Calm Thesis

All checklists from the five steps, on one page

The five checklists below are the same ones that close each step of the course. They are gathered here so you can work through them at the computer without moving between pages, and the page is laid out to print cleanly on paper.

How to use these lists

Each list belongs to a step, and the steps run in order for a reason: the account decisions in the fourth list assume the spending limit set in the third, which assumes the hardware check in the second, which assumes the vocabulary of the first. If you work backwards you will find yourself re-deciding things.

Work through one list at a sitting rather than all five. The first two are mostly reading and writing things down, and take about fifteen minutes each. The third involves a lookup and a household conversation, so it takes longer than its length suggests. The fourth is the only one where anything is created, and is best done when you are not in a hurry. The fifth is not a one-off at all; it describes habits and a review you repeat twice a year.

The boxes are printed on the page rather than built as something to click. This site stores nothing at all, so a tick made on screen could not be remembered between visits, and a box that forgets what you told it is worse than a box on paper. Print the page, or keep it open in a tab and keep your own notes beside it.

Not every line will apply to you. A household with no young people can pass over the lines about a child's settings; someone on an unmetered connection can ignore the data allowance lines; a reader whose computer runs Linux will find the whole thing stops at the operating system line in the second list, which is a legitimate and quick answer. Striking out lines that do not apply is part of using a checklist well, as long as you strike them out deliberately rather than skip them.

If you want the reasoning behind any line, the step it came from explains it: Step 1, Step 2, Step 3, Step 4 and Step 5. Nothing in these lists requires you to buy anything, install anything, or follow any link on this site, including the paid affiliate links described on our funding page.

Checklist 1 — What you are signing up for

  • Write down which email address the account will use, and confirm someone reads that mailbox regularly.
  • Decide on a display name that contains no surname, school, workplace, suburb or year of birth.
  • Note which operating system the computer runs and which version of it.
  • Find out the approximate installed size of the client, as published by the vendor.
  • Check that your internet connection has enough remaining data allowance for an install of that size.
  • Open the vendor's privacy notice and read the section on what is collected and who it is shared with.
  • Open the licence agreement and read what happens to purchases if the account is closed.
  • Open the conduct rules and read the suspension and appeal process.
  • Agree, before installing, whether any payment method will be stored on the account.
  • Plan to install only from the vendor's own site or a shop you already use.

Checklist 2 — Will it run on your computer

  • Copy the vendor's minimum and recommended columns somewhere you can see them.
  • Record your operating system name and version number.
  • Record your processor model.
  • Record your installed memory in gigabytes.
  • Record your graphics hardware, noting whether it is built into the processor.
  • Record free space on the drive where the game would be installed.
  • Confirm the operating system row is an exact match, not an approximate one.
  • Require the published storage figure plus about half again before installing.
  • Work out what the install would take from this month's data allowance.
  • Mark each row as above recommended, in between, or below minimum, and decide.
  • Decline any site offering to scan your computer to answer these questions for you.

Checklist 3 — Ratings and spending

  • Search the Australian Classification Board's database for the exact title.
  • Confirm the entry you found is the computer game and not another media type.
  • Read the consumer advice underneath the classification, not only the classification.
  • Note the date of the decision and whether it predates the current version.
  • If a young person will play, read the classification and advice together with them.
  • Check whether the game has open chat, and treat that as a separate decision.
  • Open the vendor's store page and mark which spending shapes are present.
  • Note whether randomised purchasable items exist, and decide what that means for your household.
  • Decide whether any payment method will be stored on the account; storing none is the simplest limit.
  • Write down a monthly amount and the rule for what happens when it is reached.
  • Save a link to the ACCC's consumer guarantees material in case a purchase goes wrong.

Checklist 4 — The account and its settings

  • Use an email address that will still exist in five years and that someone reads.
  • Do not use a school, university or employer address for the account.
  • Create a passphrase of several unrelated words, used for this account only.
  • Store it in a password manager, or on paper kept away from the computer.
  • Check that the mailbox's own password is unique as well.
  • Follow the activation link from the vendor's own email, checking junk if it has not arrived.
  • Switch on two-factor authentication if the vendor offers it.
  • Save the two-factor recovery codes somewhere that is not the phone.
  • Narrow profile visibility before the first session.
  • Set chat and voice to suit the person playing, especially if that person is young.
  • Restrict who may send friend or group invitations.
  • Turn marketing email off unless you want it.
  • Review any linked social accounts and remove links you did not intend.
  • Store no payment method unless you have decided otherwise deliberately.
  • Reach the sign-in page by bookmark or typed address, never from a link in a message.

Checklist 5 — Time, updates, support and leaving

  • Allow for the client growing over time, not staying at its installed size.
  • Run large updates at a time that suits the household, not at the moment you want to play.
  • Check whether your plan has off-peak data and whether updates can be scheduled.
  • Decide session length by the clock before starting, not by reaching a goal.
  • Set up separate user accounts on a shared computer.
  • Decide whether the game client stays signed in when nobody is at the computer.
  • Keep a note of the vendor's support address and your operating system details.
  • Keep dates, reference numbers and exact wording for any dispute.
  • Know the difference between uninstalling, cancelling a subscription and closing the account.
  • Ask for a copy of your data before requesting closure, if you want one.
  • Put a half-yearly review in the calendar: disk space, recovery email, second factor, spending, settings.