[magpie]

Does anyone have any suggestions of good parental control software / web page blockers that they have found to work well?

Something that is download-able / buy-able from PC World which will allow one person (the parent) to put a block on certain websites at certain times to stop another person (the teenager) spending all their time pissing about online when they are meant to be studying.

Internet access is required for the studying so it can't be a total Internet ban, just something that controls what pages are accessible and at what time, if that's possible?

Any help or suggestions would be great, thank you.

[Jaspersharpe]

I don't know much about this but surely any computer savvy kid is going to be able to get round such things?

[magpie]

Possibly?  I don't know, that's why I'm asking you lot. 

I thought if you had something installed on a computer with one person as the administrator and the other people as users there might be a way to do it, it's how all our work computers are set up so nobody can download stuff or instal things without permission from an IT person, so I thought maybe a smaller scale thing was possible at home too?

[tomtom]

When i read parental control, I first assumed you wanted to prevent your parents from looking at things *goodidea*

[lagerstarfish]

I haven't needed to install it yet, but when I did some research/asking I decided that Norton Online Family looked good.

blocking etc, but also reports on what and when

[slackline]

Check and see whether the router (assuming there is one in place that is sharing the houses internet connection with multiple devices, both wired and wireless) has the ability to implement parental control.

This will be highly dependent on the router and who provided it so I can't offer any more insight than that*, but the advantage should be that access to the administration page of the router is password protected, so as long as the person whose access is being restricted doesn't know then you've no problem.  You may however encounter problems if the restrictions are global, but conversely you may be able to apply them to a specific IP address on your local network if you assign the same IP address to each device each time it connects (which is possible even using dynamic IP allocation).

And as Jasper says, its likely pretty simple to circumvent if you go through a proxy, because the computer (or router) thinks the browser is connected to the proxy, whilst the user is viewing whatever they wanted to look at through the proxy without the computer(/router) knowing.

* You could probably bung something like OpenWRT on most routers and do this, but thats probably overkill for most.

[magpie]

When I read parental control, I first assumed you wanted to prevent your parents from looking at things *goodidea*

Nah, my dad has already deleted me from his Facebook in a temper so I'm safe that way, for now. 

I'll check out Norton Online Family, ta Lagers.

Slackers, I have no idea what most of that meant, I can try and find out but it's not my router / computer it's to go on.  Is it generally as easy as using a proxy server to get around these sort of controls?  I reckon if it is then we're on to plums, even I know how to do that and he's a pretty smart kid. 

[slackline]

Slackers, I have no idea what most of that meant, I can try and find out but it's not my router / computer it's to go on.

Basically suggesting blocking at the router level rather than the computer.

The rest is problems that might arise if someone else was using another device and might find that they too are blocked.

  Is it generally as easy as using a proxy server to get around these sort of controls?  I reckon if it is then we're on to plums, even I know how to do that and he's a pretty smart kid. 

No idea, never used one, but that would be my first port of call if I found sites blocked.  You could of course block proxy servers (or at least most of the well known/common ones).

[GCW]

You could keep an eye on sites visited via the router/ openDNS, although not all routers allow this eg BT.

[magpie]

What sites are being visitied isn't really an issue, it's more that he's dicking about online at all - in a variety of places - while he's supposed to be only using the computer for studying for upcoming exams, that and he's on it until 3am most mornings despite being told he has to be off by 11pm.  Although knowing where he's going might be handy for knowing what sites to block. 

Thanks for the explanation, Slackers.  I'll pass it all on.

[lagerstarfish]

windaz 7 lets you set time limits for when people can use certain/any programmes

a traditional clip round the ear from the local bobby should sort him out

[Oldmanmatt]

I have M$ vista... Kids are only allowed to use one computer and I use the built in vista parental controls. There are two user accounts one for me/mrs omm and one for the kids.
We are the admin and they don't know the password. I can restrict which programmes they use and which sites they visit.
If they try to use a prog/ visit a site not on the allowed list, they need you to put in your password. You can decide if they can always use or use once.
I started with every thing blocked and gradually opened up time by time...
I can also restrict when they use it (ie not after 19:00 etc).
Works well.

[magpie]

a traditional clip round the ear from the local bobby should sort him out

You'd think, wouldn't you, but apparently not.

I'll look into the Windows 7 stuff and Vista thing too, thank you.

[Jaspersharpe]

I have M$ vista...

*shudders*

[Oldmanmatt]

I have M$ vista...

*shudders*

Y'know I've never had an issue with it.. Well, apart from the "are u sure?" and "are u sure you're sure?"... "really?"... Thing.

[tomtom]

You could take an alternative route and record everything he looks at with some snooping software, and confront him with a list - saying look, I know what you're looking at. I will always know and will check. Now play by the rules.

I would be an Evil parent...

[lagerstarfish]

saying look, I know what you're looking at. I will always know and will check. Now play by the rules.

so what?

[slackline]

so what?

Sounds like that teenager is a Metallica fan...



Although its a cover of an Anti-Nowhere League song (but they're a bit older and wouldn't expect them to be aware of the original).

[magpie]

Unfortunately Lagers has it, he doesn't care that he keeps getting caught, he knows that his mum knows he's been online when he shouldn't be he's been caught red handed about 6 times.  He has that fantastic teen thing going on where life is hideously unfair and we are all mean to him and nobody understands so he sees no reason to change his behaviour as clearly he's right and everyone else is wrong, it would be funny if it wasn't so bloody frustrating and making me sound like my mother on an alomost daily basis.

[tomtom]

Switch the router off at 11...

[tomtom]

And buy a 3G/mobile jammer

[Jaspersharpe]

They should stop feeding him, he'll soon come round.

[magpie]

I'll suggest the ban on food, that might push him over the edge.

Not bad ideas tomtom, however, he's currently not allowed a mobile he's lost so many so far.  His mum previously unplugged the router and hid it, when she went in to waken him up the next day he was asleep with his laptop on top of him, having found the router and set it all back up under cover of darkness once she was in bed, he obviously meant to re-hide it again after he was done but oddly enough staying up until 3am meant that he fell into an exhausted sleep before he had the chance.

[lagerstarfish]

positive reinforcement

tell him that if he plays by the rules for a week then you'll show him some fucked up shokushu goukan web sites or something

[magpie]

That might actually work!