Time for some input

Mak 2.0

Mod...WAFFLES!?!?
Staff member
Alright. I know it isnt that often that i ask for input but i need it in this case.

Here is the situation. I have several neices and nephews. They are getting to that age now where they have access to a PC and can start to browse the web. But of course they are not the best with spelling and such and i am worried that they could end up at some very bad sites for their age. Which are from 4-11. So i need to figure out the best way to create and run a filter for all this stuff.

Now i tried it in IE cause sadly this is the only web browser that my sister and the rest of the family use. I have tried to get them on both Firefox and Opera but to no avail.

So i tried the IE Content blocker but it is just way to much. To even enter the password to bring up MSN.com or RoadRunner.com (The web based email for everyone) i have to come up with a better solution.

So what are some ideas? What can be done with the tools available to block this stuff? I do know that I have isntalled IE7Pro on there. I have added the urlfilter from Opera to that so that it blocks ads.

Anyway i can use this to my advantage and basically create a filter for just about everything that deals with sex and violence? I have thought of host files but that wont do what i want i think. I also can say that they have only 1 user account and to create a new account and make it limited is not in the cards. These people have a hard enough time working the PC correctly to remember passwords to 2 different accounts.

I am honestly at a lose for what to do right now. If push comes to shove i will just put on the Content Blocker again and tell them to live with it for the sake of the kids. But i want this to be a last resort.

Thanks in advace.

PS they are running XP Home.
 
Dang... I was going to suggest taking advantage of MS's new parental controls, but that's right... it's only avaiable in Vista :frowning:

Even if they are running a wireless network, the filter on the router would be just as strict as the content advisor depending on it's settings. Some protection suites offer filtering features (I know McAfee does anyway in SecurityCenter). See what kind of security solution they're using and if it offers those features. There may also be some stand alone products avaiable, nothing that a little research shouldn't reveal.
 
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Well they can use whatever security feature i set them up with. :wink: They are not computer savvy so i set everything up. I have Avast and Comodo on them right now. I was just hoping it would be a bit easier than having to go thru the firewall for every option. I might be outta luck though.
 
You'll probably have to take a look at the various 3rd party paid and shareware "net nanny" softwares online - I'm sure one of them would come close to what you're looking for.

just remembered
Screw that, go to opendns.com and configure their PC to go through OpenDNS' dns servers. On the OpenDNS site enable the "content blocking" feature and you can check the categories you want to block.

Whenever that PC attempts to resolve the domain names for blacklisted sites, the resolution will fail and the site won't load.

It's a free service, btw.
 
thanks Mahmoud. I am on that PC today cause my sister is out of town and i will take a look at setting it up right now.

Cheers,
Mak
 
Yeah, I can't believe it slipped my mind earlier.

I never tried it myself (though I do use OpenDNS, just not for content blocking) but I've heard some really good things about their service.
 
Well i just installed it and ran the updater and everything. Will try now to see if the content gets blcoked.
 
Not alone there CG, I've seen it before myself and completely forgot to mention it :smile:

That should work perfectly fine.
 
Well if it would connect it would be perfect. I have done what they have said on the site but it never went thru their proxy. I think it is cause they have a Static IP not Dynamic. Plus oddly it is setup to run thru a router when there is no router that is working plugged in....
 
Static shouldn't be a problem - doing that here.

You may need to flush the DNS after configuring it. Assuming both fields in the TCP/IP Properties for DNS are set to 208.67.222.222/208.67.220.220 then run this command:
Code:
ipconfig /flushdns
to clear the old DNS entries.

Go to welcome.opendns.com or internetbadguys.com to test if it's working.
 
Well i got it working. I must say. It is very nice. It does work great. Thanks for the help Mahmoud.

cheers,
Mak
 
The problem was that they had 2 Network connections. The 2nd one being for the Wii WiFi adapter. Turns out that i was messing with that connection the whole time.

So i readjusted everything and got it working on the right adapter. But i messed up the WiFi adapter for the Wii now. :tongueout:

It is a decent tool. I have to go thru and add a bunch more sites. But it is very effective thru a google search and such.

Cheers,
Mak
 
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