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Ask HN: How to prepare laptop for 7 years old kid?

6 pointsdawidw6 comments

I want to prepare laptop for my 7 years old daughter.

- OS should be linux based - Only applications available: Anki, LibreOffice, some email client. No root privileges. Other applications like Firefox etc. not installed or blocked - Tux games available only Saturday 0800-1200

I was thinking about installing Ubuntu then creating separate user with limited access to each application as described [1]. And then some systemd script adding user to game group only during defined period of time - the same way as [1].

Is there any better way to do that?

Any other suggestions regarding the topic?

[1] https://askubuntu.com/questions/8149/how-can-i-restrict-program-access-to-other-users

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Regarding games schedule, if the user is not root you can use cron or systemd timers, but this could be more user friendly for a child:

Create a zenity, xdialog, or any kind of graphical dialog explaining why it's not gaming time (even remembering the allowed gaming time) and put it in /usr/bin/games-denied

Rename the games to /usr/bin/GAME-allowed

Then with cron/timers just symlink /usr/bin/GAME to one or the other, so when the kid click in the game will get a dialog or the game, depending on the hour.

Also, I could recommend:

1) Try to automate the re-installation (disk images, preseed/kickstart for the OS, ansible for the setup...)

2) Provide some way to make backups (the kid will create content, you may want to save)

3) Download a lot of content (drawings to colorize, songs, funny images, whatever may interest this kid) and put it in the Documents/ dir so the kid can explore. Install extra fonts, icons, and whatever may improve document creation.

4) You may explore the system package manager for educational, science or artistic stimulation packages. Kids are surprised when they see the can play the piano in the laptop, or they can see the stars, or ... :)

apt-cache show ubuntu-edu-preschool

apt-cache show ubuntu-edu-primary

apt-cache show ubuntu-edu-secondary

5) Put a sound recorder icon, and a cam recorder icon, right in the desktop (if there is sound card or web cam in the laptop), you may get surprised by their creativity :)

Big +1 for the automation of the re-installation. Maybe even have a pxe kickstart so the kid can choose to re-image their machine if they want. Add prompts that ask them twice if they are sure.

Automate OS patches. Set up game saves to an NFS server that takes snapshots with rsnapshot or lvm snapshots.

I have the perfect set of steps:

Put it in a closet and forget about it.

Sell it.

Give it away.

Don't give it to her.

It's way too early. You don't want to destroy her attention span do you?

Why am I saying this? I have a daughter, same age. We gave her access to screen time too early.

It introduced a lack of ability to focus (even with giving it to her in limited doses).

Then shortly thereafter, it became the only thing that mattered.

Books? NOPE.

Art? NOPE.

Crafting? NOPE.

Lego? NOPE.

We ended up taking it away. The reaction was swift, but short-lived. Now all the other things that used to matter - matter once again.

I'm not a pro, I'm not claiming to be a pro. I'm just a fellow dad, who has been down this road… and it was ugly.

Save yourself the trouble. I promise - she won't be any worse off for waiting a little longer to be introduced to the vortex that is technology.

Plastic wrap - you know where the juice will be spilled

Insurance - because you know the hands will slip

Make sure you do the backup. You will need to do a restore or complete wipe at least once if not twice. In addition if you have GREAT backups, or go virtual, you will probably do restores 3 to 4 times in the first year. Kids will hit buttons as they explore, this is a good thing, it is to be encouraged. And you will ask "Why on earth would someone take their root folder and throw it away?" Because kids learn by exploring. If you do a simple restore then they learn what they did and how to fix it. If you get mad, and spend a few hours fixing it, they learn not to explore.

7 is how old I was when my second grade teacher taught us not to have drinks at the computer. It wasn't until college that I unlearned that.

"off-side" message here :

I'll probably sound like an old man, you know this kind of people who says "It was better before" and "I used to play with only one toy back it time" and so on,

but isn't it too young to give a computer to your 7yo daughter ? I'm curious to know why she should have a computer ? does she need for her courses ?

Please do not think I'm saying that just to criticize you, I'm just curious.

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