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The usage of smartphones among kids has been increasing significantly after the COVID-19 pandemic hit, resulting in severe internet addiction. According to a survey, around 35.6% of kids use their phones for one or two hours daily. Sometimes this amount of time spent exceeds upto 4 hours a day. Another study shows, that 23.80% of kids use their phones before bedtime, and 37.15% of them use smartphones frequently throughout the day. As a result, kids experience a lack of concentration, focus, and attention span, which eventually negatively affects their academic performance. 

Does it mean as parents you should keep your kids deprived of using smartphones? Ofcourse not. But why exactly should kids have phones? There are plenty of benefits kids can get by using smartphones moderately. To keep things under control, you need to check their phone usage. 

Let’s have a look at the basic reasons for which your kids need a phone.

Why Should Kids Have A Phone  

1. For Emergency

Kids should have a phone for emergencies because if something happens and they need help, they can call for help. Also, if they are ever in danger or lost, they can use their phone to contact their parents. Having a phone gives kids a sense of independence and responsibility. They have to learn how to use it properly and take care of it, which can be a valuable lesson.

2. To Acquire New Skills

 For kids, phones can be a valuable tool for learning new skills. For example, many apps and games can help kids practice their reading and math skills. And with the popularity of video-sharing sites like YouTube, kids can also use their phones to access a wealth of educational videos on everything from science and history to art and music. So if you’re looking for a way to help your child expand their horizons, giving them a phone is a great place to start.

3. To Create Memories through Photos

With a camera built into every phone, it’s easy for kids to snap a photo of anything and everything they see. And with apps like Instagram, they can share those photos with friends and family. What’s more, taking photos can help kids slow down and appreciate the world around them. So next time your kid points their phone at something, encourage them to take a photo. It just might help them create a lasting memory.

4. Increase Productivity

With all the apps and features available on a smartphone, kids can get work done quickly and efficiently. For instance, there are tons of note-taking apps that make it easy to jot down ideas and thoughts. There are also plenty of apps that help with organization and time management. This means that kids can get their work done faster and with less hassle. In addition, phones provide constant internet access, which is a valuable resource for research and information gathering. 

5. For Online Classes

Most learning management systems (like Google Classroom or Canvas) have phone apps that help students easily check online class announcements, submit assignments, and participate in discussions right from their phones. There are also a ton of apps and websites that can help with specific subjects. Some great apps, like Evernote or Trello, can help students keep track of assignments, due dates, and upcoming tests. So even though the online school might be a pain, at least kids have got their smartphones to help them out!

YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: 9 TIPS FOR DIGITAL LEARNING

6.To stay connected with them

A phone can help you stay connected with your kids when they are not around or during your busy work schedules. You can use it to stay in touch with them during the day, track their whereabouts, and even monitor their online activity. Plus, if you ever need to get in touch with them in an emergency, a phone will be a lifesaver. 

Screen Time Recommendations by Age

The amount of appropriate screen time for children will depend on their age, maturity level, and needs. However, the American Academy of Pediatrics offers the following general guidelines: 

• Children under 18 months should avoid screen time.
• For children aged 18 to 24 months, limited screen time (such as watching a short video) can be introduced if it is educational and parents are present to help guide the experience. 
• For children aged 2 to 5 years, screen time should be restricted to no more than 1 hour per day.
• Children aged 6 years and older should get screen time limited to no more than 2 hours per day. 

In the end, it is up to parents to decide what is best for their children based on their individual needs and circumstances.

How To Ensure Mobile Phone Safety for Kids? 

To ensure mobile phone safety for your child, there are a few things you can do:

• Consider using parental control software to monitor and limit your child’s phone usage. 
• Set up restrictions on the types of apps and websites that your child can access. Finally
• Have regular conversations with your child about responsible phone use. 

By taking these steps, you can help ensure that your child stays safe while using a mobile phone.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

The bottom line,

Although it may be difficult to restrict your child’s access to technology, it’s important to do so in order to protect them from the harmful effects of too much screen time. Talk with your child about why you’re setting these restrictions and work together to find a balance that works. Don’t hesitate to give your kids phones. Just stay connected with them. It’s the best way to keep them safe and sound when you are not around.

