Setting up a laptop for a child... Help

[simon the viking]

Little V has been badgering me to set up the old laptop for him.... a few reasons why I won't, one... its about cream crackered physically... two... I tried to install a linux OS as a giggle to get away from the sluggish windows it had (and failed) and finally I haven't seen it since the house move six months ago....

I've ordered a small 11 inch windows laptop/tablet combi for him for his 9th birthday at £120.
So...
- I'm going to set it up as linked to my microsoft user account as a child
- Set up the home page as KIDREX (the children's search engine he uses at school)
- Put AVG free on it as it will come with a months trail of McAfee
- Not let it within 15 feet of a credit card.....
- Ban him from Facebook (I know you are meant to be older but all kids lie to go on it)

Have I covered all bases? I won't let him use it totally unsupervised for hours in bedroom but I don't want to be constantly looking over his shoulder. His Kindle tablet is never off airplane mode.... (Mrs V is frightened he will run up loads of debt on it as its linked to her credit card... so we buy any games for him then switch it off Wifi) he knows how to take it off Airplane mode but doesn't, and I want to steer clear of another 'use it but no wifi' scenario

Any other things I should be thinking of? is there a suitable children's social network he could use with his mates?

 

[steve50]

You could activate parental control which would require a password each time he tries to make changes to the laptop or access a website.Initially this would be a real pain for you but once he has accessed the websites he regularly uses you wouldn't need to type in your password. It will keep him from accidentally going onto "adult" websites.
Childrens social media websites are best avoided as they are known to be frequented by some unsavoury types of adults.

 

[subaqua]

the mcafee parentel controls is worth the Internet security subscription for us as it allows us to set times the PC can be used , the internet can be accessed and its a doddle to use. set up a visible Admin account so you don't have to resort to finding the hidden admin account when you need to make changes !

 

[simon the viking]

Cheer @steve50 will look at the password option may keep it in reserve if I feel he's mis-using it... Did think about child social media being frequented by dubious adults....any thoughts on setting up a closed group on say google+ and inviting the parents to let their children join it?

 

[simon the viking]

@subaqua ... thanks for that input, I think our ISP... BT does the time restriction thingy... but he's normally good when we say come off the tablet he moans 'Kevin the teenager' style but normally complies, again may keep that in reserve as a threat.

 

[summerdays]

I'm not the technical one in the family but I've found my youngest has been very quick at learning anything to do with the computer, and technical stuff too. Don't ask me how he managed at some point to give himself Admin privileges without us realising so that he was able to bypass some of the restrictions we put in place. We couldn't work out why he wasn't booted off the system when he ran out of time when his other siblings were.

Same at school where he tells me there are ways around the restrictions they put on the school system (he's now 15). At least he is open and we discuss these things!

 

[simon the viking]

I'm not the technical one in the family but I've found my youngest has been very quick at learning anything to do with the computer, and technical stuff too. Don't ask me how he managed at some point to give himself Admin privileges without us realising so that he was able to bypass some of the restrictions we put in place. We couldn't work out why he wasn't booted off the system when he ran out of time when his other siblings were.

Same at school where he tells me there are ways around the restrictions they put on the school system (he's now 15). At least he is open and we discuss these things!

Sounds like he has a lucrative career ahead of him... either for MI5, or as a cyberhacker!!!!

 

[User10119]

Which neatly illustrates the point that using a technological solution to a behaviour-management issue is fundamentally doomed to fail

We have Rules for Cubs, including but not limited to:

• Computers and other mobile computing devices are used downstairs, in communal areas only.
• You never tell anyone your password, apart from your parent because it is your parent's job to be responsible for you and help keep you safe.
• I can check your phone. I'll ask first, generally, but I can check whenever.

And we talk about stuff. I know that the EldestCub watches/listens to stuff that isn't particularly age appropriate for the SmallestCub - and he understands (and has done for years) that if he shares inappropriate stuff with his little brother then he loses the right to use the computer. We used to have a Rule about sweary youtube videos - if I heard it once, he'd get a warning and be expected to watch something different (or use headphones) and if I heard it a second time (because he hadn't chosen either of those options) the computer went off. I don't think it's really possible to prevent all access to inappropriate material at all times in all places - I think it's really important that they start to understand what is and isn't appropriate, and why, and make good choices, and I think it's helpful to start with that when the choices that they are making are about whether annoying orange is acceptable in a shared space and which minecraft vloggers swear too much to let your mum hear.

