pranklopedia_sample pgs_Final2.indd - Workman Publishing

the prank
What’s more frustrating than a frozen computer! Honestly, not
much. If you want to freak out the less computer-savvy members of your family-
-ahem, Mom and Dad--just follow these steps to make it look like your
family computer is on the fritz.
what you need
Access to a family member’s computer
*
Easy
Medium
prank o’meter
Expert
what you do
the setup
If you have a Mac . . .
Close all open programs on the
1 computer.
Take a screenshot of the desktop
2 by holding “Command” and “Shift”
and then hitting “3.”
This picture file should have been
3 saved to your desktop. Move this
image to a folder where you’ll be able to
find it.
Move all desktop icons into a new
4 folder called something innocentsounding,
like “Computer” or “Downloaded”
or “[your name]’s Stuff.”
Change the desktop picture on your
5 computer to be the screenshot.
Next hide the dock--and make it
6 more difficult to find--by going to
the Apple menu, selecting “Dock,” and
then choosing to move it to either the
right or left side of the screen. Once you
move the dock from the bottom of the
screen, go again to the Apple menu, select
“Dock,” and then select “Automatically
hide and show the Dock.”
If you have a PC . . .
Close all open programs on the computer.
1
Take a screenshot of the desktop by
2 using the “Print Screen” button on
your keyboard.
Paste this picture into a picture-editing
program, such as Paint. Save
3
this image in a folder where you’ll be able
to find it.
Move all desktop icons into a new
4 folder called something innocentsounding,
like “Computer” or “Downloaded”
or “[your name]’s Stuff.”
Change the desktop picture on your
5 computer to be the screenshot.
Next hide the taskbar--and make
6 it more difficult to find--by rightclicking
on it. If there is a check next to
“Lock the taskbar,” click it (to remove the
check, unlocking the taskbar). This will
make it so that you can move the taskbar
to either the top or sides of the monitor
by clicking and dragging to the position
of your choice.
continues
c
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