The main concern when going on line ( the internet, web )  is that ones' personal privacy not be compromised by anyone remotely, wither a pre-puberty kid on the other side of the moon or some overzealous business group trying to  improve their sales by learning their customers preferences.

       For Surfing and E-Mail protection with ALL internet connections, I use Kerio, an excellent two way firewall and  NOD32  AntiVirus, which automatically scans files for viruses and and  all incoming and outgoing E-Mail . Even if you are using a rarely used slow telephone dial-up you will occasionally see somebody wandering by with a subseven back door  or so which can remote control your actions counteracting them on the fly, reducing you to tears and mental collapse.  If you don't have a good two way software firewall installed, don't ask me for sympathy, at some latter day.

       If using a Cable TV, Internet modem I strongly recommend adding a little external box called a Router ( VPN, or  Internet Security Gateway) between your Cable modem and Network Interface Card in your computer.  You can use a simple wire router for a wired network or a Wireless Router which allows a standard wire connection to four local wired computers and multiple wireless connections to remote computers in your house and neighborhood. The Linksys BEFW11S4 Ver.2 - EtherFast Wireless AP +Cable/DSL Router w/4-Port Switch Retails for $66. The Linksys WMP11 - Instant Wireless PCI Card- for each remote computer Retails for $59.  These older B wireless models work at higher speeds than cable modems usually meaning that the newer, faster G models aren't necessary. Their isn't any configuration work unless you wish to remotely internet access a computer. A necessary supplement  is good anti-virus software on each computer.

       If using a slow Telephone dial-up ISP occasionally these VPN gateways aren't always necessary, unless connected 24 -  7 , but  good  firewall and Antivirus software still are.

  For XP and Windows 2000, immediately after installing  I  recommend running  << XP Anti-SPY >>   (freeware)  and after installing Service packs. Then Re-Boot to start with a clean slate.  Check it occasionally.  Also weekly defragment your partitions  ......   Next Install a free add,  spy, scum remover   <<Spy Bot >>  and run it in advanced mode making sure you update and Immunize on a weekly basis. After pressing " Immunize" press the next immunize button again unless all know bad products are already blocked. Then below select "silently immunize all". Next I  Also run a good Free Registry, Cookie, Cache, Temp file remover such as << CCleaner >>.   If you're using Windows XP, add C:\Windows\Prefetch to the list of directories to empty periodically. Remember to shut down your computer for several minutes after cleaning, not a re-start !

If buying software, I like << Kerio >>   Firewall and <<<NOD32>>> Anti Virus Version 2. Check E-BAY  for good prices.       <<<Here>>>  is the best review for Anti-Virus programs.

My favorite free firewall for cable or dial up accounts is  << Kerio >>  and for Virus protection  AVG 6.0 Free Edition .  

      Make sure your Browser (your web surfing program) is always updated or the latest version.  I  use   Mozilla Firefox for surfing and Mozilla Thunderbird  E-Mail.  I only use both Microsoft IE 6 if I need to print a web page in large or small fonts. They all integrate nicely with Microsoft's  New "set program access and defaults" in the latest OS Service Packs.

      I make a new folder on my desktop named "Security".   Into this folder, I move short cuts from;  CCleaner,  Spy Bot, XP Anti Spy and Defrag to remind myself to update and run them often . 

      For Operating Systems, in September 2002 , I Run Both Windows 2000 Pro- SP4 ( fifth OS version) and Windows XP Pro-SP2 (third OS version) for their Stability and features, such as their backwards Application compatibility abilities. To crank well the older Windows 2000 will run quite well with 256 Mb of RAM, With XP requiring at least 384 Mb or more.
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              Last Edited on   07/02/2005 12:23 -0500        Thanks to WA2CYT for CCleaner tip