 

[summerdays]

[QUOTE 4217645, member: 10119"]I don't think it's really possible to prevent all access to inappropriate material at all times in all places - I think it's really important that they start to understand what is and isn't appropriate, and why, and make good choices, and I think it's helpful to start with that when the choices that they are making are about whether annoying orange is acceptable in a shared space and which minecraft vloggers swear too much to let your mum hear.[/QUOTE]
Very true ... especially the minecraft vloggers bit ... though it has to be a gradual relinquish of control!

 

[simon the viking]

In regard to the social media question I posed... I've set up a secret group, it seems like a mini secret forum (In the last 10 minutes) on groupbox that is viewable and postable to by invitation only from an administrator. I'll have a play with it and see if its a suitable idea. I could contact the parents of his friends I know most of them (and my Bro so he can contact his cousins who live miles away) to invite their children to it, this could keep him off facebook, other parents could have perhaps have admin rights to edit their childs posts....

Thoughts.... Yes? No? DDDDDDDAAAAAANNNNNNNGGGEEEERRR?

 

[User10119]

Personally, I wouldn't touch it with a bargepole.

 

[User10119]

Oh - another important rule. Read dialogue boxes before clicking. Never click 'accept' or 'install' without asking a grown up.

Also, make sure that you have the admin account and they have a limited one, regularly check virus definitions, and run a manual full scan, download ccleaner and run a disk/registry cleanup once in a while, I recommend malwarebytes for everyday use and hitman pro for if they really b0rk it.

My 8 yo has never had a virus/malware issue on his windoze laptop in the 2 years it has been his. His big brother killed the windoze install utterly on the PC, which is now running linux as a result, by failing to follow The Roolz. I often get asked to check machines for a couple of colleagues with teens/proto-teens and the record for malware infestation runs into the thousands.

 

[simon the viking]

[QUOTE 4217722, member: 10119"]Personally, I wouldn't touch it with a bargepole.[/QUOTE]

Could I ask why? is it a problem with the hosting site Groupbox per se or just the thought of constant monitoring of it, bullying between friends, the constant requests from lesser friends to join and it growing into a giant headache causing monster.......

After typing the above I guess its the latter.....

 

[simon the viking]

[QUOTE 4217778, member: 10119"]Oh - another important rule. Read dialogue boxes before clicking. Never click 'accept' or 'install' without asking a grown up.

Also, make sure that you have the admin account and they have a limited one, regularly check virus definitions, and run a manual full scan, download ccleaner and run a disk/registry cleanup once in a while, I recommend malwarebytes for everyday use and hitman pro for if they really b0rk it.

My 8 yo has never had a virus/malware issue on his windoze laptop in the 2 years it has been his. His big brother killed the windoze install utterly on the PC, which is now running linux as a result, by failing to follow The Roolz. I often get asked to check machines for a couple of colleagues with teens/proto-teens and the record for malware infestation runs into the thousands.[/QUOTE]

I run CCleaner regularly on main laptop... Father in law looked at his mums laptop because it was really slow and said to her 'its got about a dozen virus on it...' her reply was 'I don't know how that happened it never goes anywhere'

 

[User10119]

Could I ask why? is it a problem with the hosting site Groupbox per se or just the thought of constant monitoring of it, bullying between friends, the constant requests from lesser friends to join and it growing into a giant headache causing monster.......

After typing the above I guess its the latter.....

Yeah, pretty much! And however much you know and like the friends' parents, the politics of the first fall out could be terrifying.

Plus also, I personally just think that 9 is just too young to be faffing with all that. It remains to be seen if the youngest (approaching 9) will push against that boundary - he does tell me whether or not I'm allowed to share pics of him on social media, and seems mostly uninterested. The eldest (now 14, and one of my fb 'friends' because that is also a Rool... you have to accept your parents' friend requests) was cool with it, but the young'un has gained a stepsister in the last couple of years which sometimes has the effect of his rules and boundaries getting changed without my consent. Or knowledge...

I do use a kid-friendly blogging platform at work to introduce the ideas of safe/responsible internet use, but usually with Y5/6-ish.