Vista parental control review

Get free ground shipping on all U. Shop now. In this chapter, you'll discover the new interface and features of Vista. As you'll soon see, Windows Vista is quite a change from the old XP! I'll break down the key new Vista features and show you which flavor of Vista includes which features.

Then, I'll show you how to access each of these new features. If you are a longtime Windows user, you might be tempted to give this chapter short shrift—or skip it altogether—but if you want to get the most enjoyment out of your new operating system, I strongly urge you to keep reading. No matter which Windows Vista edition you choose, or have chosen, it will contain a redesigned look and functionality. The taskbar, Start menu, and the new desktop feature, called Windows Sidebar, will likely be the first noticeable changes you'll discover in Vista.

Figure 3. Microsoft has again changed the scheme in Vista. Gone is the default blue-and-green color scheme XP users know so well. In Windows Vista, Microsoft has chosen a fading black color scheme. Although this tones down the look and brightness of Windows, the black scheme projects a sleek interface. Another major change to the taskbar is the Start button. The usual button containing the word start has been replaced with a Windows logo, which you can see in Figure 3.

If your system is capable of running the new Aero interface, Vista offers the use of live thumbnails, which provide a preview of the open document or application, simply by hovering your mouse over an application in the taskbar see Figure 3. The time is still displayed by default on the taskbar in the lower-right corner of the screen. After clicking on the time to bring up the calendar and clock see Figure 3. You might also notice that you can't change the time and date settings as easily as you could in other versions of Windows.

You can, however, now set up additional clocks for other time zones or use the military hour time format if you desire.

As you can see from the example in Figure 3. Instant Search allows you to quickly find files, programs, email messages, web favorites and history, and more. For more information, see 81, "Search from the Start Menu.

If you are a fan of the Run prompt from previous versions of Windows, you might be disappointed because it's not included on the Start menu by default. You can, however, use the Search box to run commands like you would with the Run applet found in other versions of Windows. Nevertheless, the Run prompt can be accessed in the Accessories section of the Start menu see Figure 3.

For more information, see 62, "Run Prompt. Another notable change you'll discover after seeing the Start menu is that the word My has been dropped from the names of common items and directories. Changes to My Documents are detailed in 51, "My Documents. You can also add these icons such as Computer and Network to your desktop. For more information, see 40, "Add the Main Icons.

You'll also likely notice the Turn Off Computer and Log Off buttons have been removed and replaced with other options. The first button on the left, indicated by the power symbol, will put the PC into Sleep mode.

Similar to Stand By mode in previous versions of Windows, Sleep mode powers down most of the PC and puts the session into memory so you can resume right where you left off. I got the Bark Sr. Try Bark Free For 7 Days! One of the best things about Norton is how easy it makes everything. From installing the software and setting up child accounts to customize the web filters and the screen time limitations.

They tried to extend their screen time limits, access websites I blocked, and watch YouTube videos to see if I knew what they watched or how much time they spent on it. With its web filter, Norton Family gives me complete control over when setting the web restrictions.

Based on the text, metadata, and images on the website, Norton Family uses AI to place every website into at least one of 47 categories. You can try out Norton Family free for 30 days without having to enter any payment information. This will give you full access to all its features and unlimited account across multiple devices for your kids. Try Norton Family for free for 30 days!

I set up different profiles for each of the kids and had them log in each time they got on the computer. This way, I was able to set up a detailed schedule and a daily screen time limit. I really liked that I could block the internet at any time and from anywhere, through the parent dashboard.

I signed up for the plan that includes 5 devices. Whatever plan you choose, you can try it risk-free with their day money-back guarantee before making a decision. Get the Net Nanny Free for 30 Days!

Kaspersky Safe Kids excelled at filtering the internet when I tested it with all major browsers. In addition to the filter, Kaspersky enforces SafeSearch for Google and YouTube, which did a good job of removing inappropriate search results. I had to remove it, then uninstall and reinstall Safe Kids for it to work properly.

Safe Kids only has a basic time management filter. This means that you can set up either a daily time schedule or a daily screen-time limit per child — but not both, as some others allow. Once the time expires, Safe Kids will block the computer from accessing the internet. I was impressed with how easy it was to customize the web filter with Mobicip. It comes with three sensitivity levels that I could choose from , or customize it myself. Unfortunately, when the computer is locked, the computer is completely unusable.

Do not forget that while the parental controls option is configured and set alive for your child, he or she will remember and be aware that the content filtering and monitoring software is running by the parental controls icon on the system tray.

As long as this feature is on and its tracking icon is visible, this will create a positive effect on the behaviour of your children when they are using their computers. Just as other third party tools that can be bought from software vendors, Vista Parental Controls helps you as parents to manage and determine for your child while your child is on the computer even when you are away from home. For smartphones running Windows Phone 8, I can suggest parent to enable and configure Kid's Corner on their phones.

Parental control softwares basically gather data from other applications that it is controlling, like internet browser, operating system executables. Or the internet parental control software programs behaves as proxies between the applications and the servers of the requested content pages. A few most common third party free or commercial parental control tools and software can be listed as follows : Net Nanny - ContentWatch KidsWatch. Microsoft Family Safety's location sharing features require a little setup, though nothing unexpected.

You must explicitly turn on location sharing in the app settings, and enable the Android and iOS location permissions for Family Safety before it starts to work. Technical details sorted, Family Safety displays your child's location both within the app and in the web dashboard. And assuming you've also enabled location sharing, they can see you, too. That's unusual in the parental control world, but it's certainly fair, and that might create a better impression with your child.

If it's parents watching kids, that could seem like spying; if it's every family member sharing their location with each other, that feels more like a feature which benefits everyone.

Pay for Microsoft Office Family and simple geofencing support enables creating common locations home, school, work and getting alerts when family members arrive or leave. We're reviewing the free app, not Office Family, and so didn't test this, but the basics look good.

We'd like a little more flexibility - ESET Parental Control can set a location by tapping the map, and set a zone to a specific size between m - but it's certainly easy to use.

Family Safety gives far more control over location alerts. If this is a school location, for instance, you can choose the one or more children who go there; opt for alerts when they arrive there, leave, or both; and decide to get these alerts every time, or just once a better choice for one-off events, like going to a party. It's a handy set of options, and more than we've seen with other parental control apps. Driver Safety, probably the most interesting Family Safety Premium feature, takes this to a whole new level.

Turn this on and Family Safety not only tracks your location, it also analyses your driving, logs journeys, and keeps a two-week history. We didn't test this either, not least because it deserves an entire review all by itself. But the logs try to capture lots of detail, including the journey route, top speed, moments of fast acceleration or hard braking. This is a useful way to keep an eye on the new drivers in your family, but it could help anyone check their driving, parents too.