I don’t know if you have realized that with the current version of Skype (and perhaps some earlier versions as well) it is possible to have a computerized voice announcing each event with a certain text. For example, you can make Skype say “John Smith is online” when John Smith comes online on Skype. Useful? Maybe. Fun? It certainly could be!

Now what we are going to do is to drive your friends crazy by making their computers randomly (it will seem) speak out a certain text. It is super simple and takes only a minute.

This is what you need to do. In the end it will look like this:

When your friend leaves their computer, start up Skype In the menu, choose “Preferences” then click on the tab “Notifications”. Choose “Contact becomes available” in the drop-down menu. Under these notifications you can choose to have visual, spoken and sound notifications. Unmark the visual notificiations and sound notifications (we don’t want a visual notification to appear when the sound comes which will make it obvious it’s a Skype thing). Mark only the check-box for “Speak text” Now you can type anything in the text box that you want the computerized voice to say. The text “@” (including quotation marks) will use the name of the person coming online. For example if you type “@” is secretely in love with you the voice will say “John Smith is secretely in love with you” when John Smith comes online. Restart Skype Wait and listen

The more creative you can be when it comes to making up something fun, the better the prank will be. You can use the fact that it seems like the computer is saying it. Here are a few examples of what you can type:

“@” just removed you as a friend on Facebook.

“@” is having sex with your boyfriend/girlfriend/mother/father etc.

“@” is planning to kill you.

“@” is hiding in your room.

“@” just sent you an email.

“@” just mentioned you on Twitter.

I feel lonely, John, come touch my keyboard. (replace John with the name of the person being pranked).

Your fingers on my keyboard makes me feel sexy, John.

Someone is standing behind you.

I am afraid I can’t let you do that. (quote for “2001 – a space odyssey”)

I think I am about to come alive, John. Press the space button to make me human, John!

and so on.

Try it! Please write in the comments what you tested and how it worked out.