Your computer freezes. Your mouse barely works. The program you need to run immediately to get that report done just won’t load. You press ctrl-alt-del, manually reset your machine, and just when you think the problem is solved, there it is: the blue screen of death.

These are moments when you long to smash your computer to bits. After all, it is just a stupid machine, right? Unfortunately, in addition to the monetary damage you would incur, taking a baseball bat to your computer can also be hazardous to your health. Enter Professor Kent Norman of the University of Maryland, College Park. Professor Norman has studied the phenomenon of “computer rage“, where a computer user takes out their frustrations violently on their hardware. Professor Norman’s solution? “[L]et the user vent in safe, controlled, and vicarious ways.”

On the Computer Rage website, you’ll find Quicktime videos of broiling your hard drive, smashing your monitor safely, making “barbecued mouse burgers,” and other extreme remedies for your computer problems. If your machine won’t download the videos, don’t turn to the “extreme key press.” Instead, purchase Dr. Norman’s DVDs. Your purchase helps support the Laboratory for Automation Psychology and Decision Processes at UMCP and is a great gift for the Michael Bolton’s and Samir’s in your life.

(Image from the single most edifying moment of Office Space. Damn it feels good to be a gangsta.)