MIAMI — June 11, 2007— Microsoft Corp. today announced that to help Hispanic parents keep their kids safe while they use the computer, the company is enlisting employees who are parents to share the benefits of the Parental Controls system in Windows Vista® with fellow parents through a series of seminars conducted in Spanish. Among other great new features, Windows Vista provides innovative tools to help create a safer computing experience for the family.
Windows Vista empowers parents to better manage and monitor their children’s PC and Internet activities. Parents can manage and monitor PC and Internet access with a few simple clicks in the new Windows Vista Parental Controls center and decide what kinds of TV, music and games are appropriate for their children. Security features are also more robust in the new release.
The Internet offers children many opportunities for learning, constructive entertainment and personal growth. At the same time, parents are concerned about the risks kids face online. Internet use among Hispanics rose last year, which reinforces the need to educate parents and children of the Hispanic community on how to use the Internet safely.
“As a Hispanic father myself, I’m proud of sharing my technological knowledge with other Hispanic parents who can benefit from it,” said Luis Martinez, Windows Vista developer at Microsoft. “The parental control features built into Windows Vista will help families better manage how the PC is used and will help them protect their children.”
On-site Spanish-language demonstrations will take place in June at selected Circuit City stores in Miami; Hialeah, Fla.; and Plantation, Fla.; to give consumers the opportunity to experience the technology firsthand. Martinez will be on hand to give brief seminars on how to take full advantage the new features found in Windows Vista. The seminars will be free for the Miami community and will be held Friday, June 15, and Saturday, June 16, throughout the day at Aventura Mall.
In addition, starting today, a Spanish-language Web site is accessible for consumers to learn more about Windows Vista: http://www.windowsvista.com/hispano.
The following are some of the new features in Windows Vista:
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Parental Controls with monitoring and activity reports. Windows Vista allows parents not only to set the rules, but also to supervise how the rules are followed by the different users of a Windows Vista-equipped personal computer. The new monitoring system provides parents with reports that show computer activity and time online per user, and also has the ability to limit Internet access to certain times for specific users.
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Multilanguage User Interface. Windows Vista Ultimate edition with Multilanguage User Interface allows users to keep one or several languages installed on the same computer. Now, depending on the user, the Windows® menus can appear in English or Spanish.
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Windows Aero interface. Now the new Windows Aero™ user interface offers special features, such as the “glass” effect that makes a clear and transparent difference by allowing users to locate information at a glance. In addition, with live thumbnails, users can take a look at the content of a given window from the taskbar, without fully opening that particular window.
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Windows Media Center music. Now with the Windows Media® Center from Windows Vista, consumers are the disc jockeys of their own music and can control the mood. Users will be able to find their music by looking at the compact disc covers on their screen. They can select music by genre, artist, year, song or album and can then transfer it to their MP3 player or sound system, or burn a CD with their favorite mix.
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