My daughter is around 8 years old and has started browsing the web. While I try to be around and monitor her use, sometimes it’s good to know that if she is left alone for a few minutes, that she won’t be able to see non-kid-safe material.
What’s the best program out there right now?
Also, is any program fool proof, or should there always be an adult present when kids go online?
There is no such thing as “kid-proof”, especially if the kid in question is a little bit computer-savvy. Some of the programs out there are better than others, but I don’t know enough about them to make a recommendation.
IMHO, the best plan is a combination of strategies.
[ul]
[li]Have a good discussion with your daughter and make sure she knows what is and isn’t appropriate,and what you expect of her.[/li][li]Don’t let her have her computer in her bedroom or anyplace else that she can surf behind closed doors.[/li][li]Make sure she knows that you can and will be randomly looking over her shoulder.[/li][li]Implement a blocking program of some sort.[/li][li]Learn how to track what sites she has visited and do so occasionally.[/li][li]Let her know that you are doing this, not because you don’t trust her, but that there is a lot of “bad stuff” out there and you want to help protect her from it.[/li][/ul]
I agree with this. I just wanted the name of a good program that implements points 4 amd 5 above.
Anyone?
Off to IMHO.
DrMatrix - GQ Moderator
You might want to check out this thread in GQ:
I posted it in the other thread, and here it is again, Child Control is damned cool. Not just for Internet, controls what and when and how long any app or program can be run, and doesn’t just block access to internet sites, it also can be set to log attempts at web sites and present them for parental review and approval. It’s comprehensive as all get out, and it’s going on the computer we’re building for the grandkid.