In the current times, it is vital to have the means to track the location of a caller. Knowledge of call location will ensure your child’s safety. Concerned parents want to know the whereabouts of their children. Call tracking is crucial to ensure that you save your child from falling into trouble. There are many ways in which you can trace a caller’s location. What are the different methods for tracking call locations?

Do you want to know what the different methods for tracking call locations are? Scroll down

Ways To Trace a Call Location 

1. Find A Facebook Account Using A Phone Number

One can find the Facebook accounts with phone numbers in case an account is linked to the phone number. Enter their number in the search bar, and you can look at the associated messages & profiles for that person. Enter a phone number and get information about the location of the closest cell tower. The software will help to find where someone is at any specific time. A number tracker can help find the location of any caller quickly and easily. How to trace a call location?

2. Reverse Phone Lookup

Many people search sites to access reverse phone lookup features. With reverse phone lookup, you must enter the phone number you want to trace in the search bar. You can get the current address and location of the owner of that phone number. It can also help to track the address of the owner. You can also search for a service like Whitepages is very useful if GPS tracking fails. This search is known as ‘reverse lookup’ as the user works backwards from the phone number to get the details.

3. Call Tracking Software

There are many websites and software that offers services to track the real-time location of a phone number. Call tracking software can also help to find out the location of the caller. The software finds out the exact location of a caller. The system also shows their current address and GPS coordinates. Enter the phone number in the software you want to trace, and the results page gives details. The user gets the name and address of the owner and the incoming call location map.

How To Choose the Best Call Tracking Software? 

1. Easy To Use

An efficient and good call tracking software must be easy to use and customizable. You have different software basis requirements, and all of them operate differently. Choose the software that is easy to use as per your needs. This will ensure that even parents can use this software.

2. Call Recording

Call Recording can be an advantage for call tracking software. They can be tracked. By tracking the call recordings, you can identify easily the callers’ patterns. Thus, you can get details about the caller and their other details and location.

3. Detail Call Profile & Location

A good call tracking software should provide a detailed call profile and location of the caller. A call profile is a significant part of any call tracking and utmost priority. This helps to keep the safety of the users. Therefore, opt for a call tracking system that provides a detailed call profile.

To track down a lost phone, or to spy to get details of a criminal, you can choose from the available option to track phone numbers. These services are also available on iOS & Android devices. You can use Find My iPhone and Lookout for tracking your phone. Other call tracking apps allow users to track the phone numbers of people they receive calls from. You can also get more details if needed in a very simple way! 

Nowadays, with technological advancement, mobile devices have brought the whole world at everyone’s fingertips. As it offers multiple advantages, the use of smartphones is growing, especially among the youth and students. However, with the excessive use of mobile phones, students face harmful consequences too. According to research, around 36.7% of students check their mobile phones in between sleep. Nearly 59.7% of students use phones for photo shooting, 58.2% of students use a mobile device for entertainment and 43.8% use phones for educational purposes. Depending on the type of use, students experience both positive and negative impacts of mobile phones. Now let’s have a detailed discussion on the impact of mobile phone on students’ life. Here we will discuss both positive and negative effects of mobile phones on students.

Negative Effects of Mobile Phones on Students

Below are the 6 most common damaging effects that most students face these days due to excessive use of mobile phones:

1. Eye Strain

Mobile phones emit blue light, and thus using mobile phones constantly affects vision. Students are already required to study their books, which causes enough statin on their eyes. In addition, if they use mobile devices for a long time, even in between sleep, they may feel different eye problems, such as burning sensation, redness, dry eye, irritation, blurry vision, and poor eyesight. Report says, constant usage of smartphones may cause fatigue of eyes, named asthenopia, which indirectly impact students’ learning and academic performance.

2. Disturbance in Sleep Cycle

The blue ray emitted from the smartphone screen prevents the production of melatonin hormone, which controls the sleep-wake cycle of the body. As a result, a person using mobile phones before bedtime or in between sleep face disturbed sleep. In fact, according to a study, using mobile phones 30 minutes before bedtime after lights are off or keeping the device near the pillow affects sleep quality. Students already need to spend a good amount of a day in school or college attending classes. After coming home, they need to spend time doing homework as well. Furthermore, if they start spending their valuable time on smartphones, eventually, their sleep will be sacrificed.

