Monday December 12, 2011

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Using Parental Controls in Windows Vista Adapted From: Windows Vista For Dummies

A feature much-welcomed by parents and much-booed by their children, Vista's Parental Controls offer several new ways to police how people can access the computer, as well as the Internet. In fact, people who share their PCs with roommates may welcome the Parental Controls, as well.

The Parental Controls let you dictate what a person can and can't do on the Internet. They also keep tabs on how the person is using the PC, sending you reports on exactly when she is using the PC, what Web sites she is visiting, and what programs she is using. To set Parental Controls, you must own an administrator account.

To set up Vista's Parental Controls, follow these steps:

1. Open the Control Panel from the Start menu and choose Parental Controls in the User Accounts and Family Safety section.

If Vista's built-in policeman says, "A program needs your permission to continue," feel free to click the Continue button.

2. Click the user account you want to restrict.

Vista only lets you add Parental Controls to one user account at a time.

When you choose a user account, the Parental Controls screen appears, as shown in Figure 1. The next steps take you through each section of the controls.

3. Turn the Parental Controls on or off.

The Parental Controls area first presents two switches, letting you turn monitoring on or off:

• Parental Controls: This toggle switch simply turns on or off any restrictions you've set. It's a handy way to turn on the restrictions when your suspicions are aroused or turn them off when they're not needed.

• Activity Reporting: This switch toggles Vista's activity reporting. That tells the PC to spy on your children's habits, telling you exactly when they've logged on and off, what programs they've used or tried to use, and what Web sites they've visited or tried to visit.

4. Set the Windows Vista Web Filter to determine what parts of the Web your child may visit.

The Web Filter lets you choose the parts of the Internet your child may view. To block some Web sites, click Edit the Allow and Block List. For ultimate control, block every Web site by selecting the Only Allow Websites Which Are on the Allow List box, and then add a few safe sites to the allowed list.

The Block Web Content Automatically area comes set to Medium, meaning that Internet Explorer blocks sites containing mature content. Switch it to High to block everything not specifically designed for children. Or switch it to Custom and pick and choose specific categories you'd like to have blocked from your child's view.

Be aware, however, that Web filters aren't 100 percent accurate, and some unwanted sites will always slip through the cracks.

5. Choose whether to allow file downloads, and then click the OK button.

The final box at the bottom of this page lets you stop your child from downloading files, an easy way to keep him from downloading and installing programs without your knowledge. However, selecting this box may also keep him from downloading files needed for schoolwork.

Clicking the OK button returns you to the Parental Controls opening screen, shown in Figure 1.

6. Add restrictions on time limits, games, and specific programs, and then set activity reports, clicking the OK button after each.

This huge category lets you block specific things on your PC rather than the Internet:

• Time limits: This option brings up a grid, letting you click on the hours when your child should be restricted from using the PC.

• Games: You may allow or ban all games here, restrict access to games with certain ratings, and block or allow specific games.

• Allow and Block Specific Programs: Here's where you can keep the kids out of your checkbook program, as well as particular games. You can block all programs, only allowing access to a few. Or, you can allow access to all but a few programs.

• Activity Reports: This setting lists the activity of every user account on your PC. You can view lists of everybody's visited Web sites, downloaded files, logon and logoff times, played games, newly added contacts, Web cam usage, accessed songs and videos, and much more.

7. Click the OK button to exit Parental Controls.

To see what your child has been up to, return to Parental Controls and choose View Activity Reports.