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Parental controls and site blocking
One of the best solutions to controlling web access by your kids (or employees)
is the OpenDNS service. All you do is
set up a free account there, change your router or computers to use their
domain name servers rather than your ISP's ones, and within your OpenDNS
account you can then filter out sites by name or category. You can customise
the "bounce" page
with a logo too - for our home setup I've uploaded the logo of our ISP so
the blocking is seen as external to our control.
BT Home Hub Security
Many of my clients have BT Internet as their ISP, and have been concerned
about security matters regarding their Home Hub router, as the default
security settings are somewhat insecure. All the information required
to lock down the router from hackers are here.
Virtual Personal Assistant
If like me
you work from a home-based office it's handy to have someone to pick up
the phone when you are not available yourself. I use and can recommend
Moneypenny, who will provide you
with your own personal secretary / PA at a much more cost-effective rate
than employing someone directly. And as they say, you would be happy to
employ any of their PAs yourself. There is a free trial available too -
just tell them I referred you!
Video games for children
As a parent, steering through the absolute minefield of computer and video
games trying to avoid those unsuitable for under 18s is a tricky
task. Whilst multiplayer games from the Disney stable such as Toontown and Club
Penguin, and BBC games such as Adventure
Rock are very child-friendly,
others are not, and many parents of under-18s can unknowingly be allowing
them to play games such as Grand Theft Auto which presses all the game
classification buttons for sex, violence and bad language. For some
useful guidance visit Gaming
With Children and What They
Play.
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