3. Anxiety

Constant app alerts, doomscrolling through social media and playing games on smartphones can seriously affect the mental and emotional health of students. They already have to study a lot and stay focused to complete assignments. In addition to that, using mobile devices constantly keeps them in a state of alertness that can eventually be mentally exhausting. Moreover, the blue light emitted from the mobile screen causes headache, which may lead to stress, anxiety, and in the end, depression.

4. Reduction in Social Skills

Constant use of mobile phones limits the face-to-face interactions with people around and therefore makes the students struggle to be social. They become so engaged in a virtual world, almost forget how to interact with neighbors, friends, and family members naturally. They lack focus, lose patience, and become unable to listen to others and communicate properly in a face-to-face interaction. 

5. Wrong Educational Content

The vast world of the internet and social media helps students empower themselves in various ways. However, simultaneously, in this vast world, children can faced digital risk while online learning or they have access to inappropriate content that can harm their brain and even lead to cyberbullying. The unmatured brains of many students get diverted to the wrong educational content. They feel fascinated after observing something new without realizing how it can harm them. This can grow an addiction, cause social disturbance and bring a downfall in their behavior, mental health, and academic performance. 

6. Poor Academic Performance

For all the above-discussed reasons, students struggle to focus on their studies. And when they cannot concentrate, it affects their grades. While studying or in between breaks, if the students constantly use mobile phones, their attention gets divided. They get distracted and it affects their learning.

Now you know the negative effects of mobile phones on students. However, mobile phones influence students positively too. 

Positive Effects of Mobile Phones on Students

Let’s have a look at the positive impact of smartphones on students:

1. Instant Communication

Mobile phones let students instantly communicate with their teachers and classmates for any academic help whenever needed. They can ask for any important information and get an immediate response over text or a phone call. Besides usual phone calls and texts, smartphones come with multiple apps that help in communication and interaction. In short, mobile phones help students in their social and academic life.

2. Help Students Adapt Modern Society

This is an undeniable fact that we are living in a modern society that incorporates advanced technologies to help everyone live a better life. With mobile phones, students can learn to adapt to this modern society. Mobile devices show students the best and quickest ways to reach a solution to any problem. The right use of smartphones boosts their creative skills and helps them come up with fascinating, innovative ideas. Nowadays mobile devices are being utilized in almost every profession. Thus regular use of mobile phones helps students be familiar with modern technology that would guide them in their future careers.

3. Instant Access to Knowledge

Students can easily check any information they need for any of their assignments or subjects on their phones. They can even download any educational apps for academic help. Furthermore, they can search about anything regarding their studies on Google and get instant access to knowledge. While doing an assignment, if they feel stuck with anything, clarifying the confusion can be done instantly on their phone. This way, they can gather more knowledge about a particular subject and as a result, improve their academic performance.

Final thoughts,

It is evident that there are both positive and negative effects of mobile phones on students. Using it right, a mobile phone can help students get academic success. But constant and improper use of mobile phones damages students’ mental and physical health. Therefore, parents and teachers should be extra cautious and limit the usage of mobile phones. Parents can set up parental controls on their children’s phones to restrict their usage of phones. Spend time with them when they are not studying to keep them away from wasting time on mobile phones. Encourage them to understand the right use of a smartphone and how this device can help them lead a better life. Help them stay focused. They will thank you later.

Digital learning, the ever-growing alternative to traditional classes, is an advanced technology-driven medium. Through digital learning students of all ages can study from anywhere flexibly and conveniently. The report says digital learning has become so popular among students from all over the world that its global market is predicted to reach around 400 billion USD by 2026. 

The growth of digital learning was boosted especially after the COVID-19 pandemic hit. Since then the learning environment for children also shifted to virtual learning from classroom learning. For children, adjusting e-learning environment is a bit tricky. They need to be focused and motivated enough to learn from a virtual classroom. To keep them motivated and productive parents need to show immense support. 

