Thanks Tracy,

my daughters are 9 and 7 and just getting into searching using Google. Prior to this they only go to a few sites that are child friendly and that I allow them to go to. Recently the younger one did a search for her friend from school and just types in Rachael. Needless to say, some of the pictures on one of the sites she tried were a bit inappropriate. Prior to that they had always asked me to help them search, but now that they are getting more knowledgeable. So in their case I want to filter out as many adult/inappropriate sites as possible.

I also have a 13 year old niece who is addicted to IM and RPG (Role Playing Games) so I probably want to do the monitoring for her, but from my checking up on what she gets up to, so far, she's not any trouble.

We do have stringent rules of how much time they can spend on the PCs.

>Are you wanting to control your child's access (limit it) or allow them total access and monitor it? There is a difference.
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>Look at:
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>http://www.monitor-internet-usage.com/
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>and a comparison:
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>http://www.monitoringsoftwarereviews.org/?e=1&kw=monitor+internet+usage&s_kwcid=monitor%20internet%20usage|950369975&gclid=CNS0i8KIlJACFShsGgod7UrvAg
>
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>That doesn't rule out the parental control software though. The problem I found with parental control software was letting them get to the sites they needed for research for papers. The filtering was just too stringent and it inhibited research abilities. I decided to give my daughter free reign and then monitor it until it becomes a problem. That was at an older age though and it is a personal parenting decision each parent must make. Don't forget the rules - the computer in a central location and the hours used when you are around and can see their actions, et al...
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>If you use monitoring software be prepared to sift through numerous messages (it tracks all keystrokes in instant messaging programs as well) of:
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>person 1: What cha doin
>person 2: nothin how bout u
>person 1: nothin
>person 2: bored
>person 1: me too
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>etc etc etc (I didn't type like they do: me 2, etc)
>
>>Hi,
>>
>>I've found a few reviews of Parental Control Software online, but was wondering if anyone here has personal experience of any that they can recommend.