Stranger danger.

As of this week, I can safely say that I am more advanced than Ian when it comes to social media websites like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc.  Ian doesn't use or communicate on any of these sites, so without a doubt, I know I am more aware of how they work and what happens when you go online.  As Ian is only 10 years old, this is the way it should be.  But I don't know how much longer this will be the case or what the next big thing will be that Ian participates in and I'm just a bystander.

The Xbox is a different story.  I can barely get our tv downstairs to change back to regular tv watching or switch to the wii.  Ian is the expert and the one we all look to for help.  The other morning I was walking by the family room while Ian was playing on the xbox.  Ian was wearing his headset and I could hear him having a conversation with someone.  I asked him who he was speaking with and he looked at me, shrugged his shoulders and whispered "I don't know who he is."   WHAT?!?!?!?!?

I thought for sure Ian was playing the game and on the other end of his headset was one of his friends or his cousin Max playing the same game at their house.  Within seconds of quickly realizing that a random stranger connected with Ian (through the xbox gaming system), I asked Ian for his headset.  I put it on and had a few words with the guy on the other end.

Me:  Hello?
Guy on the other end (now known as "GOTOE"):  Hi.
Me:  Who is this??
GOTOE:  Justin
Me:  Justin, this is the mom of the boy you are playing with.  How old are you?
GOTOE:  I'm 19.
Me:  I want you to know my son is 10.  He is 10 years old.  Please do not use bad language when you talk to him.
GOTOE:  Ok. 
Meanwhile, Ian is telling me that this guy has never used bad words.
Me:  I am going to put you back on with my son. 
GOTOE:  Ok.

And with that, I was freaking out.  OMG!  Doesn't this online communicating with strangers start later, like when Ian is a teenager?  I wasn't sure if it was ok to let Ian continue to talk to this guy.  I needed Jeff's perspective on the situation.  I called Jeff at work and filled him in.  He too, was surprised that Ian was playing people he didn't know.  We decided that Ian has a good head on his shoulders and we will trust him.  HOWEVER, we will have a big conversation with him on the dangers of speaking with strangers.  We were going to talk to him after dinner.

I couldn't wait that long and when Ian was done playing with the game, we started the conversation on how dangerous this could be.  It turns out that Ian had connected with this kid before. Fortunately there had been no one else he didn't know.   Ian told me that he made his last name invisible and this guy could only see the nickname xbox uses.  Ian also said he never told the guy how old he was or what his name was.  I felt a little better after hearing this, but I was still shaken.  Especially after earlier in the week, it was all over the news about a 13 year old girl who was killed after meeting a guy online who goes to Virginia Tech.

Jeff and I had a very in-depth conversation with Ian later that night.  Every time I walk by the family room and Ian is chatting with someone on his headset and playing xbox, I ask him who he is on with.  I will never stop doing this.

The thing that gets me is, at some point, Ian is going to be way smarter than me with the technology.  He is going to know how to work it better than me.  I have a feeling we are only a few years away from this happening.  Already, I can't get the xbox to do things Ian can make it do.  If Jeff and I want to watch a movie on it, we need Ian to take off the parental controls and help us launch Netflix.  Ha!  It's a very scary world out there.  I only hope we can teach the kids to be cautious, and have their guard up, but still not lose their innocence of being only 10. 

An Xbox for us all.

Ian may have gotten the Xbox One with Kinect for Hanukkah, but we've all been having fun with it.

Once I heard the movie "The Interview" was getting released, I knew I had to do my patriotic duty and stream it.  I really had no desire to see this movie, but it had to be done as a matter of principle.  I was taking a stand and letting North Korea know I couldn't be bullied.  They weren't going to tell me what I couldn't do or see.  There were a few ways the movie could be seen at home and via the Xbox was one of them.   Jeff and I made plans to watch it after the kids went to bed on Christmas day. 

As we were getting ready to watch the movie, Jeff and I came to the realization the Xbox only listens to Ian.  The gaming system is voice activated and to get to the different screens you need (xbox home, xbox store, what movie you are looking for, etc) it is done by your voice.  BUT it only knows Ian's voice.  The system doesn't do a thing when Jeff and I speak to it.  We had to get Ian to come downstairs and get us the movie.  We come to find out when putting the credit card info into the system that we've got parental controls loaded all over this thing and it won't play the movie for us.  Ha!  So yet again, we needed Ian to help us. 

Ian:  "Xbox go to settings"   hahahahaha. 

Ian had to turn off all the parental safeguards and remove the restrictions on purchasing a movie.  

It was pretty frustrating for Jeff and me to figure it out.  We did manage to access the movie and watch it.  We had no idea how to pause the movie, so as soon as it started playing, Ian had to leave the room quickly go back to bed.   I am pretty sure it could not have been done without Ian's help.

The next day Jeff says to me, "We have to remember to put the parental controls back on the Xbox."
Um, yeah.  I'll get Ian right on that.  :)

****************************************************************************

The day after Christmas, the kids and I are enjoying a lazy morning at home.  We end up skyping with my sister Lori, Ben (her husband) and Rachel (their daughter).  We hadn't tried skyping yet using the Xbox.  After I got Ian to install the app and launch Skype, we were golden.  It was great fun.  We got to see Rachel take a few steps walking. And we had a big dance party.  Rachel kept blowing kisses at us.  Ian and Sam only had one small fight during the call.  I'd say this was a success.

I noticed that you can now add another caller to the Skype call and conferenced in my dad.  I have to say it was pretty awesome getting us all in the same video chat.  When you add another person in, it splits the screen in half. 

While on the call, my dad's mailman comes to deliver the mail.  My dad had him come around to the computer and say hi to us.  It was pretty funny.  I took a picture.  See below.

Yes, that's the mailman.  :)

Before the mailman stopped by.  Having fun with Skype.

I need to figure out how to get the Xbox to recognize my voice.  Right now when Ian walks into the room, it will say "Hi Ian."  What are the rest of us, mashed potatoes?  Geez, I paid for the thing and it doesn't even know I exist.  Regardless, technology is sooo incredibly cool.