Annoying Brother!!!

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closed account (LN7oGNh0)
My brother installed this game he plays on my laptop and sometimes he plays for sooooooooooooooooooooo long! Im really sick of sometimes waiting an hour just to use my laptop so I really want to know how to block this. (I dont have antivirus and I cant afford it either.) I know how to set passwords and all that sort of stuff... but not directly on a program on my computer. Will this require windows programming? I have been learning this but Im only a beginner...

Any suggestions?
You could just hide your laptop or lock it up. ;-)

All major Operating Systems have the ability to restrict usage of the computer in many ways from simply needing a password to log on at all to just hiding some critical folders from prying eyes. This has nothing to do with C++ though so go learn security protocols for you OS. Its VERY simple to set a log-in password for your laptop. In Windows go to Help and look for user accounts and passwords...

closed account (o3hC5Di1)
Hi there,

Perhaps you could look into some parental control options:
http://www.google.be/search?q=windows%20parental%20control

If they work for parents, they should work for you too :)

Also, there are plenty of free antivirus programs out there, Comodo is one I know, but I believe ther'es also Avast, Panda, ... just have a look on google an you should get plenty of results. If I remember correctly Comodo has a feature called Defense+ which allows you to allow or disallow certain applications from starting. It's usually used to monitor suspicious activity, but I suppose it could be used for this purpose as well.

Hope that helps.

All the best,
NwN
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I dont have antivirus and I cant afford it either.

http://www.microsoft.com/security/pc-security/mse.aspx
closed account (LN7oGNh0)
thanks for the quick replies! @cnoeval: I have got a password on my account, but my brother uses the account that my dad put there... Annoying dad as well. Anyway thanks!
Change/add a password on your Dad's account. Another suggestion is to use Win+L key combo to lock your laptop when you leave. To log in, the person has to enter your password, or log in as an admin. If your Dad's account isn't admin, this will help.
^ or simply reboot the machine.

As a last resource you could use human interaction
As a last resource you could use human interaction

Violence! Yes!
closed account (18hRX9L8)
Set up a curfew and make your whole family sign it. If your brother breaks the curfew, create some horrible punishment.

Good luck!
I'd say nuke the laptop from orbit. It's the only way to be sure.
You can write a short program that counts the seconds - or in your case Hours and Minutes.

When your program has counted the correct number of seconds (minutes / hours) then it can (a) reboot [ best], (b) lock the keyboard [ not so good] , (c) blank the screen [easiest - maybe], (d) creates a really large block of memory so that the machine then runs really really slow.


This really isn't the greatest answer. Maybe teach him how to build his own basement computer from spare parts ( goodwill, recycling places, trash)
so that he'll leave yours alone - who knows maybe then you'll spend all your time on HIS machine.


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Raezzor, You sound like the IT department at my company! Or Mordac, the preventer of information technology.
You could write a program that runs as a service. It would track which processes are running. When a specific process has run for more than, say, 20 minutes, it calls TerminateProcess.

ne555, What is the human intervention? I've heard about it somewhere before.
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I'd say nuke the laptop from orbit. It's the only way to be sure.

From back when S.W. was still fighting aliens.
Yea, have to admit that STEWBOND has the right answer.

A Service routine that sits in the background and checks the time.
Not only is this a good way to keep your brother's time in check, but it's also a great way to learn to code - (Having your own project)

This is an outstanding project to learn from, and, as it turns-out C++ may, in fact, be the right language for just such a project. - as opposed to, say APL or Assembly .

-Enjoy.

closed account (LN7oGNh0)
WOW. Didnt expect to see so many amazing sugestions! Now I can stop my brother once and for all... >:)
Until daddy tells you to let your bother use the computer. Since your father has set up an account for both you and your brother, it seems to me that he intends for you to share the computer. So really going to your father is probably the best solution.

closed account (LN7oGNh0)
Ya... It would seem like that, but my dad made an account and he doesnt even use it! For some odd reason he just needs an account there. On the other hand, my dad has never give my brother permission to use it. I might seem like I am very selfish keeping my laptop for myself... but I do let my brother use it so much. Its just gotten out of hand. Consulting my father would result in a massive argument that I would like to avoid...

Anyway I decided to make a program which would keep track of how long my brother is on the laptop for (to help increase my C++ skills as well)... not going so well. I have referred to the <ctimt> header in the 'reference part' of cplusplus.com, but I really dont get what to do. It seems really confusing.

Can anyone give me a simple example soo that I may be able to use this effectively.

Thanks for all the answers! :)
C++ may, in fact, be the right language for just such a project. - as opposed to, say APL or Assembly .


APL. I think you have no idea what you're talking about, but you're free to prove me wrong.
Just sayin, as a certified Computer Graphics (animation) pioneer.

My undergrad thesis is "European Computer Graphic Languages (TESC press 1979)".
I am the first person to have ever used the APL language to create an animated film.

It's a most powerful language. The telephone company used it until recently. The entire game of LIFE can be coded in a single statement.

-However, in this case, C++ will work just fine - Enjoy.

Hazique, You may want to get a list of "Most Often Used Functions"
at least the names and short desc, and keep it next to your machine - so that you can refer back to it. Having the manuals opened all the time is nice, but looking up the pages gets old - quick. Web searches are somewhat handy, but also gets old when you find yourself having to look up function after function after function - where a printed list next to you, you'll find, is really easy to glance at in time of need.


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