That seems like overkill. Why not just give them a barebones linux box with tty only. No X server, no windows manager, just a cursor blinking at you, daring you

That seems like overkill. Why not just give them a barebones linux box with tty only. No X server, no windows manager, just a cursor blinking at you, daring you to do something. As a christmas present you could install lynx for them.