So if you are trying to find the best possible ways to boost your child’s productivity for digital learning, you have landed at the right place today. This article will talk about 9 essential tips for digital learning that will help you maximize the effectiveness of online learning for your child. Let’s get started with these online class tips:

Tips For Digital Learning Or Virtual Learning Tips for Parents

For children, being comfortable with the transition from classroom learning to digital learning is not easy. They may feel distracted and disinterested while attending classes online. Therefore, the parents need to take responsibility for keeping their children motivated and focused. Here are 9 tips that parents can follow to help their children learn better from e-learning:

1. Set Environment for Your Child

Having a designated space where a child can sit straight comfortably with minimal distractions is important. All the learning supplies should be within reach of your child’s hand. If you work from home, consider selecting a spot for your child’s online classes near your workstation. This way, you can pay attention to your child’s activities now and then. Keep the place calm to help your child focus on learning. To promote uninterrupted learning, make sure the internet connectivity is good and your child has a dedicated device for attending the virtual classes.

2. Check Minimum Requirements of Device

For attending online classes, your child should have a dedicated laptop, PC, or notebook, having the necessary configuration. You can contact the teachers to have an idea about what type of assignments your child will be given. This way, you will be aware of the device’s technical requirements. Keep the hardware and software equipment as minimum as possible, based on your child’s online learning needs only.

3. Reward Child on Successful Completion of Lecture/Course

Rewarding your child with small gifts, kind words of appreciation, and fun activities on completing a lecture or course stimulates learning, motivates him/her, and boosts his/her self-esteem. This way, you can create a sense of achievement and joy for your child. As a result, he/she will become more productive and intrigued to learn more.

4. Monitor Online Classes of Child

Your presence and involvement in your kid’s online classes help him/her stay attentive in classes and perform better. Keep a tab on your child’s completed assignments, check their behavior during classes, and help him/her stay on task. In addition, if you engage in your child’s online studies, your child may also feel like asking for help from you for assignments. This way, you can make your child stay focused on learning, get good grades and improve overall performance.

5. Set Break

Just like in traditional schools kids get lunch breaks when they have their tiffin and play with their friends, online students should also take short breaks between classes to relax and reboot for further learning. However, you need to make sure your child is not spending breaks browsing through other apps or social media, chatting with friends online, or watching something on the device. It will increase his/her stress level. A break from screen time will help your child stay stress-free, optimize cognitive function, improve focus and boost productivity. 

6. Set Specific Goals

Setting specific goals for your child’s online education and tracking those goals is important for having a better idea about his/her cognitive skill and academic performance. Setting short goals help your child stay away from procrastination, manage time better, prepare for assignments and learning activities, feel confident to face challenges, stay motivated, and progress.

7. Break Down Tasks into Small Tasks

If your child finds it difficult to focus on completing certain tasks assigned by teachers, break down those tasks into small tasks. Keep a visual checklist infront of your child. Mention the small parts of those tasks and create a roadmap to complete each small task and reach the point of completing the actual assigned task. Let your child check off each task after completing it. This way your child will feel engaged and motivated.

8. Eliminate Distraction

Smartphones, tablets, laptops, etc. can be a serious distraction for students during virtual learning. According to a journal published by Broadcast Education Association, students usually spend around one-fifth of their class time on various gadgets for “non-class purposes”. The majority confirmed they do so to kill their boredom. In digital learning, this behavior might be more usual. Restrict the use of devices when they do schoolwork. Also, check on them whether they are using any device during breaks. You can set parental controls on all the devices to keep your child away from wasting time on mobile games and social media platforms.

Other than using gadgets, have an eye on the surrounding environment of your child’s sitting area to attend online classes. Leaving your child’s favorite toys around can also be distracting for him/her.  The place should be quiet and clutter-free. 

9. Interact with Teachers

Interact with your child’s teachers and never miss any parent-teacher meeting to maintain a cordial relationship with them. Whenever your child faces any difficulty to complete assignments, using technology, setting up a routine and sticking to it, be proactive and reach out to his/her teachers. You will get proper help and support.

Final Takeaway,

Hope you find these tips for online learning for elementary students useful. Every child is unique. The learning ability is different for every child. Give your children attention, spend time with them, and communicate to understand what keeps them engaged and how to maintain their focus. Coping with virtual learning seems challenging for many children. They are trying their best. As a parent, you should give your children constant support to help in their learning sessions, improve focus, boost productivity, and shine in all their future endeavors.

The virtual world of gaming is beautifully designed. It offers countless attention-grabbing games and the opportunity to play with friends and other playmates worldwide. Therefore children and teenagers get hooked on such games across various online platforms. Roblox is such a popular platform where users can play numerous games. Here users not just play games but can also make games. This is an appealing platform and has now become widely popular among children and teens. According to Statistics, the company has gained almost 11.8 billion hours worth of worldwide user engagement with Roblox games. Around 25.5 million daily active users of Roblox platform fall under the age group of 13.

