WASHINGTON—It’s easy for your kids to chat online. And it’s just as easy for predators to chat with your children. On top of concerns about criminal conduct and adult content, children can also be exposed to cyber bullying and trash talk.

But the Internet is here to stay. So experts say it’s more important than ever for parents and other adults to take responsibility and make sure that youngsters are protected.

“Parents need to learn how to control the media. You can get anything you want on the Internet. It’s got an amazing amount of content that most parents would find objectionable,” said Dr. Victor Strasburger, chairman for the American Academy of Pediatrics communications and media council.

Here are five ways to keep things safe:

1. Get smart

Most parents are confident that they’re keeping track of what their kids are doing on the Internet. Almost three-quarters of parents with children 9 or older using the Internet at home said they know “a lot” about their children’s online activities, according to a June survey from the Kaiser Family Foundation.

Despite the Kaiser report, “most parents are pretty clueless about what their children are seeing,” Strasburger contends.

As any kid with basic computer savvy can illustrate, it takes seconds to erase evidence that he or she has visited a forbidden site, or engaged in other banned activities.

Educating a generation of less-tech savvy parents will help them keep better track of their kids. It could also give them a feeling of comfort and expertise so they don’t feel intimated.

“Yes, your kids may have more knowledge and experience of how to use these technologies, but you as parents have far more discernment and wisdom. We tell [parents] not to abdicate responsibility simply because you’re not 100% certain about technology,” said Stephen Balkam, founder and chief executive of the Family Online Safety Institute.

2. Chat in real life

The most important step a parent can take is to talk to their kids about sex, violence and abuse — hopefully before they are deluged with images and written content on the Internet, experts say.

“I think parents need to understand that they trump the media if they are willing to talk about the issues that they are concerned about,” Strasburger said. “So parents need to have conversations with their kids at a young age.”

MySpace.com, the online community, recommends that parents tell teens not to give personal information to e-strangers and to be careful about photos. After all, the Internet has a way of hanging onto information even after a user tries to delete it.

3. Take advantage of tools

A vast array of tools — many free — is available to control online use.

“There’s never been a time in history where there have been so many tools available to tailor your children’s online experience,” Balkam said.

Some recommended sites that provide information are StaySafe.org, GetNetWise.org and iKeepSafe.org, according to Adam Thierer, who authored a recently released report on parental controls and online child protection.

Thierer also favors parents using a “layered approach” when it comes to protection. That is, a parent can combine content filters — through an Internet service provider or software — with “safe search” controls, such as Google’s SafeSearch Filtering, and other tools.

Microsoft’s new Vista operating system embeds family-safety tools and the latest generation of game consoles, such as Nintendo’s Wii and Sony’s PlayStation 3, has controls to restrict content and online play, and to limit playing to a list of approved friends.

“When it comes to video games we want to make sure that parents are aware that kids can play online, and they could be playing with strangers online,” said Patricia Vance, president of the Entertainment Software Rating Board.

She added that monitoring your children’s videogame play is “very important” to make sure that they do not download anything that could significantly change the content of a game.

MySpace.com also enables users to set their profiles to private.

4. Location, location, location

Another powerful step parents can take is to keep the Internet connection out of their kids’ bedroom. Consider keeping an online connection only in a study or public family room.

“If your teenage son has to deal with a lot of foot traffic, he’s obviously not going to be spending hours looking at porno sites,” Strasburger said.

5. Reach out to other parents

Don’t assume that everyone shares your standards about what’s not acceptable content for children. If your kid is spending the night at a friend’s or an afternoon away from your supervision, consider checking in with an adult who will be present.

It’s reasonable to ask whether other families have Internet filters, Balkam said. He added that sometimes sharing your concerns can inform other parents who are “blissfully unaware” of what their own kids are doing.

Copyright (c) 2007 MarketWatch, Inc.

Stocks bounded higher and bonds fell Wednesday as Wall Street extended its rally a day after a half-point rate cut from the Federal Reserve. A mild reading on consumer prices added to the market’s momentum.

Traders looked past record oil prices at other economic data that appeared to justify the Fed’s rate cut and perhaps eased some concerns about lingering inflation. While stocks surged higher Tuesday after the Fed cut rates, some investors have already begun wondering how long the central bank could sustain its efforts to provide cheaper access to cash if prices began to creep higher. The readings Wednesday suggested that amid August’s tight credit climate and extreme stock volatility, the housing market weakened while inflation stayed under control.

In midmorning trading, the Dow Jones industrials rose 89.58, or 0.65 percent, to 13,828.97. The move comes a day after central bank policymakers slashed the target federal funds rate to 4.55 percent from 5.25 percent because of signs that credit market problems could hurt the overall economy. The Dow on Tuesday climbed nearly 336 points — its biggest one-day point gain in nearly five years.

