Anonymous Web Surfing programs

The Anonymizer - Goes beyond anti-virus and firewall protection. Prevent identity theft, advanced phishing scams and secure your wireless network.

The-Cloak – Quick and easy anonymous surfing.

Anonymization – Anonymous Web Surfing: Surf anonymously and protect your privacy and security.

Guardster – Guardster’s free web proxy service allows you to browse the web anonymously.

ProxyWeb – 128 -bit encryption.

Try them all and decide which is best for you.  Either way, surfing the Internet anonymously is a key to protecting yourself against hacking and spyware.

Is VoIP Internet Phone For Me?

Voice over IP (VoIP), or broadband cable phone telephony, has opened the broadband Internet community to another facet of communication.  With companies like Vonage leading the way, computer users with broadband access can now eliminate their traditional landline telephone service and make calls over the Internet.

The savings and flexibility with using this new technology is easily apparent.  You are no longer stuck with using a local area code.  You can now choose any area code you like.

So Is VoIP for Me?

I often get asked that question during broadband installations.  The simple answer is “yes.”  The broadband will interface with a box that the VoIP provider supplies.  This box will have a traditional phone line output that goes to your telephone.  That’s it.  You do not have to make calls over your computer, and you do not have to login to any service before placing calls.  So if you’re able to use a telephone, then you’ll be able to take advantage of Voice over IP.

Our experience with VoIP (Vonage in particular) has been great.  The unlimited plan through Vonage allows unlimited local long distance within the United States for under $25 per month.  It’s easy to take advantage of the call forwarding, Voice Mail and 3-Way calling features.  Plus, you have the added flexibility of having a great online interface that allows you to setup and change features with ease.

The only drawbacks are you need to sign up for the 911 calling.  This is easy to do and completely free, but it might be something people overlook.  Since you have he ability to select any area code you want, there is no way the 911 service can work for you locally if you have a Los Angeles area code but actually live in Idaho.  Signing up for the 911 will associate your number with your local emergency service.

A second minor drawback is if you own a fax machine, you’ll need to get a special Vonage box that allows you to send and receive faxes.  Still, no big deal, but they do charge an additional $9.99 per month for that.

In conclusion, VoIP is still cheaper to use than most local and long distance services.  If you have broadband, you might as well take advantage of the additional services broadband can incorporate.

Internet Security

So you want to secure your Windows XP installation?

There are 2 categories which the advice I will describe will fall under.  Preemptive methods take a “before it happens” approach to securing your Windows XP install.  Postmortem methods take an “after it happens” approach, and needless to say le’s hope everything is taken care of in our preemptive efforts.  However, in real life things never work out exactly as you want them to.

There are some main topics we are going to cover, which include:

PREEMPTIVE

Firewall / Network Security
Ah yes, the infamous Windows XP firewall.  You may hear a lot of negative things about using the Windows XP firewall, but for the sake of not having any compatibility issues, this is by far your best bet!  The purpose of turning this on is to keep the baddies out.  Essentially, you are locking the front door to your house.

First, turn it on:  START > CONTROL PANEL > NETWORK CONNECTIONS > LOCAL AREA CONNECTION > PROPERTIES > ADVANCED tab > SETTINGS > select ON

While in this screen, click on the EXCEPTIONS tab.  Make sure that the following ARE NOT checked:

• File and Printer Sharing
• Remote Assistance
• Remote Desktop

Click OK and you should be good to go.  Be sure to never install TWO software firewalls on the same computer!!!

Internet Explorer Browser Security
Install SpyBot S&D on your computer which is available FREE at: http://www.safer-networking.org/en/index.html

During the installation of SpyBot make sure to enable “TeaTimer” which will actively monitor your browsing and prevent any identifiable nasties from getting on your computer.  Another major benefit to SpyBot is it “immunizes” your computer from certain known attacks.  You can, through the SpyBot interface, have the software immunize your computer from all known threats.  This is a great feature in itself!  If you are ever concerned that you may have caught something, you can always run a SpyBot scan of your computer.

