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I see related questions on how to restrict access to certain websites but that is not really what I want. Here's my situation:

My baby sitter wants access to the internet but we we don't want her spending hours on the computer and neglecting our infant children. Thus, I want to be able to restrict her surfing to 30 minutes a session, with sessions being at least 3 hours apart. I do not care to restrict the content. Does anyone know what is the best way to implement this? Thanks.

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    Find another babysitter? :)
    – bfhd
    Commented Sep 11, 2012 at 1:39
  • Haha, we did consider this but she's actually really good with the kids.
    – MrPatterns
    Commented Sep 11, 2012 at 1:46
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    Not to state the obvious here, but if she's really that good with the kids, how/why would she spend too much time surfing the web?
    – Garrett
    Commented Sep 11, 2012 at 2:33
  • Your assumptions are incorrect. To date, she has not spent any time on the net. We have yet to setup the computer for her, and are looking for way to restrict her access prior to going live.
    – MrPatterns
    Commented Sep 11, 2012 at 2:38
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    If you can't trust a "Middle Aged" lady to not be online all day and neglect your children then you really do need a new sitter. Personally I think she'll be rather insulted that you've put these "restrictions" in place and are treating her like a child. You've said yourself she's done nothing wrong so why treat her as if she has?
    – dstarh
    Commented Sep 11, 2012 at 2:45

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Have you looked at something like Net Nanny? Time management

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  • I checked it out, doesn't have what I described.
    – MrPatterns
    Commented Sep 11, 2012 at 2:36
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Honestly, I wouldnt bother. If she cant use your computer, she will just use her phone.

If you really want to do this, some routers have built in family controls to enable and disable access to the internet. Also, depending on your OS, there are many built in parental controls.

There are also 3rd party software programs that can limit access. I know the top ones are paid, but Im sure there are free ones as well.

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  • Actually your assumptions are incorrect. She is a middle-aged lady who does not have a smartphone with internet. She relies on a desktop to get internet. Also, our router has time-based restrictions meaning I can restrict internet to certain parts of the day (e.g. no internet from 12pm-3pm) but that does not give us the flexibility we desire. We are okay with her using internet whenever all of the children are sound asleep, whenever that may be. Can you give me any examples of 3rd party software that addresses my situation? Thanks.
    – MrPatterns
    Commented Sep 11, 2012 at 2:27
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    @phan How would the software know when your kids are asleep?
    – Louis Waweru
    Commented Sep 11, 2012 at 2:43
  • @Louis. I think you misunderstand. We leave it to the sitter to go online when the kids are all asleep. In that scenario, she could surf for X minutes. Then, when the session ends, she cannot go back online until Y minutes elapses. The software does not know when the kids are asleep. I think you're getting way ahead of yourself here. I really am just looking for controls that will allow me to do what I described above in the question. Thanks.
    – MrPatterns
    Commented Sep 11, 2012 at 3:29

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