Odd question: not sure where to find an answer

robertsd2002

Beta member
Messages
2
Location
United States
This is probably an odd question, so here's some background. My teenage son has a problem with what I call an addition to online computer games, particularly one called Minecraft. As a parent, I know I should establish some ground rules. I admit I'm failing and looking for an easy way out. If our computer were to quit working, all would be well enough. I really don't want to trash the computer. Is there any way to make it look as though the computer is no longer working - or even just the Internet ability of the computer - without actually damaging it? And something that couldn't be easily determined what happened and fixed?

Any input is appreciated. Something that isn't my fault in his eyes will make life much easier.

I'm not a technical person, and all my searching hasn't turned up anything.

Thanks.
 
Depending on what OS you're running, you can setup parental controls (Vista, 7, and Win8 should have these built-in) for an account on the computer. Setup a restricted account and setup parental controls on that account.

The problem is with your current situation, Minecraft isn't just an online game; it can also be played offline as well.
 
Honestly..... Minecraft would be the best thing to get addicted to, it's sciencey. You can setup parenta controls to limit things like between what hours the intefrnet works, or certain users can't acces certain pages etc.

You can use the parental controls that smetuimes comes part of the router software.
Google your router brand/model and parental control

Depending on windows versions, there are ways to setup locks to keep things good.

Not sure how old he is, but have you tried just talking and setting time limits.
 
Parental controls probably aren't what you're looking for because it will be very obvious that you set that up. There are a million ways to make a computer look broken without actually breaking it. The question is whether or not your son would know how to figure it out.

Off the top of my head, anything I can think of at the moment requires opening up the case. The simplest thing would be to disconnect the power switch connector from the motherboard. Just do a google image search for JFP1 and it will give you an idea on where the pins are located on the motherboard and which one is for the power switch. Just unplug it and plug it back in whenever you want.

I hope that there's going to be more to your plan than just that - if your son comes on here to ask how to fix his computer, you'll be back to square one. Maybe you should use the parental controls. It's up to you.
 
If you really want to make it look like it broke and don't want to confront your son about playing too much games, you could try unplugging the motherboard's 24 pin power cord which is located on the inside.

Here is a picture of what the cord looks like. It's the only one that looks like this and you can't miss it.
24pin.jpg


But if you don't care if you have to confront your son about it, setting up parental controls is best the way to do it.

If you want him off of minecraft for good but still want the computer to work, try installing Linux lol. It does everything Windows can do except for play games.
 
Last edited:
If you have a decent router, you can often set the time limits for internet use that way too. You can do this from another pc anywhere in the house that connected via an ethernet line
 
yep, I agree if they are addicted to it, and you think it is a serious addiction, then you need to confront them and maybe discuss restricting their access.
But to put it bluntly, grow a pair and start being an adult about it and deal with the situation, rather than being deceitful, and a coward.


oh and Veraster sorry to burst your bubble but minecraft is a java game and they have a linux version lol
 
Thanks everyone for the input. I do realize I need to handle this the direct way despite the strife I know will come. I've done some research on parental controls and it sounds like they may often be hit and miss so I hope I can find something that is router based. I installed OpenDNS for content purposes and perhaps it can do more of what I need.

Thanks again.
 
Back
Top Bottom