[GCS]

I am completely clueless about this world of internet social networking.

Big Boy just turned 7 and we have family and friends all over the world. I thought putting a page together with updates on how he is doing and photos for people to see and to chat with him. His cousins are between 5-26 years old and his uncle lives in France with his family.

Is a page the best way to go? Would I be better off putting a blog together for him? Can I control privacy? Which social network is the best?

I wanted to go out to both and look around but I need to register with them first and I hate giving anyone my email info.

Sorry, I'm so clueless here! I'd love any advice!

Christina

[momofMikhail]

I don't know anything about facebook, but I personally would not even allow my 11 yr old to have a myspace account. You can not block what they look at on it. You can only block what other people can see on their personal page. I've ran across a few that I would not want my children to see. Again this is my personal opinion!

[kretzklan]

I think the safest way to do it would be to set up a blog - there are a lot of free blog websites. You can totally control who views it - even having an invite only list. You can post pictures, write up text entries. Facebook and MySpace - no matter how many controls you put in...they just aren't the safest places for kids info...I won't let my 7th grader have a page - probably not for years!

[GCS]

Thanks for the quick replies. I think a blog with an invite only list is probably the best way to go. I haven't actually been on any of the social networks so I'm pretty in the dark as to how they work.

Thanks!

[amyfk]

I have recently been "invited" by two friends to Facebook. I always thought it was for teenagers. I just did up my credentials and online resume(I think its for more informal stuff though). I am looking for work and just started working with it yesterday.
I dont know about for kids though. Some sites have age restrictions and wont let minors on.
Two friends of mine who adopted(one from this forum) have private blogs of their adoption process and of their kids at home. At first the blogs were open but later they restricted the access. They both use Blogger.
Amy K, NJ

[Ktates]

I have recently signed up to facebook. Much of my family is in Ireland and what I like about it is that I can IM my cousin through there and see when she updates her page with photos etc.

I signed up so I can share pics of my daughter with family. No one else can see them unless I "friend" them. There's a lot of spanky stuff on there that I don't use. I can send messages through there rather than email.
I don't know much about myspace at all. I just found a bunch of friends are on Facebook so I like it so far. However I don't think I would let my child have a page unless it was very closely monitored by me. I haven't had any weirdos contact me or anything - I also don't have my own picture in my profile (the profile picture everyone can see).
Best of luck whatever you decide!

[Jessi_76]

Hi Christina,

I think a blog would be a wonderful way to go for all of your family and friends to keep in touch with your son and his progress. And yes, you can control privacy on certain blog sites. We use blogspot DOT com for our private adoption blog. It is available by invite only (we select the email adresses of who is allowed to view the site, and they have to register to gain access). If you do this, also make sure that you check (or uncheck, whatever the case may be) the boxes that disallow your blog to be included in Google searches.

Best of luck!
Jessi

xoxoxoxo

[Kasey]

A blog is a great way to keep everyone in touch, we have one.
I am also on Facebook, there are a good amount of privacy settings, and blocks. My nieces are on there. Alek likes to help me "type" on their message boards, so it may be a good option so your child can communicate back.

[votemom]

no advice on whether or not you choose to do a blog or facebook. but make sure you have a good filter. any kid of any age can end up on sites with just a couple clicks.

there are a lot of good ones out there. i have used "cybersitter" for years and have had no glitches.

it is password protected. you can "undo" it if it's filtering you from getting to sites you need to get to (i.e. it's pretty sensitive).

AND you can also use it to control the amount of time your child is online.

it's a onetime charge of about $50. i wouldn't have my computer online without it if i had any child of any age in my house.

[JustBarbara]

My opinion - absolutely not for a child - you could do a blog and/or set up a skype account with a videocam ... that's what I do for family and friends in the UK and Australia. Good luck

[MamaChinch]

You can also control the comments on a blog, you can set it up so that you can approve the comments before they get posted. I'd say with a blog, you'd have more privacy for your son.

[mikiment]

Hey Christina, you've gotten lots of good advice here. I was just going to respond to your mention that you hate to give out your email info. I can totally relate.

You might want to set up a separate free email account through any of a number of free services such as gmail, hotmail, yahoo, etc. then only use THAT email to sign up for stuff like these social networks. Then you can protect/save your "regular" or "personal" email for friends/family and not have it compromised with a lot of unwanted email.

I've done this for eBay as well as many "forum" type sites I visit. Just an idea...best of luck.