POSTMORTEM

Antivirus Solutions
I suggest and use AVG for my antivirus solution.  I have used many AV solutions in the past, but AVG offers the most ease, usability, and effectiveness compared to any mainstream solution on the market for home users.  AVG has a FREE edition which is excellent and automatically updates and scans your computer on a daily basis.  It can be downloaded and installed here: http://free.grisoft.com

Malware Removal Solutions
Okay, so we have SpyBot installed, but why would we want another solution?  Aside from the fact it is FREE, you should be acutely aware that a single solution cannot cover every spyware, adware, or malware floating around on the Internet.  It can be beneficial to use another product just to cover your bases.  Lavasoft’s Ad-Aware Personal edition is just the solution for this and can be downloaded an installed from: http://www.lavasoft.de/software/adaware/

Whenever you sense that your computer has been compromised or just when you have some free time and want to take extra caution against malware, update Ad-Aware and run a scan on your computer.

CONCLUSION

With the right amount of care it is possible to extend the time between operating system re-installations.  If your system has too much damage and you need to recover it for whatever reason, I do not suggest a do it yourself approach.  Always contact a professional if you are worried about losing more than your MP3s and bad pictures of yourself.  A good source for professional help is http://www.GeekPatch.com and don’t forget to give coupon code PCTB0306 to get a discount from here!  Enjoy and happy surfing! 

Gateway System Recovery (R0 & R1) (available from September 2004 to June 2005)

• The back up media for the operating system, drivers, and application software is saved on a D: partition on the hard drive.
• In addition to the files located on the D: partition, the user is prompted 1 minute after the Out Of Box Experience (OOBE) to create backup CD-R disks for the software on the hard drive image for future use.
• Blank CD-R media and instructions are provided in the system box for the new computer sales orders.
• The kit consists of 5 regular blank CDs and instructions.
• The blank media is listed on the order for any system that shipped with Gateway System Recovery Rev 1.
• Typically “images” would only require 3-4 CDs.
• Once the CD’s are made, the Operating System, Drivers, or Applications can be reinstalled using the files on the hard drive or the backup CDs. Note: After the end-user has successfully made a CD backup, the CD media creation option does not appear.

Gateway resumed the shipping of Operating System CDs with all new systems purchased directly from Gateway in June 2005. These systems still include a recovery partition on the hard drive which includes the drivers and applications. If a end-user wants the drivers and applications on CD media in addition to the Operating System, the end-user can use the Recovery utility program to create the CDs themselves. However the end-user must provide their own blank media.

Gateway System Recovery (R2) (available June 2005):

Key differences with Gateway System Recovery R2

• Business Account end-users will receive both a CD with Operating System files and a CD containing Drivers and Applications.
• Consumer-based systems will only receive a CD with Operating System files. Both Consumer and Business end-users can still create a Drivers and Applications CD from the start menu.
• The Operating System files are included on a CD labeled “System Recovery CD/DVD”
• When recovering a computer with this new solution, half of the solution is on the System Recovery CD/DVD and the other half is on the recovery partition and/or the Drivers and Applications CD.
• There is no prompt to create the recovery media set or a Drivers and Applications CD.
• The Recovery Media Creator icon has been removed from the start menu to prevent the user from creating additional backup media that has Operating System files.
• No blank recovery media is provided with the computer.
• On the factory load of the hard drive, the recovery partition will not contain operating system files. It only contains application and driver files.
• The first time the recovery partition is used, it prompts the user to insert their System Recovery CD/DVD to copy files from the CD to the recovery partition.
• The Drivers and Applications CD is not bootable and does not contain Operating System files.
• The System Recovery CD/DVD is bootable but does not contain any application or driver files.
• If the end-user erases the hard drive and restores the computer using the System Recovery CD/DVD and an Applications and Drivers CD, the recovery partition is not recreated

Additional information & tutorials regarding Gateway System Recovery can be found here.