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Inspired by this blog: http://www.teamliquid.net/blogs/viewblog.php?topic_id=266622
I have decided to create a guide for those wanting to play starcraft under the roofs of dictator like parents.
During my high school years i was absolutely banned from starcraft, my dad actually broke my BW CD in half, and i had to torrent it to get it back. Despite being banned from starcraft, I personally felt i was a well achieved BW player that managed to reach B on iccup when i was active. /brag
Currently, i'm a 2nd year in college, and i do not regret at ALL for the time i've spend on starcraft, if i had the chance to go back in time, i would not of spent that time studying despite thats what my parents wanted.
So without further a due here is how i did it, and i hope it'll help you too, and for those people that were able to play freely whenever they wanted, feel free to laugh/pity the issues i've had to gone through to play BW.
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The only times i played BW was when my parents were out shopping/asleep/cooking/doing yard work.
During the times when they were at home I would watch progamer replays and analyze my own replays, i played a bit too as well but it was tricky...
Since my study spot and gaming spot was the same (Near the computer) it made my gaming a lot easier even though i was restricted.
One of the key indicators my parents looked for was how fast/loud i clicked my mouse when i was on the computer. If i clicked furiously, like i'd had to to keep my monstrous 600apm, they'd for sure knew i was on BW. So how did i go around it?
+ Show Spoiler +-EASY!, I put a clothe over my hand/mouse to reduce clicking noise, try it yourself, put a sweater over your mouse, and try clicking loud/fast, you can barely hear it!
What about when they came to see what you were doing out of the blue?
+ Show Spoiler +-Well for me it was easier to know when they'd come to check me out because i played upstairs, and i can almost always hear their footsteps when they came up. I like playing with sound so i'd keep one headphone in my ear and the other ear to listen for footsteps.
So what happens when they came up and you couldn't respond fast enough to close out BW?
+ Show Spoiler +-Easy!, close your monitor screen so it looks like it was on the screen saver, and then alt f4 whatever you were on. However, becareful because sometimes when you Alt F4 while in a game, a prompt will come up that will ask you "Are you sure you want to exit the game" in that case you'd have to actually click enter, for the game to exit.
So my parents often check the web browser's history to see if i've visited any suspicious gaming/porno sites, what should i do to prevent them from seeing? And i'm tired of deleting the history everytime i visit those sites...
+ Show Spoiler +-Use a different web browser, and make sure you hide that web browser's icon so it does not show up on the desktop. Also hide the new web browser. For example, if your parents use firefox, you should use google chrome instead.
What are some other precautions I should know to play starcraft without my parents knowing?
+ Show Spoiler +-When they are at home, listen close to their conversations, it can often lead to cues as to what they are going to do next and where they are going to go. For example, if your bathroom is close to your computer room, and if you hear them say "I have to take a shower soon" obviously don't start a game because you'll have to exit it....
How can i hide my BW programs/porn stash/other programes from my parents?
+ Show Spoiler +-You can do that by creating a folder and hiding it in some place safe, like your homework folder. Make sure you make your BW folder name sound innocent. "English papers" sounds like a good folder name for it. Also, you'll want to hide that from the search engine, so if they were ever to search "Starcraft" on windows, no starcraft icons will pop up. Here is how you do it http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/394-hidden-files-folders-show-hide.html You can use that technique to hide your secret web browser as well.
Some obvious/other helpful tips
-Always have a word document page or some sort of study program in the back ground, so when you close SC it'll still look like you're studying
-always have a text book nearby your table so it looks like you're doing HW.
-If somehow that you were not able to close your SC out completely AFTER shutting down your monitor screen, act stupid and turn off the computer saying that it was stuck and restart the computer, that way it'll shut everything off automatically. -Use this with caution with parents that are not technology stupid.
-Also, change your screen saver timing down from the default 15mins to 1min. if you ever suspect your parents getting near your computer in that time, DON"T TOUCH ANYTHING for that min, and the screen saver will show and it'll make it look like you weren't on the computer. If they do come near, within that minute, shut off monitor and proceed to do whatever else is necessary.
If anyone comes across anything new that i need to cover, please ask, i will respond.
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i am incredibly sad for you that this was required to indulge in your passion, but incredibly happy that you didn't let barriers like this get in your way! awesome stuff
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Is it really moral to go this far just to play on the computer? Why did your parents ban you from starcraft?
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Hahahahaha. Good guide bro. Luckily, I was able to game whenever the phuuuuck I pleaaaaased (as long as I maintained a 3.8 gpa or plus).
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this is an awesome guide. my parents arent incredibly strict about games (luckily) but some of my friends' are... ill be sure to show them this guide!
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On September 18 2011 14:17 Roe wrote:
Is it really moral to go this far just to play on the computer? Why did your parents ban you from starcraft?
Yes, and i was banned from starcraft because my parents are dictators, and thought they knew what was best for me.
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On September 18 2011 14:20 YPang wrote:Show nested quote +On September 18 2011 14:17 Roe wrote:
Is it really moral to go this far just to play on the computer? Why did your parents ban you from starcraft? Yes, and i was banned from starcraft because my parents are dictators, and thought they knew what was best for me.
huh? they must've had a reason...like your grades werent high enough, or video games are the devil, or games will rot your brains...did they come up to you and say "we're dictators, you aren't playing starcraft anymore" and that was it?
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On September 18 2011 14:23 Roe wrote:Show nested quote +On September 18 2011 14:20 YPang wrote:On September 18 2011 14:17 Roe wrote:
Is it really moral to go this far just to play on the computer? Why did your parents ban you from starcraft? Yes, and i was banned from starcraft because my parents are dictators, and thought they knew what was best for me. huh? they must've had a reason...like your grades werent high enough, or video games are the devil, or games will rot your brains...did they come up to you and say "we're dictators, you aren't playing starcraft anymore" and that was it?