Are kids from today’s age having Roblox addiction? Yes, actually they are. To solve this problem, today’s article will give light on what Roblox is, how safe it is and in which way you can save your kids from getting addicted to Roblox. 

Without further ado, let’s dive into the discussion.

What Is Roblox?

Roblox is one of the renowned online entertainment platforms where a global community can connect through playing millions of games and enjoying 3D experiences for free. At Roblox, the users can also create games and play with their friends. It allows the youth to transform their creative gaming ideas into reality. They have access to multiple easy-to-use game development tools. In short, it is not just like other traditional gaming platforms where users can only play online games. At Roblox, users can also acquire the knowledge of programming languages, learn new creative skills, develop games, and encourage other players to play their games via online multiplayer.

Why is Roblox So Bad And Addictive?

Roblox addiction is widespread these days, especially among teenagers and adolescents. If you run a Roblox addiction test, you will understand this addiction happens due to mainly these 3 reasons:

1.       Free to play

Roblox is free to download and play. Though there are in-game purchase options, without that players can easily enter the game zone and play around. All the games are quite appealing, and due to the free version, children get attracted and in the end, get addicted.

2.       Huge community

Online gaming addiction increased, especially during the COVID-19 lockdown. The social isolation and loneliness made children hooked to online gaming platforms, especially Roblox, which offers a huge community to connect with. It offers shared areas inside the games where the players can socialize with others. Here they can hang out, finish challenges and connect with other players worldwide. 

3.       Loot Box and in-game purchased

Roblox offers Loot Box and in-game purchases where players can buy attractive clothes, new gear, accessories, special abilities, rare mystery items, in-game bonus content, and more with money. Children find these exciting because the items they purchase may improve their gaming experience. An item can make their online avatars look better, perform well, and progress in different levels of games.

Hope you find the answer to the question, “why is Robolox so bad”. Now let’s find the ways to protect your kids from this addiction.

Three Tips to Get Your Kids off Roblox

Do you find yourself often saying, “My son is addicted to Roblox”? Then you must feel worried. To solve this problem, here are 3 tips that you can follow:

1.       Let them play Roblox as a reward

Don’t just forbid your children to play Roblox.  Spend time with them and encourage them to study. Tell them they can even play Roblox for an extra hour as a reward when they finish their school assignments early or get good grades. This way, they will stay motivated to spend more time studying.

2.       Schedule time for outdoor games

Understand the reasons behind your children’s addiction to Roblox. Sometimes they spend time playing such games due to boredom and lack of social interaction. Spend time with them, engage in various playing activities with them, and schedule time for outdoor fun. Spending a particular amount of time playing outdoor help children build social connections and stay physically and mentally healthy.

3.       Use the Parental control app to monitor games

Use parental control app to keep tabs on your children’s devices. You can monitor your children’s gaming activities, how much time they spend playing, and whether they are making any in-game purchases and staying connected with strangers. With the parental control app, you can block or approve the features of games as per your preference. 

 Is Roblox Safe for Kids?

Online gaming platforms, using user-generated content and in-game chatting feature, often create the possibility of browsing inappropriate content for kids while playing. Roblox is not an exception. However, Roblox has parental control features that you can use to monitor your kids’ online activity and protect them from checking any kind of inappropriate content and cyberbullying.

Final thoughts,

Roblox is a safe gaming platform letting your children play in a shared family space and helping you monitor their digital activities. Do not let online gaming activity be a negative force in your children’s lives.  Limit their screen time, engage with them by playing indoors or outdoors, and appreciate their exemplary academic performance. As a result, their gaming habits will stay in control.

With rapid advancement, technology is making everyone’s life easier. Every step of our daily life has now become technology-bound. Students are also taking classes and learning through online mode. Using gadgets for learning purposes can help students in their academic performance. However, excessive and constant use of the internet affects their physical and mental health as well. Therefore using parental control apps has become necessary for parents to monitor and limit their children’s digital habits. One of the commonly used and popular parental control apps is Net Nanny. It helps monitor online activity, protect children from harmful content on the internet, limit screen time, and keep their website browsing secure in real-time through effectual content filtering.