Broader stock indicators also rose. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 13.11, or 0.86 percent, 1,532.89, and was only about 20 points shy of its record close set exactly two months ago. The Nasdaq composite index rose 19.25, or 0.73 percent, to 2,670.91.

As occurred Tuesday, the Russell 2000 index of smaller companies was the biggest advancer again Wednesday. The index rose 10.73, or 1.33 percent, to 817.36. Smallcap stocks had taken a hit in Wall Street’s recent retrenchment as investors often regard bigger companies as better able to whether an economic downturn because of substantial overseas operations and an ability to perhaps skate by on thinner profit margins.

Bonds fell as traders transferred more money from fixed income to stocks. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note rising to 4.55 percent from 4.47 percent late Tuesday.

Economic data supported a case for pushing stocks higher. The Labor Department’s August consumer price index slipped 0.1 percent, as expected, while the core CPI, which excludes often volatile food and energy prices, rose an unsurprising 0.2 percent.

Meanwhile, the Commerce Department said new home construction fell for the third month in a row in August. New homes and apartments dipped last month by 2.6 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.331 million units, the slowest pace in 12 years.

In August, commodity prices fell along with stocks as Wall Street drew their cash out of riskier assets and moved into safer government securities. However, crude oil prices are back at record highs, moving above $82 per barrel. Light, sweet crude recently changed hands up 64 cents at $82.15 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Oil closed over $81 per barrel for the first time Tuesday.

And in a trend that’s likely to exacerbate the effects of high commodities prices on U.S. consumers, the dollar slumped to a new low against the euro Wednesday. The dollar was mixed against other major currencies, while gold prices rose, extending the strong gains it made Tuesday.

Enthusiasm from Tuesday’s rate cut extended in particular to industries related to financing and housing. Mortgage lender Countrywide Financial Corp. () rose $1.51, or 7.7 percent, to $21.39 after its chief executive, Angelo Mozilo, late Tuesday gave a positive forecast for his company.

Homebuilders D.R. Horton Inc. () rose 96 cents, or 6.3 percent, to $16.26, while Pulte Homes Inc. (PHM) advanced 91 cents, or 5.3 percent, to $18.01.

Advancing issues outnumbered decliners by about 3 to 1 on the New York Stock Exchange, where volume came to 341.9 million shares.

European and Asian stocks surged following the Fed’s rate cut.

Britain’s FTSE 100 rose 2.93 percent, Germany’s DAX index rose 2.19 percent, and France’s CAC-40 rose 2.98 percent. Japan’s Nikkei index closed up 3.67 percent and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index rose 3.98 percent.

(12-20) 11:14 PST NEW YORK, (AP) —

Air France has become the first airline to offer international passengers e-mail and text-messaging service that’s based on standard cell phone technology.

The catch: It’s only available on a single Airbus A318 aircraft in the Air France fleet, and passengers won’t know ahead of time whether the service will be available on their flight.

“That will be a surprise every day,” Air France spokeswoman Marina Tymen said Thursday. “They will be aware of that just when they look at the information leaflet and the questionnaire (in the seat pocket) in front of them.”

Another clue: a new “no mobile” light next to ones for “no smoking” and “fasten your seat belt.”

The six-month trial, which launched Monday on a Paris-to-Warsaw flight, will initially be limited to messaging and e-mail on passengers’ cell phones with GSM technology, the kind prevalent outside the United States. Voice calling will come later.

The airline equipped the A318 with an onboard cell “tower,” allowing phones to communicate without interfering with navigational equipment, officials say. The onboard tower connects with the ground through a satellite system.

The setup, approved by the European Aviation Safety Agency, was provided by OnAir, a Geneva-based joint venture between Airbus and SITA, an information-technology company serving airlines.

Australia’s Qantas Airways Ltd. already has been testing a similar service on domestic flights using technology from rival AeroMobile Ltd., a joint venture of ARINC Inc. and Telenor ASA.

JetBlue Airways Corp. started tests this month of limited e-mail and messaging services in the United States, using a wireless Wi-Fi system rather than an onboard cellular network, which is not yet approved by U.S. regulators.

Air France said it would await the results of the trial before deciding whether to equip the rest of its fleet.

Passengers will be billed directly by their cellular provider at rates officials say are comparable to international roaming.

OnAir plans to service European no-frills carrier Ryanair Ltd., British Midland Airways Ltd. and Portugal’s TAP by mid-2008. Later customers include Royal Jordanian Airlines, China’s Shenzhen Airlines and India’s Kingfisher Airlines Ltd.