Temporarily disable my own computer?

[themilf]

This is the passive aggressive MILF speaking...

I agreed to allow my ex (the kids' dad) to move back in temporarily with the understanding that he would DO a few things around the house, pick up the slack here and there.

He does NOTHING from the time he gets up or "home" from work but sit on his ass and goof around on Facebook and watching YouTube and failblog videos.

I have parental controls on the PC restricting use before and after certain hours of the day and I have separate "user" & "administrator" accounts where of course I am the administrator.

I've spoken with him about it but to no avail. Sometimes I want to use the PC, that's where a lot of my stuff is stored and my youngest doesn't have her own laptop yet. This is her primary computer.
On the rare occasion he gets off the computer, he moves to the sofa to watch cable.

These are clearly SOME indicators of why he is my ex anyway, right? And it should only be another six weeks, thankfully.

I don't want to pull a USB cord because he'll just go buy another.

I know my buddies here will help me!

love to al!

 

[JamieJ424]

What kind of computer? I know on Macs its fairly easy to set up 'kid safe' logins that automatically boot the user after a set amount of time and/or disallow adult content. I imagine PC's have somethign similar but wouldn't know exactly how it works.

Good luck.

J

 

[SweetErika]

Will your parental or Windows controls allow you to disable all internet connections on the non-admin accounts? If so, you could try that.

However, as you said, if he's not on the computer, he's watching TV. I bet if you took away the TV, he'd find something else to do in order to avoid work.

A better strategy might be to say something like, "I need you to do X, Y and Z before I get home from work at six tonight. As long as you do those jobs well, it's fine with me if you want to get online or watch TV, provided our kids don't need the computer for homework at those times.

Then give him a chance to hold up his end of that bargain on the off-chance that he's a person who needs a timeframe to complete tasks, rather than the expectation that they'll work first/do the jobs immediately, then play later. I'm kind of like that; if it's something that can be done at anytime during a certain period, I'd much rather choose when I do it/how I manage my time vs. be asked to do it immediately.

And, well, if he still doesn't follow through, you're probably going to have to talk to him about finding another place to stay. Hopefully he doesn't have any other good options, and that'll force him to realize helping you out a bit in exchange for good room, board, a computer and cable is a hell of a good deal for him!

 

[pawaz]

In what way do you want to disable. Are you talking not have the internet or are you talking it not start at all kind of thing.

 

[DrHappy]

Many computers have a optional BIOS password that can be setup for bootup. When it is enabled, the user must have the password in order for windows to bootup.

Figure out how to get into the BIOS. Then look around for how to enable the feature. It will ask you for what password you want to use.

Do you not have a windows password?

 

[satindesire]

Take the cables that lead to the TV and Computer to work with you.

 

[themilf]

Thanks for the ideas, assistance..


Thanks to all, they've gone for ice cream so thought I'd jump on for a moment,
I guess one problem with the whole idea is that I NEVER think of it until he's sitting at the computer, AGAIN. Seriously if I thought he was doing anything ANYTHING productive (Like posting on Lit) I'd be FINE with it, but a grown man hooked on FAILBLOG? And I DO know this from the activity log on my parental controls.

Take the cables that lead to the TV and Computer to work with you.

This is a great idea, one I used when I was having trouble with one of the older kids but if one of the younger kids needs to use the computer between the time they get home from school and the time I get home from work, it's a problem.

I don't think it's the computer you need to disable.
Just sayin. http://smiliesftw.com/x/coolugh.gif

Oh I think THAT'S more thank a little true!

Do you not have a windows password?

I DO have a windows password , I want to either do this remotely or without him standing here or sitting behind me watching over my shoulder...

In what way do you want to disable. Are you talking not have the internet or are you talking it not start at all kind of thing.

In a perfect world, I'd like to have it just not connect to the internet but just occasionally...

Will your parental or Windows controls allow you to disable all internet connections on the non-admin accounts? If so, you could try that.

However, as you said, if he's not on the computer, he's watching TV. I bet if you took away the TV, he'd find something else to do in order to avoid work.

A better strategy might be to say something like, "I need you to do X, Y and Z before I get home from work at six tonight. As long as you do those jobs well, it's fine with me if you want to get online or watch TV, provided our kids don't need the computer for homework at those times.

Then give him a chance to hold up his end of that bargain on the off-chance that he's a person who needs a timeframe to complete tasks, rather than the expectation that they'll work first/do the jobs immediately, then play later. I'm kind of like that; if it's something that can be done at anytime during a certain period, I'd much rather choose when I do it/how I manage my time vs. be asked to do it immediately.

And, well, if he still doesn't follow through, you're probably going to have to talk to him about finding another place to stay. Hopefully he doesn't have any other good options, and that'll force him to realize helping you out a bit in exchange for good room, board, a computer and cable is a hell of a good deal for him!

This is what I love about you SweetErika , so thoughtful and direct and grown up! I'm likely old enough to be... um, your, um... your older sister ... and I often find your posts so thoughtful and mature.

When I get to work tomorrow, I'll jump on my parental control dashboard and see what other options are available to me.

Hope everyone had a great weekend!

 

[NippleMuncher]

Many computers have a optional BIOS password that can be setup for bootup. When it is enabled, the user must have the password in order for windows to bootup.