Is there any other system as equally effective as Net Nanny? The answer is affirmative. This article will talk about the top 9 Net Nanny alternatives that give you full visibility and control over your children’s online activities and keep internet browsing safe.

Top 9 Net Nanny Alternatives

Let’s dive in:

1. CacheGuard-OS

CacheGuard-OS is an open-source network threat management software. It includes Unified Threat Management (UTM) that embeds web proxy, antivirus gateway, VPN server, URL filter, web application firewall, and much more. On the other hand, its Quality of Service (QoS) integrates network bandwidth manager, traffic logger, traffic shaper, web content catching system, web application delivery controller, and much more. This software secures and optimizes your network traffic efficiently and quickly.

2. S’moresUp

This is a smart parenting app that helps you manage household chores, fix a routine for your children, organize family time, handle finances, establish healthy habits and ensure online safety. By installing this, you can have a bird’s eye view of your kids’ online activity, and have an insight into their long-term online behavioral trend, such as how they set goals, whether the goals get completed on time, etc. The app does not share your personal data anywhere. It ensures complete security.

3. Boomerang Parental Control

This app allows you to monitor your children’s digital habits, reduce their screen time and ensure safe browsing for them. You can even block or approve particular apps when your children try to install those on their devices. In addition, this app offers a 24/7 location tracking facility. Call and text monitoring is also possible. Above all, with the help of Boomerang, you can monitor the YouTube app, check its search history and review watched videos on your children’s phones.

4. Norton Family

With this Cloud-based parental control app, you can monitor your kids’ online activity, find out possible cyber threats and protect your kids from any potential cyberbullying. You can check your kids’ online search history, keep an eye on age-appropriate content, regulate screen time, and help them stay focused on their studies. If your children have a habit of constantly checking and browsing mobile phones while studying, with Norton Family, you can protect their learning session or study time from any sort of online distraction.

5. K9 Web Protection

As the name suggests, K9 Web Protection gives complete online security. You can use it for protecting your kids from accessing dangerous content online. This software is also useful for keeping devices free from malware and internet security threats. It helps you keep tabs on internet scams and the latest suspicious content on the internet. Besides being a parental control tool, K9 Web Protection also acts as an ad blocker or DNS resolver in your system.

6. DansGuardian

This acts as a web content filter, controlling which content an internet user can access. Following various methods, such as URL filtering, phrase matching, PICS filtering, etc. DansGuardian filters the content of a particular website and prevents a user from browsing. This is easy to set up and configure. Use this tool to tailor online content filtering to keep your child away from harmful content online.

7.Easy Phone Track

This is a perfect app for those who worry about their children’s online safety. Easy Phone Track allows you to monitor calls, texts, shared photos, online search history, and GPS location. In other words, you can control your children’s phones remotely. You can protect your children from potential cyberbullying and ensure their good mental health.

8. Mobisafer

This is another useful app that enables you to track a phone and control it remotely. You can track a phone’s location, monitor calls and texts, record calls, and keep an eye on various social media messages and online activities. In addition, you can have a secure backup of all your important data in your phone. You can install this app in your device without leaving any trace. The app will be hidden in the device, and therefore you can track your children’s phones without letting them know about it.

9. Protectr

This parental control app allows you to have access to call logs, text logs, internet activity, and app management on your children’s phones. As a result, you can protect your children from facing potential cyber threats and checking inappropriate web content. You can monitor your children’s internet activity, control the apps on their phones and run web filtering. The app supports 7 different languages and is protected by a unique user-defined pin.

Final thoughts,

All the above-discussed apps can be considered as some of the most effective Net Nanny alternatives. However, when it comes to finding the best Net Nanny alternative parental control app, the discussion cannot be completed without mentioning the leading parental monitoring app, named TiSPY. Considered as the world’s fastest & lightest cell phone spy software, TiSPY has many more features than a simple parental monitoring app. It shows an easy and effective way to regulate your children’s online activities, track GPS location and save them from any possible danger when they are physically not near you.

So, are you all set to install a parental control app on your device? Hope this list helps pick the best-suited app for you. Which one is your favorite? Is there any other app you are already using? Do share your experience and enrich this list of Net Nanny alternative apps. We’d be glad to know.