Help with a practical joke
 

OK, here's the setup:

I want to build a heating element and attach it to the extra fan power leads on the motherboard. This heating element will heat model train smoke fluid and start the cmoputer smoking. Or I could just by a train and rip the heating element out of it.

As we all know, the solution to a smoking computer is to install NOSMOKE.COM. I need a program that when run it cuts the power to the second fan power leads (or any other set of leads like the power light).

Anyone have any ideas on a program that will do something like this.

You could use an RS232 (serial) connection in series with a MOS amplifier (if necessary) to generate a signal to a switch (bipolar junction transistor?) that connects the fan leads to the motherboard. Then just write a program to send the signals over the RS232 port.

I realize that this might be a little bit too much work for you. But it's what I could think of off the top of my head. :)

Yeah, it would be pretty hard to write a program that controlled the fan connectors as they vary by motherboard. Your best bet would be an internal serial connector on the motherboard as oberon suggested. Either use a switching transistor or a relay and some simple com commands. You could then power the smoke generator by a spare molex connector.

The com commands can be done easily enough with C++ or VB, so the only real problem would be fabricating the smoke generator.