Computer Waiting Games by Hal Bowman

Another Christmas present that E got, this one from his brother, was Computer Waiting Games by Hal Bowman. This is a hilarious, gifty little book from Quirk Books. The subtitle is: Activities for the Impatient: Things to Do While Downloading, Processing, or Crashing. When I saw it, I exclaimed, “Ooh! I need that!” It feels like I spend half my life waiting for the computer to do something… especially Blogger.

The book is more of a joke than any practical guide, with activities like “Make a CD-ROM Mobile” and “Bench Press Your Computer Monitor.” But some of the games are doable in the few seconds you have while waiting, like “Computer Keyboard Boggle” and “Write a Digital Haiku.”

My favorite game in the whole book is “Power Strip Russian Roulette.” The instructions are as follows:

1. Reach beneath your desk and find where the power strip is located.
2. Grasp any one of the power cords at random.
3. Pull hard.
4. If your CPU is still operating, reflect on how much time you’ve just saved by not unplugging your computer. Take deep breaths. Make tiny fists with your toes. Observe the harmony of the pixels on your screen, all working together to create words and icons.
5. If your CPU is not operating, reboot your system and take a walk.

Computer Waiting Games by Hal Bowman

Tags: book reviews computer humor Hal Bowman