The old 'site is shutting down' one is a huuuuge risk. I have in previous years seen people lose a LOT of members over doing that because it isn't really a 'joke', it's just a straight lie. Because it sounds convincing people tend to take it at face value. Steer clear of that one.
I created a php file called ban.php that simply called a template called ban_joke. I then put a 'ban' button in all posts with an alt tage saying 'Ban <username> for one hour. When the button was clicked it simply took you to a page (created by ban.php & the ban_joke template) that appeared to confirm the user was banned for 60 mins, and asked them to make a note of the date for our records. I then announced this as 'a new feature to liven up the forum'.
Most people got it pretty quickly, but a few were left with lingering doubts as to whether it WAS a hoax or not, until I 'revealed all' at midday.
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04-01-2006, 10:36 PM
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