My theories on April Fools' jokes, and pranks and hacks in general

[xiphias]

Originally, I was planning on having this post be full of rickrolls (links to the music video of Rick Astley's 1987 hit single "Never Gonna Give You Up" that are pretending to be links to other things), but I'm too lazy.

Because, to me, "rickrolling" is an example of "acceptable pranking". Um, mostly. Right now, it's so overdone that it starts to lose something, but, in general, it fits my rules for what's okay in a prank.

Here are some of my rules:

• The prank may not cause any damage to anything.
  
• The prank must be easily undone and it must be easy to get things back to normal.
  
• The prank must be designed to avoid negative feelings, with the possible exception of a limited amount of initial confusion.
  

That last one is really important. If a prank causes embarrassment, humiliation, shock, fear, worry, disappointment . . . it's a bad prank.

Pranks should be designed to engender amusement, wonder, surprise . . .

I think that a lot of what "Improv Everywhere" does counts as "good pranks". Having a random musical in a mall food court? That's a GOOD prank.

When Lis and I design pranks, that's what we go for -- trying to make people's lives just a bit more PLEASANTLY surreal.

Comments

[plumtreeblossom.livejournal.com]

My rules are exactly like that. I have no sense of humor about pranks that cause harm, no matter how well intended.

I get particularly pissed about wedding pranks. People work HARD to make their weddings nice, and when people do shit like this it infuriates me.

Hey, I should have rickrolled you just there!

[nex0s.livejournal.com]

That wedding pranks thing?

If anyone did that to me, I'd fucking kill them. That is SO NOT OK. ANd I HATE the mocking of the bride in these - like the "help me" on the groom's shoes.

Man. My feelings would be so hurt.

N.

[ailbhe]

That is truly horrible.

[vvalkyri.livejournal.com]

good lord.

A couple of them seemed /possibly/ okay. The 'turn in the keys' thing, if it's sufficiently over the top, or the ring eventually in the crackerjack box. But those both require the couple to have the right sense of humor too...

[jhitchin.livejournal.com]

Hell, I know a groom who swapped out the processional music the bridge picked out with the Imperial March from "Star Wars." She was not amused.

Pulling crap like that at a wedding is just so not cool.

[undauntra.livejournal.com]

Hey, the Imperial March is an *awesome* processional! It almost makes me wish I'd thrown a wedding. :)

[ailbhe]

I think doing it on purpose is a bit different.

[aquaeri.livejournal.com]

Yes, a friend of mine chose it for herself at her wedding.

[cheshyre]

Actually, if you're thinking about our former suitemate who married a woman who graduated 2 years before us, I heard a slightly different story.

I had heard that he tipped the band to play the Imperial Death March.
The band took his money and played the John Williams music.
The bride was perfectly fine with that because previously *she* had tipped the band to do the exact same thing. :)

Then again, I didn't attend that wedding, so this is entirely hearsay.

[danceboy.livejournal.com]

At least one person who was at that wedding claims to have ALSO bribed the band to play the IDM...

Evidently the ability to blandly accept money without comment is a requirement for a wedding band.