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[Trapezohedron]

Okay, backstory is that I wanna play a lan game (Borderlands) with my bro, except for whatever idiotic reason, his girlfriend has forbidden him to play any games ever, and has made him uninstall every game on his computer while giving him a hobson's choice.

Now, of course, I was pissed because I bought borderlands for multiplayer games with my bros, and not being able to use that feature is irritating.

Okay, so how do you hide programs? Is there a simple program that requires no installation on the computer (remember, I don't want to leave traces due to his GF)? Or is there a failproof method of hiding stuff using the CMD console?

Many thanks in advance, in case I can't reply immediately.

[Criptfeind]

It depends on how tech savvy the GF is. But short answer is no.

You could make it hidden, password protected, and hidden some more. But you can not really hide anything for real, and even if she can not get though the password she will suspect it.

[Cthulhu]

.rar the game's folder, change it to a .png

An unsavvy person will fall for it, a clever person will notice the sudden influx of 5 gigabyte mspaint scribbles.

That, or you could recognize that your friend clearly values his girlfriend more than your bro-time, and respect that decision.  By that I mean snub him until he comes to his senses.

[Bauglir]

If the computer can handle the performance hit, he could conceivably run a virtual machine with Windows on it, and install Borderlands on THAT. Depending on how tech-savvy she is, she may never figure out what VirtualBox is supposed to be doing.

I call it the Xzibit solution.

That said, I think the problem here might be social rather than technical.

[Trapezohedron]

Oh, that's kinda sad... Anyway, thanks for the tips guys. Guess I'll have to push him and his GF to accepting my request then.

On a side note: I found a method using the CMD prompt's regedit command, but I'm quite unsure if it's reversable, so I'll avoid it for now.

[Vector]

I would suggest that you ask him to explain that games forbidden -> difficulty maintaining family social ties.  That will show her true colors.

I think the girl's unreasonable, but I also think that sneaking around behind her back with something so trivial, just because she's unreasonable, is also unreasonable--and if she catches him she'll have "viable" reason for restitution.  It'll be a clear breaking of a promise (objective), rather than his reasoning, which is simply that she's being unreasonable (subjective).

Make sense?

[ed boy]

This trick varies from game to game (it tends to work more often with games on the older side), but here is what you can try:

-Install the game on some unrelated computer (one that will not be under scrutiny)
-Patch it up (patching can be difficult with this method)
-Copy over the directory to the computer under scrutiny

What you now have is all the game files on the new computer without any of the associated registry entries. Most game I've tried this with work fine, but I don't try this with the most recent ones.

Now it's just a matter of obfuscating the game directory. There's no way to hide the increase of hard disk space used, so if the game takes up a lot of space then this can be noticeable. If the GF notices the increase, and wants to hunt it down, it is possible if she is tech-savvy enough. However, if the GF does not, then the only danger is that she will stumble across the folder accidentally, or walk in on him playing the game.

It is possible to try and mask the increase of hard disk space used by installing some other program(s) at the same time, and blaming the increase on that program.

So here is a how-to:
-On your secondary computer, install the game, patch it, etc
-Copy the directory over to the primary computer (this is a lot easier if you can get them on the same LAN, or one is a laptop so you can connect them directly
-On the primary computer, create a new subdirectory in an important-looking folder that could believably have a large size. Copy the game to there. Alternatively, depending on the game, it might be possible to use an external hard drive/memory stick
-On the primary computer, install a new coding program/movie program/other program that you can claim takes up a lot of space
-Play only when there is no danger of the GF interrupting

[Sir Finkus]

This is easy.  Your bro should dump her.  I don't know why people let themselves be controlled so much in relationships.  If she insists on having such control over his life and dumps him over it, he should consider it a dodged bullet and move on.

[Trapezohedron]

I would suggest that you ask him to explain that games forbidden -> difficulty maintaining family social ties.  That will show her true colors.

I think the girl's unreasonable, but I also think that sneaking around behind her back with something so trivial, just because she's unreasonable, is also unreasonable--and if she catches him she'll have "viable" reason for restitution.  It'll be a clear breaking of a promise (objective), rather than his reasoning, which is simply that she's being unreasonable (subjective).

Make sense?

Yep, that's what I'm gonna do first, I'm just devising a plan in case if it doesn't go as planned. (and if she continues to be unreasonable)

This trick varies from game to game (it tends to work more often with games on the older side), but here is what you can try:

-Install the game on some unrelated computer (one that will not be under scrutiny)
-Patch it up (patching can be difficult with this method)
-Copy over the directory to the computer under scrutiny

What you now have is all the game files on the new computer without any of the associated registry entries. Most game I've tried this with work fine, but I don't try this with the most recent ones.

Now it's just a matter of obfuscating the game directory. There's no way to hide the increase of hard disk space used, so if the game takes up a lot of space then this can be noticeable. If the GF notices the increase, and wants to hunt it down, it is possible if she is tech-savvy enough. However, if the GF does not, then the only danger is that she will stumble across the folder accidentally, or walk in on him playing the game.

It is possible to try and mask the increase of hard disk space used by installing some other program(s) at the same time, and blaming the increase on that program.

So here is a how-to:
-On your secondary computer, install the game, patch it, etc
-Copy the directory over to the primary computer (this is a lot easier if you can get them on the same LAN, or one is a laptop so you can connect them directly
-On the primary computer, create a new subdirectory in an important-looking folder that could believably have a large size. Copy the game to there. Alternatively, depending on the game, it might be possible to use an external hard drive/memory stick
-On the primary computer, install a new coding program/movie program/other program that you can claim takes up a lot of space
-Play only when there is no danger of the GF interrupting

No can do, we only have two capable computers at home, the first being the family's PC, and the next, his laptop, which is being monitored.

