Free Software

[Foxtrot]

My computer just arrived today and hopefully I will have it built by tommorow. I have XP, but I need a good firewall, virus scan and anything else I might need, anyone have any suggestions?

 

[Crushenator 500]

i'de go with bitdefender, and zone alarm, if you want free stuff. that's what i use.

 

[Shuzer]

i'de go with bitdefender, and zone alarm, if you want free stuff. that's what i use.

Winning combination right there :cheers:

 

[blahblahblah]

Here is a nice list for everybody with new computers

Windows Update
Good firewall
Adaware
Spybot
Good Antivirus Program
Updates for Microsoft Office

That should cover the essentials for a new computer. :E

[Edit]: Forgot to include the Google Toolbar

 

[Crushenator 500]

Winning combination right there :cheers:

I r t3h w1n !!!11!!1!1! :E

 

[Shuzer]

Good Antivirus Program

Avast! has a pretty crap track record. It's decent, but it's nowhere near as good as BitDefender/NOD32

 

[Foxtrot]

Thanks for all the links, is this a good version of bitdefender to download?
http://www.bitdefender.com/bd/site/products.php?p_id=2
I think I will get adaware, Spybot, bitdefender, and zonealarm, should I even bother with a firewall if I have a router? And do I really need the windows update? I never update, I probably have a years worth of updated on my other computer haha.

 

[blahblahblah]

I think I will get adaware, Spybot, bitdefender, and zonealarm, should I even bother with a firewall if I have a router? And do I really need the windows update? I never update, I probably have a years worth of updated on my other computer haha.

Yes, it would be wise to have a software and hardware firewall. The software firewall will help block programs you don't want accessing the internet (ie trojans).

Yes, you need windows updates. If don't get them, its the equivalent of not having a anti-virus program on your computer. It will leave you vunerable to all sorts of malware and trojans. Make sure you get them, its free to download the patches.

 

[SidewinderX]

Also, don't get M$ Office, get the free OpenOffice=better.

 

[Willber123]

my school uses openoffice and i have to say its complete sh*t, in my opinion

 

[SidewinderX]

how so? it's as good as msoftoffice imo, and free.

 

[episode96]

OpenOffice is a very nice suite and adequate to most people's needs. It's free software, exports documents directly to PDF and in general works very well. I would also recommend Mozilla Firefox and Mozilla Thunderbird as a browser and mail client respectively. Much better than the ubiquitous IE and Outlook: safer, tabbed browsing, pop-up blocking, mouse gestures, ad block extensions, very good spam management, and so on. They're also free software.

 

[A2597]

openoffice's wordproccessor is horrible. Wordpad is better!
openoffices spread sheet has NOTHING on Excel....


I deleted it within a few days, and went back to MSOXP

 

[Hazar]

Definitly get mozilla. But keep around IE because some bastards will only run on IE.
Such as windowsupdate.com which you should run.