs.


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