Good morning, everyone! I've had a request to compile and share the responses to my inquiry about filtering software, and here they are, below my original question. Thanks, as always, for being such a great resource/collective brain! *********************** Happy Friday, everyone! We are embarking on e-rate funding which, of course, requires some type of filtering/blocking mechanism on all of our computers, something we don't currently provide. I'm interested to hear about anyone's experiences with filtering/blocking software: Is there anything you'd recommend; pro's and con's, etc. I very much appreciate your time; I know it is in great demand! Thanks so much for any help you can provide. ************************ Hi Sharon, Thank you for your inquiry. TLN offers a discount on the OpenDNS content filtering product. The cost is $225 per year per IP address. Support is $25 per year. Initial setup is $75. The majority of libraries are using this product and it satisfies erate requirements. Please let me know if you would like to learn more. Thanks, Angie Michelini The Library Network 41365 Vincenti Court Novi, MI 48375 248-716-5583 amichelini@tln.lib.mi.us ************************* We use OpenDNS for filtering. It is a cloud based filter (not software installed on PCs that would then need to be updated, etc) that filters all computers in your building unless you manually set the DNS on PCs or networks that you don't want filtered. When a site is blocked, it gives an easy to understand reason why it was blocked. Staff can override a blocked site on the spot by putting in a password. Sites can be whitelisted permanently by adding them to a whitelist in the OpenDNS admin area. It is an expensive solution (couple thousand $ a year), but we only pay $200 a year to our consortia (The Library Network.) Maybe Angie at TLN would allow you to subscribe with them. *********************************** OpenDNS doesn't care what versions of operating system you are running. It basically blankets your entire building, including your wireless network and staff networks. You can have it not filter some PCs or networks by changing the DNS on these PCs or networks. For example, federal law requires that you make at least one PC in your building unfiltered for public use. Instead of permanently un-filtering a PC, staff type a password to allow access to a blocked site upon request. Management then decides if we want to whitelist a site permanently. *********************************** We use OpenDNS, through the TLN Consortium. It is easy, and does a good job of being able to block things. We don’t have as much control over the categories directly as I would like, but that is because we are part of a larger group using it. We can unblock sites at will, but they are only temporary unblocks without asking the TLN. Helpdesk to handle that. It is also nice that it is the WHOLE network that is handled by that. ************************************** We use WebBlocker through our firewall. Seems to work okay. I can input a password override if an adult can't access materials they need, and it requires very little thought on my part. ************************************** Our watchguard firewall does the filtering. *************************************** -- Sharon Crotser-Toy Director *Watervliet District Library* 333 N. Main Street Watervliet, MI 49098 269-463-6382 Connects People, Inspires Ideas, Transforms Lives