Well, pretty much they were never satisfied with my grades. I knew personally how much i needed to study to succeed and it's what I followed, never really wrecked my future, and i'm doing in college just fine now that i got the freedom i yearned for. 
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Reading this brings back so many memories of how I used to play DoTA without my mother knowing.
What I'd commonly do is strike up a conversation while getting water or something. Just a casual one to see what she was doing, what mood she was in (lazy, etc.) or if she preoccupied with something.
THEN IT WAS TIME FOR DOTA
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I know a lot of these all too well  especially the headphones in one ear part haha
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On September 18 2011 14:26 YPang wrote:Show nested quote +On September 18 2011 14:23 Roe wrote:On September 18 2011 14:20 YPang wrote:On September 18 2011 14:17 Roe wrote:
Is it really moral to go this far just to play on the computer? Why did your parents ban you from starcraft? Yes, and i was banned from starcraft because my parents are dictators, and thought they knew what was best for me. huh? they must've had a reason...like your grades werent high enough, or video games are the devil, or games will rot your brains...did they come up to you and say "we're dictators, you aren't playing starcraft anymore" and that was it? Well, pretty much they were never satisfied with my grades. I knew personally how much i needed to study to succeed and it's what I followed, never really wrecked my future, and i'm doing in college just fine now that i got the freedom i yearned for.
ah. i did the same thing with WoW. i just played in windowed mode and whenever someone would walk by i'd switch to mozilla or msn.
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Lol.
I'm 13, and im restricted to 4 hrs a week, can only play on fri, sat sun.
my parents are technologically smart (both it) and are asian.
I have a macbook pro which can't play starcraft without 1 fps and a really good computer which i play games on. and my macbook is facing a public area, so they can see if im watching a vod or something.
so obviously if im on my good computer, im playing games.
the problem is 1. i need to write down when i play games, and wen i'm gonna finish. so that sucks.
2. both computers are downstairs and are close to the kitchen/sitting area. so im basically fucked if their home. they can also tell wat computer im on if their in the garden.
so yeah, i have a harsh life. but now its holidays so yay :D
nice guide though, to people who don't know how to use a computer  .
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On September 18 2011 14:34 zeOllie wrote:Lol. I'm 13, and im restricted to 4 hrs a week, can only play on fri, sat sun. my parents are technologically smart (both it) and are asian. I have a macbook pro which can't play starcraft without 1 fps and a really good computer which i play games on. and my macbook is facing a public area, so they can see if im watching a vod or something. so obviously if im on my good computer, im playing games. the problem is 1. i need to write down when i play games, and wen i'm gonna finish. so that sucks. 2. both computers are downstairs and are close to the kitchen/sitting area. so im basically fucked if their home. they can also tell wat computer im on if their in the garden. so yeah, i have a harsh life. but now its holidays so yay :D nice guide though, to people who don't know how to use a computer .
If you're computer is not in a complete safe place you can still watch VOD's if you minimize that screen, and put it near a bottom corner of your monitor and hide that screen with your torso with a word document on the background. Not sure if it'll work for your situation, but it might come in handy.
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My parents set up a system of mirrors around the house so that they can see my monitor from almost anywhere in the house. I had to be studying 24/7. When I really wanted to game, I snuck on the computer after midnight when my parents were asleep. Needless to say, I had a hard time staying awake in class. Another workaround I found was that my shoulder blocked the bottom left corner of my monitor from the mirror. From this I was able to play on a gba emulator.
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Great guide, our parents generation have zero respect for anything on a screen.
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On September 18 2011 14:52 Afk wrote:
Great guide, our parents generation have zero respect for anything on a screen.
How untrue.
Last generation had it tough in my opinion!
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Here's the thing. If you were complaint, and tried to live up to their expectations, you could then rationally argue that you're doing your best and want to do something for yourself. And if they deny that, you can tell them that they're not allowing you to have a life.
You shouldn't go sneaking behind their back. It undermines authority in your own mind to do so, and you will develop this for any authority. Next thing you know you're out on the street because you haven't paid rent because you were hiding somewhere instead of doing your job at whatever job you might be lucky enough to get.
you'll thank your parents that made you study forever. you'll be lucky enough to get a high class high paying job that has rewards.
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On September 18 2011 14:17 Roe wrote:
Is it really moral to go this far just to play on the computer? Why did your parents ban you from starcraft?
Is it really good parenting to prohibit your child from partaking in a safe hobby that millions around the globe enjoy and to make every decision for your child, giving them little to no freedom?
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Awesome write-up man. My parents were never like this luckily, but when it came to the porn stash and whatnot, I was clever enough to do a lot of what you did, but on older versions of Windows as that was the OS at the time.
As I did have to hide stuff sometimes, a few key points were, as you said, always listen to their conversations, and even join in sometimes. They think you are paying attention and growing up when really you are just being a detective. Also though, sometimes hiding things in plain sight work out well if your parents are snoopers.
Always remember areas like behind books on bookshelves, between your mattress and your box spring, over even do like I had done, and cut a hole in the bottom of my box spring and hid stuff there. (No, not drugs, but porn and music that they did not like to hear)
Just remember in the words of Cheap Trick, when it comes to parents, "Surrender, but don't give yourself away." Sooner or later they come around to understand.
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ROFL I remember so many games between us where you would just randomly leave and I'd know EXACTLY why hahaha
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EPT
