Surfer Beware!
It's a jungle out there, before you get into any serious surfing it's a really good idea to protect yourself, your computer and your information.
Main worries for any Internet user are Viruses and Spyware. Also popups can be intensely annoying, plus potentially dangerous.
I won't dip a toe into the Internet waters these days, without some form of safeguard against those unscrupulous folks who'd love nothing more than to steal my information and money.
This is the stuff I personally use to keep me safe online.
Antivirus
A solid, free antivirus tool, regularly updated and so far, impervious to all the threats thrown at me.
AVG
Spyware Remover/Blocker
Prevents the rubbish getting on your machine in the first place. Worth checking at least weekly for updates.
SpywareBlaster
Of course, sometimes you already have the stuff on your machine. This is the best one for getting rid of any you already have. Also worth a weekly check for updates.
Spybot Search and Destroy
Popup Killers
Possibly the most annoying invention online ever, now available in all kinds of irritating 'flavours' and the spawning type can really ruin a good surfing session.
PopupStopper
Multi-tabbed Browsers
Now anyone that's used it for a while, knows that Internet Explorer isn't the most friendly tool in the universe,
luckily for us, a bunch of smart folks have come up with alternatives to it. One advantage of these is that they all
include some form of popupblocking to make your surfing a little smoother. Another, is that they allow you to open
more than one site in their window on "tabs" and anybody who's spent an evening hunting around trying to find each open program in a hurry, will appreciate that capability. Try them all, they're all free, I personally keep copies of Opera and Firefox from my use, but I know my taste isn't everybodys.
Crazy Browser
Firefox
Maxthon
^(formerly known as MYIE2)
Opera
Smart Explorer
Free Handy Stuff
Other useful free to use, or free to try stuff can be found here, along with reviews and user ratings for most programs. Suggested additional tools would include a registry cleaner, but some of these can be dangerous in the hands of the inexperienced, so play with caution.
CNet Download.com
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