XP local user accounts

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Guest

Hi,

I'm setting up an XP system for my family. The system will be used by
several adults and a couple of kids.

I want to use contents advisor in Microsoft Explorer to block the kids from
accessing any adult content. I'd also like to be able to log what sites the
kids are looking at or trying to look at. At the same time, I want to leave
the adults free to do what they want.

Up till now, however, I've only been able to configure the contents advisor
for all accounts. I want to configure it separately for each Windows XP user
account. Is there a way to do this?

Cheers

Karl
 
Karl said:
Hi,

I'm setting up an XP system for my family. The system will be used by
several adults and a couple of kids.

I want to use contents advisor in Microsoft Explorer to block the kids
from
accessing any adult content. I'd also like to be able to log what sites
the
kids are looking at or trying to look at. At the same time, I want to
leave
the adults free to do what they want.

Up till now, however, I've only been able to configure the contents
advisor
for all accounts. I want to configure it separately for each Windows XP
user
account. Is there a way to do this?

Cheers

Karl
Click to expand...

Karl,

Nope... that's how Content Advisor works and it's "by design" as Microsoft
likes to say. There are some third-party products out there that might give
you more flexibility but I don't use them so I can't make any suggestions.
 
Hi Karl-

Your question has a rather large amount of subjectivity in it, more I
suspect than you may realize. The kind of control which you want to achieve
while definitely possible within XP and IE on their own - you'll have to
tweak both elemnts to get what you want - is not "easy" (here's the
subjectivity part: how much of a Windows Whizard are you? How much = and how
deep - into Windows XP are you willing delve?), but nor is it especially
hard. It - likely for you - _will_ be time-consuming, though (nothing
personal or derogatory, but if you have to ask the question "CAN it be
done..." it seems apparent you are unaware of how envolved the three main
elements of NTFS permissions, XP policies, and IE/Explorer capabilites work
in your scenario). Not everybody wants to be an XP-Whizard, theu just want it
to XP-Work.

These subjective things are questions I get the impression you need to
answer, as I suspect you are a casual Windows User and not the XP-literate
more-advanced-than-most-but-by-no-means-do-you-need-to-be-a-Gandalf-The-White-XP-Whizard
to do this, but you will need to now how to work with Group Policies, NTFS
permissions, the Registry, and enabling/diabling control features within both
Internet Explorer and Windows explorer in order to "lockdown" the kids'
accounts. Not simple everyday stuff, but then again not that terribly
difficult either. It's subjective: how much do you want to know to do this on
your own? If you do want to know how, let us know in your next post.

There are, however other alternatives. Two 1/2 come to mind right away:
The first is Nortons Internet Security
(http://www.symantec.com/product/index_homecomp.html). This product has
virtually everything you need for a secure and controlled internet-access
computer/workgroup.

The other 1 (and 1/2... 2 b explained;-) is the ZoneAlarm security Suite by
Zone Labs (http://www.zonealarm.com/ on the home page click the Home/Office
products then use their Compare tool/link to help you through the
possibilites). The 1/2 possibillity is the free ZoneAlarm product - to save a
few bucks - but you won't get the Parental controls you want.

Both of these products are excellant (I use Nortons at present but may try
ZA when my subscription runs out...). Norton's Internet Security is fairly
easy (for me, at least) to use, I can't say from experience anything about
ZoneAlarm but I hear marvelous things from reliable sources. One of them is
Steve Gibson at http://www.GRC.com/. He also makes a remark against Norton
IS, but that comment was made some time ago and is no longer as
"disagreeable" as it was when he made it (Symantec has changed the product
since then, and IMHO the issue, while some presnece still remains, is nowhere
near as detrimental as it was). To each his own.

Good luck, good hunting, and happy new year!
 
there are ways to do it, that are not built into Windows.

one way that would work in an ideal world would be to set up everybody's
account to block all content with Ratings above zero. then acquire a macro
recording program, and record every keystroke you use to change the level of
content allowed for users of Adult accounts. then put your recorded macro
in the Startup folder for users of Adult accounts only, but not users of
Child accounts.

but alas, this is not an ideal world. although the tools would work, the
effectiveness depends on compliance by all the world wide web sites, which
as it turns out, do Not all have Ratings. lots of good web sites and lots
of bad web sites do Not have Ratings. choosing to Block all the web sites
that have no Rating will eliminate many perfectly good and appropriate web
sites.

even if they all had Ratings and the ratings were not false, this system of
Ratings would only protect your children, if the only program they ever use
to interact with the internet was Internet Explorer. to achieve that, you
would have to remove access to any Email program, instant messaging / chat
program, music player program with access to vulgar songs or stations, file
swapping program, FTP, telephone dialer program, and conferencing program,
all of which are built into Windows.

and even all the above would not meet your need to log their activities.
looks like your best choice for now is Cyberpatrol.com

but eventually they will grow up, fully protected from all the bad
influences of the world, thanks to Cyberpatrol, Vchips, and Home-schooling.
then will they be prepared to deal with bad influences of the world ? i
certainly was not, when i left home, and took my first job -- with a foreign
oil company near Bangkok. at what point do we gradually expose them to the
ugliness of the real world, and how slowly ? certainly that's up to each
parent to decide -- not me.

maybe the world would be a better place, if we took away all the telephones,
cell phones, TVs, radios, internet connections, and raised all our children
the way Amish do. the Amish are certainly stable and morally upright.


Hi,

I'm setting up an XP system for my family. The system will be used by
several adults and a couple of kids.

I want to use contents advisor in Microsoft Explorer to block the kids from
accessing any adult content. I'd also like to be able to log what sites the
kids are looking at or trying to look at. At the same time, I want to leave
the adults free to do what they want.

Up till now, however, I've only been able to configure the contents advisor
for all accounts. I want to configure it separately for each Windows XP user
account. Is there a way to do this?

Cheers

Karl
 
Hi Danor,

I am interested in implementing this kind of security without using any 3rd
party tools. Although IMHO Microsoft should have offered this kind of
parental control for WinXP users. Making these tasks so diffiuclt for an
average user that they have to use 3rd party tools in not the best marketing.
But till the time that Microsoft Gurus will do some thing about it, please
advise me how to restrict my kids accounts for accessing specific Internet
sites.

Regards, Amir
 
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