MacBoo pro as a gift

AdelaS

My son is wanting a MacBook Pro for a long time. Next week is his 13 year old birthday and I am going to buy the MacBook as his birthday gift. However, I don't like him to visit those unwanted websites, like porn, drug, violence or anything like that. How can I restrict him from accessing them?

colourbox

You can do this on different levels.

Your home Internet cable/DSL router might have some parental filters, but you may find it challenging to configure by yourself.

You can use an Internet service such as OpenDNS Home VIP or FamilyShield, which has filters maintained by a company to save you the trouble.
http://www.opendns.com/home-solutions/parental-controls/

At the computer level, for example, my Mac has a Parental Controls system preference with a Web section that has options like "Try to limit access to adult websites automatically." The reason it says "try" is that it is impossible for filtering to be 100% effective. There are too many situations too ambiguous for a computer to figure out. For example, should websites about "breast" be blocked, even if they prevent him from researching the nature of breast cancer or recipes about turkey breasts? Should the Bible passage about Samson that includes the phrase "jawbone of an ass" be blocked from him because it includes the word "ass?" Should he not see information about the American Civil War because parts of it involved excessively violent acts, sometimes within the same family?

So there is no guarantee that blocking will be 100% effective. You have to combine any technical filter with your own parenting values that constructively (not threateningly) guide his conscience to exercise good independent judgment.

coldclimb

This thread seems unrelated to this forum and possibly a troll, but having been a 13 year old boy once in my life, I can promise you that you can't stop him from accessing unwanted websites. Period. You can take steps to dissuade him, such as those listed above, but the content is out there, and there is ALWAYS a way to get to it. Access only gets easier (and such content more prolific) every day. It would be good to understand this, and to gear your actions with this in mind, rather than trying to outright block all such content.

If this is important to you, I'd recommend you refrain from buying him a laptop. Not being connected to the internet is the only hard solution. But even that seems impossible these days.

Dreadnote

As is the case with most things in life the best computer content filter is an actively involved parent. Only allow your child to use the computer in the "public" spaces of the family home when you are there to keep an eye on things. It drives me nuts all the kids I see with Internet on their phones knowing what that leads to. Keep it out of the bedrooms and keep your eyes open. That together with actively instilling high morals and values is the only chance you have at this. Filters won't even begin to do the job.