Nerdy Pranks

Wired has a list of office pranks “for nerds,” collecting most of the usual suspects, like changing the screen saver to a shot of Windows’ “blue screen of death” or changing a co-worker’s keyboard layout to Dvorak. April Fool’s Day is on a Monday this year, but that’s sort of perfect—none of your compatriots will ever expect pranks a day late.

But surely we can come up with something better than smelly old Wired! (Disclaimer: I occasionally smell up Wired myself.)

My favorite prank was cribbed from an old text file that used to make its way around dial-in BBSes of old: share a specific time with a group of conspirators and call up every home delivery or housecalling service in the book, all scheduled for the same time. The resulting horde of pizza delivery men, plumbers, and paper salesmen all asking for your target by name will realize they have been duped, set the office aflame, and leave you to sit in stunned disbelief as the target of your scorn commits letter-opener seppuku.

April Fool’s Pranks for Nerds [Wired]

See also: It’s an April Fools’ Paradise [NYTimes.com]