The Internet itself is full of pros and cons. You can do research, find long-lost relatives, write a paper for school or play fun games online. On the other hand online predators are looking to take advantage of people by stealing your identity or pretending to be someone that they are not in order to take advantage of you in some way. In addition, there are millions and millions of websites with inappropriate content. Pornography, violence, and other crude materials can be stumbled upon by even the most cautious Internet user.
Obviously every parent wants to protect their child from the evils of the world, but not all parents perceive evils equally. Some are quick to criticize overly protective parents as tyrants who do not let their children choose for themselves. Others will buy spyware and filters in order to constantly monitor every move that their child makes on the computer in order to prevent problems from even starting.
Whatever your opinion is on the matter, what you need to know is that you have options. There are programs with parental controls that you can operate and set-up to be as lenient or as strict as you feel is appropriate for your family. One such program on the market is called Vista. Vista allows parents to help their kids use the computer more safely. But this program is not without its opponents.
Some praise Windows Vista saying that using this program can lead to more productive use of your home’s personal computer. Vista is relatively easy to use and change periodically as the need arises. There are settings that allow you to monitor the compute usage of various members of the family. You can set time limits on who can use the Internet at what time. You can also control the access that your computer users have to websites, programs, and games. Additionally these settings can be family member specific. Different members of the family can be given different restrictions and limits.
Vista takes the worry away from many parents who cannot be constantly monitoring their kids. Working parents find Vista especially appealing as they can have the piece of mind knowing that their child is not being exposed to inappropriate content on the Internet while they are away. Many teens actually feel safer online knowing that they will not be bombarded by disturbing images and other unpleasant content when they are online.
On the other hand, opponents to what they consider as “spying” on their kids, reprimand Windows for promoting a product that takes away the freedom to choose. There are people who believe that unless their children are exposed to negative things and make the conscious choice to avoid them, we are just postponing the inevitable. After all, you cannot possibly filter and block every computer at every location that your child will ever have access too. Opponents to parental controls consider restricting access as an issue of an inability to trust your own children. Some people believe that children have just as much of a right to decide what they do and do not want to see as adults do.
Whether you praise the name Vista, you curse it, or you are somewhere in-between, we can all agree that the point of the matter is to do what we think is in the best interest of our own children. No one will force you to buy Windows Vista or any other filtering technology. But, if you are looking for a way to control your kids’ Internet exposure, Vista is an excellent option to create controls the way that you like them.