Definitely do this! Every computer I've had asks for a password to boot up (I'm a PC user ). I have been on other peoples computers with parental controls and it was basically the same thing, the computer won't boot without a password, and so your kids can have a password and you can have a password and the ex can go F himself. If he can't boot the system, he can't use the computer. Unfortunately, that won't get him off the couch unless you enable the parental controls to the TV as well.

I do hope that his stay is only a few weeks more and that he leaves willingly. Best of luck to you.

 

[bob53]

If you want to remotely disable certain sites or categories of sites check out opendns.com

They have a excellent well run dns server. They also offer all kinds of filtering so sites you want blocked will never resolve and connect but rather will display a blocked site banner and what category it falls into.

I have used their service for years as they are very secure. They were one of the very first to patch for the dns cache bug a few years ago. Typical ISP's took up to a month or more to patch that time. Even major ones took a few weeks without mentioning names as I don't have the data handy to back me up.
Also when I travel if the local connection requires me to use their DNS server I will not do anything that requires a secure login for stuff like banking.

 

[Bramblethorn]

Will your parental or Windows controls allow you to disable all internet connections on the non-admin accounts? If so, you could try that.

However, as you said, if he's not on the computer, he's watching TV. I bet if you took away the TV, he'd find something else to do in order to avoid work.

Good advice here. I'll add: the other problem with reaching for the technical solution is that if he's any good at all with computers, he might treat it as a challenge, and you don't want to go there. We made that mistake when trying to deal with a teenager who was spending too long on the net and not doing the housework: we changed the wifi password, but the only thing it motivated him to do was learn how to reset the password.

 

[pawaz]

Many routers allow remote administration and you can do stuff in there to turn off the internet. But if you plug right into the modem you get around it.

 

[heavyhitter01]

This might seem like a simplistic question, and my apologies if I somehow missed the answer...but is there some reason why you have to take the passive-aggressive route?

Could you simply tell the dipshit couch wanker that he can't use it? After all, it's your house, your computer, your choice -- just because he lives there (temporarily, I hope!) and helps out doesn't mean that he can have the run of the place.

Then back it up by blocking the sites he wants to go to the most, like YouTube and Failblog and Facebook. Your kids will likely never need those to handle homework, so you should be able to block them without worry. With your admin credentials, you can get into them, even if they are blocked for him.

I mean...just lay down the law. He's your ex for a reason. You don't have to put up with him touching your computer at ALL if that's what you want, and he has to respect that.

 

[subwannabe]

Are you absolutely sure this is only for a few weeks? You could also tell him that if there is ever another time in the future where he needs to do this the answer will be no unless he holds up his end of the bargain - even if you don't ever plan on doing it again.

 

[blksoldier]

possible solutions

This is the passive aggressive MILF speaking...

I agreed to allow my ex (the kids' dad) to move back in temporarily with the understanding that he would DO a few things around the house, pick up the slack here and there.

He does NOTHING from the time he gets up or "home" from work but sit on his ass and goof around on Facebook and watching YouTube and failblog videos.

I have parental controls on the PC restricting use before and after certain hours of the day and I have separate "user" & "administrator" accounts where of course I am the administrator.

I've spoken with him about it but to no avail. Sometimes I want to use the PC, that's where a lot of my stuff is stored and my youngest doesn't have her own laptop yet. This is her primary computer.
On the rare occasion he gets off the computer, he moves to the sofa to watch cable.

These are clearly SOME indicators of why he is my ex anyway, right? And it should only be another six weeks, thankfully.

I don't want to pull a USB cord because he'll just go buy another.

I know my buddies here will help me!

love to al!

you can somewhat disable it by going to tools then internet option then content and set an privacy administrator with password.

option two take a six week vacation
option 3 send him on a permanent vacation by putting him out.

 

[njlauren]

The easiest answer I can think of is have your own personal account and for the kids where only you know the passwords. When the kids want to log in, log in for them (this is only until your ex gets out of the house so he can't guilt them into letting him use their accounts). You do that, he won't be able to use the computer. You can get to the BIOS normally by hitting F8 during the boot process and there is usually a master password at that point. ...but I would keep the solution simple, create accounts for you and the kids under windows, make sure your hubby can't get them, and you should be all set, no cables being pulled, no timers and the rest of it......he is living in your house, why the hell should he enjoy the ability to load like that? With many cable boxes they have security as well, you could lock out channels with parental controls and if he wants to sit and watch PBS kids programming, lifetime and the O network, let him enjoy *evil grin*.......

 

[themilf]

muwahahahahaha...

Winning....

Arrived at work yesterday and jumped on the handy dandy dashboard that allows me to adjust the parental controls.

Yes I have separate windows/user accounts that are password protection, one for the kids and two for myself. Incidentally in the past I was told by MS support that on windows 7 there is no way to password protect against safe booting.

The original settings provided for monitoring of use, I could set it so if the kids went to a questionable site, they would be presented with a text box within which they could type a message telling me why they needed to.go to that site. It's my experience that some are miscategorized. And that action prompts the system to send an email to me. Neat-o.

Well.. F that for now.
I simply blocked everything it suggested.

When I arrived home the house was bustling with activity. Gosh he was busy tending to all kinds of things. What a delightful difference.
And no explanation requested, not that one would be forthcoming!

Thanks for the encouragement and support, you make me feel so nurtured!

Oh and oh YES HE WILL be out in just a little over 5 weeks. No debate there.

Thanks again to all, if you'd like info about this free software, let me know.
Running to the gym!

Love