"I'm philosophically opposed to the use of filters," Flannery said. "The library has a unique role, and it's for parents to tell their kids not to seek out pornography."

But some Cambridge residents disagree with Flannery concerning the need for Web restriction.

"Computers in the children's department must be locked out of getting access to certain sites," said Ginny H. Payson, an assistant teacher at the John M. Tobin School and a mother of two.

"A lot of kids today know how to get to a lot of stuff," Payson said. "And with all the publicity about pornography on the Web, there's bound to be some kind of curiosity in every child."

Without filters, many parents say they would at least like to see the computers monitored.

A few parents who have Internet access at home say they oversee their children to ensure that they use the Web properly. Instead of forbidding their kids to visit indecent sites, these parents choose to regulate their children's online activity.

"A block would send a message of distrust, so I wander in and out of the room a lot when the children are on the Web," Roberts said.

While Flannery is opposed to restricting access to library resources, parents say that because pornographic material poses a serious threat to their children, it warrants intervention.

"Libraries would have to take on the responsibility of making sure computers they provide are not misused," Payson said.

"I wouldn't be upset if the library restricted access," said Linda Nathan, Principal of the Fenway Middle College High School in Boston and the mother of two boys at Cambridgeport School.

"After all, libraries don't stock pornographic materials in the children's department," Nathan said.

Flannery said she has not heard of any incidents of improper Web use in her contacts with Cambridge school administrators. But Roberts did recall an episode that occurred last year involving several classmates of her son at the Haggerty School. According to Roberts, the boys "somehow wandered into the Playboy site" while using a computer with Web access at school.

Nathan said issues of Internet misuse have "come up at [her] school" in Boston but that "she has faith that the district will think of something" to remedy the situation.

As an alternative to built-in locks on the computers, Nathan--who said she and her three children visit the main branch twice a week--suggested that attentive library staff could monitor access.

"I'd support hands-on librarians," Nathan said. "I have very high marks for them, and my kids think they're great."