Connect with EZBoard.com

Using the Internet has become as second nature as breathing to a lot of people, especially teenagers. Gone are the days of writing letters and mailing them. Instead, we now count on email to keep us connected, as well as instant messaging and even websites such as MySpace.

But, with the rapid growth of the Internet and websites used for meeting people, comes the rapid growth of more e-crimes. The thing that parents fear the most are predators; people that prowl websites such as MySpace and FaceBook for young, innocent teens willing to chat with them. They use this chat to bait the teens into meeting them somewhere, and then something bad invariably happens. It's frightening. It's sick. Unfortunately, it really does happen.

Due to the increase of predators and lack of privacy (no matter what "private" settings you may have) on these websites, parents tend to avoid the problem altogether by forbidding their kids to create their own profile. While this is the safest course of action for those worried about predators, it really makes those that don't have their own page feel a bit left out.

What if there was a website that you could create your own online community? What if no one could join unless they were approved by the group administrator? What if the conversations that you had between your friends could actually stay private? And, what if you were able to have group chats online with people that you know and trust?

Sounds like a dream, doesn't it? Well, it's not. The website known as ezBoard, located at www.ezboard.com, is such a site. You can create your own groups. Members get to set up a profile page, which they can keep as private as they want. One person is the group administrator, and must approve every person that applies for group membership. It is your own, private, online community that you (or your parents) get to monitor 100%.

The features on ezBoard are pretty amazing. After setting up your profile page and being accepted into (or even creating your own) group, you will have a lot of different features to take advantage of. The easiest and most commonly used feature is the Message Board. This Board can be broken up into different sections, and any member can start threads. You will be able to easily navigate through all of the different discussions and respond to whatever you like. Or, if you don't want to respond, you can just "lurk" and read what everyone else posts.

The coolest feature of ezBoard, by far, is the online live chat. Once you click on the link for live chat, which always tells you how many people are in the chat room, you are able to have live conversations with everyone there. What you write is highlighted so that you can keep track of your comments. The window is about as big as a message window on AIM, but you can adjust it to the size that you would like it to be.

While in the chatroom, you are able to send private messages to the other people in the chatroom. All you have to do is double-click on their name and a new window will pop up. You can do this without interrupting the live chat with everyone else, and only the other person will be able to read what you are writing in the PM window.

To make ezBoard even more enticing is the fact that it is free. Sure, you can upgrade to the gold community for just $9.95 per month, but it is not required to keep your board open. However, it might be worth it to your parents, if they don't want you to go onto MySpace or a similar website, to upgrade your ezBoard so that you aren't tempted to go anywhere else.

The administrator feature is awesome, because you get to decide who is approved into your community and who is denied. Any member of your ezBoard can send invitations to friends, but the administrator has the final say on whether or not they are permitted to join. The administrator is also able to edit messages posted by anyone, including deleting them if they were posted by mistake or are insulting to anyone. Plus, the administrator has the ability to set the language settings, which can censor what people write. For example, there is a filter to prevent people from using vulgar language. You can even choose others to be co-administrators and give them the same level of power and authority that you have in your community. The possibilities are endless.

EzBoard is a fantastic website for friends to keep in touch. Whether you like far away from each other or right next door, ezBoard gives users a way to create and maintain their own community while making sure that their privacy and security are both intact. You can share stories, photos, virtually anything you want with your ezBoard. It all just depends upon how you create it.