This is easy.  Your bro should dump her.  I don't know why people let themselves be controlled so much in relationships.  If she insists on having such control over his life and dumps him over it, he should consider it a dodged bullet and move on.

Yeah, that's what I'd say, if only he wasn't too blind to notice. To expound on it, he's aware that his GF has a tight grip on his personal life and belongings, but he also loves her. There are times he wished they'd break up, but he's also afraid of losing her too.

Also, to everyone, she isn't quite skilled with the inner workings of the computers, or to put it simply, she's in between the average computer user and the newbie computer user.

[ed boy]

No can do, we only have two capable computers at home, the first being the family's PC, and the next, his laptop, which is being monitored.

Then you use the family PC as the secondary one and the laptop as the primary one. You don't need to keep the game installed on the seconday one after the transfer is complete; you can uninstall it right away. As long as you can get access to both without her knowing for a couple of hours, you'll be fine. If you can't, then you don't really have any opportunity to play without her finding out.

[Virex]

She'll probably have her reasons for this decision. It's unreasonable to put the happiness of him and his girlfriend on the line just for a game. It's not necessary for social interactions anyway. Whatever happened to non-computer games anyway?

[Sensei]

I was pissed because I bought borderlands...

IMO that's all the justification you need.

You've said she isn't a computer expert, and between that and the fact that she has a particularly Amish position on video games I think I can prescribe a simple solution (assuming you can't get her to change her mind first).

First, hide the game folder: Right click it, go to properties and tick "hidden". I don't think Borderlands installs in more than one directory, so you should only need to do the "Borderlands" folder (or 2K games over it).
Second, make sure hidden folder viewing is disabled. In a folder menu, press alt and a toolbar should appear along the top. Click tools, folder options, and go to the view tab. You should have the option to hide/show hidden folders there. Just show hidden folders when you want to start the game and run it from the directory.
Thirdly, on Vista and Windows 7 (maybe XP too) there's a games menu selectable from the start menu. Just find Borderlands in there and select "hide game".

That's a pretty anal explanation; it's relatively quick and simple to do and should stop anyone who isn't computer savvy from finding it. If you want to be extra safe, you could do the file compression thing some other people suggested. If you installed the game in program files, put some other programs in there to help disguise the folder size (she probably won't check but hey, be safe).

Also, don't let her see you/your brother playing it. That might cause her to suspect that you did not uninstall the game.

[Trapezohedron]

She'll probably have her reasons for this decision. It's unreasonable to put the happiness of him and his girlfriend on the line just for a game. It's not necessary for social interactions anyway. Whatever happened to non-computer games anyway?

She's in a constant state of jealousy. If my bro can't text her phone if she's away, then she'll go crazy about him not replying in mere minutes. My bro's also against the anti-video game stance she's taking, but he's a bit scared of her. Also, I usually play Monopoly with them, but having bought the game and not being able to use it as intended sucks, man.

I was pissed because I bought borderlands...

IMO that's all the justification you need.

You've said she isn't a computer expert, and between that and the fact that she has a particularly Amish position on video games I think I can prescribe a simple solution (assuming you can't get her to change her mind first).

First, hide the game folder: Right click it, go to properties and tick "hidden". I don't think Borderlands installs in more than one directory, so you should only need to do the "Borderlands" folder (or 2K games over it).
Second, make sure hidden folder viewing is disabled. In a folder menu, press alt and a toolbar should appear along the top. Click tools, folder options, and go to the view tab. You should have the option to hide/show hidden folders there. Just show hidden folders when you want to start the game and run it from the directory.
Thirdly, on Vista and Windows 7 (maybe XP too) there's a games menu selectable from the start menu. Just find Borderlands in there and select "hide game".

That's a pretty anal explanation; it's relatively quick and simple to do and should stop anyone who isn't computer savvy from finding it. If you want to be extra safe, you could do the file compression thing some other people suggested. If you installed the game in program files, put some other programs in there to help disguise the folder size (she probably won't check but hey, be safe).

Also, don't let her see you/your brother playing it. That might cause her to suspect that you did not uninstall the game.

I'll keep note of that. I'm still trying to convince her, but if I go too far, she'll probably RAEG AGAINST THE HEAVENS. So yeah, I'll try your method in case she says no.

[Nadaka]

I see. She is a control freak. She does not understand that acceptance and trust is part of love. In the long run, it is in his best interest to stand up for himself and reject her unreasonable position. Not so he can play video games, but because she will keep acting that way forever and drive him insane. If she really cares for him, she will bend and accept. And if she doesn't, she isn't worthy of his affection.

A way to actually hide a game:

Create a custom linux boot disk/dvd with the game installed on it. This requires the game to run under wine and to be small enough to fit the game, linux and the wine libraries on one DVD.

[Sir Finkus]

I see. She is a control freak. She does not understand that acceptance and trust is part of love. In the long run, it is in his best interest to stand up for himself and reject her unreasonable position. Not so he can play video games, but because she will keep acting that way forever and drive him insane. If she really cares for him, she will bend and accept. And if she doesn't, she isn't worthy of his affection.

This.  I've seen this happen to many of my friends.  It does NOT get better.  There are plenty of other women out there that will either like, or tolerate a video game habit.  It sounds like the op knows this though, and has already talked to his friend (or brother if "bro" was in the literal sense) and probably won't be able to convince him to do anything.  Trust me, I've been in the op's position before.

OP, you might actually want to avoid stirring the pot.  You could easily turn into the scapegoat when she finds out (she probably will eventually).  If your bro is as smitten with her as you say he is, he'll probably take her side.  It'll be ugly and awkward all around.  Avoid the shitstorm if possible.  If not, godspeed.