Matt Schmandt

Prankster is an Android application that allows you to remotely control a Windows XP or 7 computer. Make your friends go crazy by launching the print menu, turning caps lock on and off, randomly moving the mouse and minimize all open windows.

Prankster is available on the Android Marketplace and the Prankster computer application can be downloaded PranksterServer 1.0.  The unsuspecting friend’s machine needs to have Java already installed. Please visit http://java.com for download and installation instructions, if needed. Download “PranksterServer.jar”  and double click the downloaded .jar file from the saved location. The program will run silently in the background.  Depending on the version of Java, the program will run as javaw.exe or java.exe in Task Manager.  Prankster can launch every time the computer turns on by putting the .jar file in the Windows startup folder.

The computer application has been well tested on Windows XP and Windows 7.  The program opens port 8888 to listen for the remote commands.  If the computer is running a software firewall, it may prompt to allow access or unblock it the first time it is run.  Prankster should only used across the local network and not over the Internet. Once the Prankster server application has been installed on the remote computer, the IP address will need to be obtained for the Android portion of the application. To obtain the remote computer’s IP address follow the steps below.

1. Click “Start”.
1b. For Windows XP click “Start” and then “run”.
2. Type “cmd” (without quotes) and hit “Enter”
3. Once the command box is up, type “ipconfig” (without quotes) and hit “Enter”
4. Look for the line “IP Address” and enter the number into the “Enter IP” screen in the Prankster Android app and select “Connect”
5. Prank away!