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New Media News Every Morning

FamilyEducation.com offers safety tips on the recent toy recall

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geotrax.jpgOnline publisher of practical parenting guidance FamilyEducation.com has created a “Recent Toy Recalls” slideshow to help parent determine which recalled toys their children have and keep them informed of new recalls and safety information with links to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission’s complete list of toy manufacturers’ sites.

“When parents turn on the news and hear that millions of toys are being recalled — often some of their children’s favorites — they are confused about what to do and concerned about how to ensure their kids are playing with safe toys. As one of the first places that parents turn for information, FamilyEducation is committed to providing parents with the latest toy recall information, helpful safety tips and other resources and expert advice for avoiding the most common hazards in toys,” said Jess M. Brallier, publisher, FamilyEducation.

Originally posted on September 12, 2007 @ 6:54 am

Age verification software for social networking now available

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cybersitter.jpgIn response to the requests of many parents and government officials to develop age verification system for social networking, a new patent-pending technology called CYBERsitter V-Token allows parents to specify the ages or age ranges of their children and what types of content or activities that should not be allowed when their children visit a web site.

Parents simply need to download a small program that allows them to configure their preferences for each restricted user. Whenever a user visits any web site, these preferences are sent automatically to the remote server with every page request.

“It is simply not reasonable to encumber parents with an age verification process for every popular site their kids want to visit. Nor is it reasonable to inconvenience millions of adult aged users who may want to remain anonymous. CYBERsitter V-Token technology allows parents and content providers to cooperate in offering a safer environment without overburdening anybody,” said Brian Milburn, president of CYBERsitter developer, Solid Oak Software.

Originally posted on September 11, 2007 @ 8:05 am

New filtering software blocks MySpace, Facebook

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myspace-blocker.jpgSolid Oak Software, a company which provides Internet filtering products for parents and others, announced today a new program designed to block access to select popular social networking sites. CyberSitter Social Networking Blocker is available now for free personal usage.

CyberSitter Social Networking Blocker, said Solid Oak, is designed to block unauthorized access to MySpace and FaceBook. It also blocks access to several hundred known Web proxies that can be used to bypass filtering programs.

“We have been doing this longer than anyone else out there,” says Brian Milburn, president of Solid Oak Software. “We have the expertise, we know the web sites, and we know the dangers, and we are stepping up and giving away a tool we hope will help keep kids a little safer and help parents sleep a little better.”

Originally posted on July 31, 2007 @ 7:51 pm

FamilyEducation offers tips for keeping kids safe in cyberspace

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familyhome.jpg FamilyEducation, a leading online publisher of practical parenting guidance, expert family advice, printables, skill-building exercises and activities for children, has launched “A Parent’s Guide to Understanding Online Acronyms” to help parents decipher what their kids aresaying online and identify warning signs of potentially dangerous situations.

“Kids have mastered the art of online communication, often typing text messages with their thumbs on a cell phone faster than their parents can type on a keyboard. With this increased use of text-based communications, a new lingo of online abbreviations and acronyms has developed,” said Jess M. Brallier, publisher, FamilyEducation. “We developed this Web guide of common abbreviations so parents can stay informed while allowing their kids to use these popular forms of communication.”

The Online Web Guide for Parents also explains chat abbreviations and acronyms that may be warning signs that kids are chatting with strangers online.

Originally posted on August 1, 2007 @ 7:20 am

How Fast They Grow: Digital Scrapbook for Babies

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howfast.jpg Aimed at parents who exclusively use digital cameras, How Fast They Grow is new all-digital baby book Website that allows quick creation of 12 by 12 inch pages using one’s own digital photos and journaling. Unlike commercial photo websites, the pages are ordered individually, not bound books, so that users can build their books over time.

This new site developed its own unique rich-internet application, “Digi-Scrapbook”, in conjunction with Ecom Enterprises of Sunnyvale, CA. This patent-pending tool allows for real-time editing of pages, photos and text, while keeping the traditional look of a high-end scrapbook with details like layered text, quote boxes, and well-formatted photo collages.

“There is an unspoken expectation that moms should chronicle their baby’s first year. Despite the current popularity of paper scrapbooking, the moms I know were disillusioned by the time commitment. It takes at least an hour to make one page and that doesn’t even take into account the time to buy the merchandise and print the right photos. My goal is a ‘Just Add Water’ solution to baby and child scrapbooking,” states founder Cathy Bennett.

Originally posted on July 17, 2007 @ 10:42 pm