Patrizia,

Thanks for your comment. Now, while what you say is certainly true, it is not the focus of my book at all, for a couple of reasons. I do mention the fact that constantly keeping a watchful eye on what children do even in the digital space is essential, but this would have never be a reason to take up such a challenge: first of all because there already are plenty of books and blogs giving practical advice at this level, and then because this is an issue that most parents are naturally able to see by themselves, without any external support. “It is important to monitor your children while they are online and explain the risks of being there” is not so different conceptually from “it is important to monitor your children while they are playing in the street, or at school, and explain etc etc…”, even if the knowledge to handle the former case is much less widespread.

What the Guide is about is showing to parents and teacher the dangers for the future of their children of which they don’t even realize the existence:

what are the environmental impacts of the software you install on your home computer?

why is the very concept of e-voting seriously limited?

what is the real, practical reason why it is bad that you should pay hundreds of dollars to use a Disney soundtrack in your home movies, even if it is almost impossible that they find and fine you?

how much is the average family already paying or will pay, in the most different and unexpected ways (from destruction of cultural heritage to already paying fines, many times, for crimes they never committed or the reduction of truly creative and satisfying jobs for adults of tomorrow) thanks to arcane acronums like DRM, IP, ECMA-376 or
ISO 26300?

These and many others are all bad things that are already happening and would continue to happen in the same way even if all parents had the ability to never make their children use smart-phones or computers without supervision, or if all children of the world were wise enough to never misuse these tools.

This is what the Guide is about: explaining in the simplest possible language what these dangers are, why and how they are actually hurting all of us (”your civil rights and the quality of your life heavily depend on how software is used around you”), and how to fight them. And it does this without ever assuming, as several radical FOSS supporters do, that in order to act one should become a software professional or love programming.

The following quote: “This book is here to “allow you to protect yourself and the future of your children.” is very relaxing but you cannot lower the danger level

This depends on which danger(s) you are looking at, or on how many dangers today’s average parent and teacher are already able to see. This is what really worries me, this is why I wrote the book. There are many Digital Dangers that can be neutered, and the moment to do it is now: but only if enough people start seeing them.

kids aren’t aware or responsible yet.So the solution to solve the problem is Media Education,better the New ME,to give them the chance to be digital citizens.

Of course. But in this specific time and age, it is absolutely
necessary that parents and teachers have the right information take the matter in their own hands, that they make by themselves the right choices and vote accordingly. Because it’s not a technical decision, it is an ethic one. Otherwise that New Media Education will be one that only benefits a few corporations.