RogerS
Established Member
Ike
As you are going down that route then PLEASE get yourself a decent firewall like ZoneAlarm.
Roger
As you are going down that route then PLEASE get yourself a decent firewall like ZoneAlarm.
Roger
Advice wanted on broadband setup
- Thread starter ike
- Start date
Help Support UKworkshop.co.uk:
I have all your recommendations ringing in my ears, and I do not doubt the wisdom of Zen etc. I am a poor soul with little in the bank and compromise I must. It's a cheaper ISP or nuthin' I'm afraid - simple as that. Still it's not like having a rubbish tool that's not even good to sit and watch (no, not Harrison Ford!), I can change to another outfit if necessary.
Very timely Roger as I was about to ask for advice on what is the best software for
a)parental control to save young Ikelets from accidental embarrassment - (yeah, right!)
b)anti-virus
c)firewall
d)spam (desirable but not essential)
I am all but paranoid about having broadband fully expecting the computer to go **** up in 5 minutes. I really don't wnat to spend evenings pratting about getting the damn thing just to work properly!
cheers
Ike
RogerS
Established Member
Ike
For my two-pennorth,
1)set up a separate user account for the Ikelets and don't give them Admin privileges
2) parental controls....not being one (a parent, I mean) can't advise :lol:
3) firewall - ZoneAlarm (once installed switch off your Microsoft one)
4) virus - avg from www.grisoft.com is good
5) spam - if you are running Outlook (not Outlook Express) then spambayes is very good...and free.
I avoid Symantec ie Norton as much as I can....seems to me that they spend a lot of their time sowing FUD (fear, uncertainty and doubt) IMHO let alone insidiously creeping into every orifice in your computer :evil:
Did you check out MetroNet? I'm on their £10 a month plus VAT deal which is pretty good.
For my two-pennorth,
1)set up a separate user account for the Ikelets and don't give them Admin privileges
2) parental controls....not being one (a parent, I mean) can't advise :lol:
3) firewall - ZoneAlarm (once installed switch off your Microsoft one)
4) virus - avg from www.grisoft.com is good
5) spam - if you are running Outlook (not Outlook Express) then spambayes is very good...and free.
I avoid Symantec ie Norton as much as I can....seems to me that they spend a lot of their time sowing FUD (fear, uncertainty and doubt) IMHO let alone insidiously creeping into every orifice in your computer :evil:
Did you check out MetroNet? I'm on their £10 a month plus VAT deal which is pretty good.
dedee
Established Member
Ike,
once you have broadband the need for offline email is reduced therefore an online email might be worth consideration. It seems a lot more secure to me if the likes of Gmail are holding spam mails on their servers rather then than on my PC. Mind your they seem very good at blocking spam anyway. I exclusively use online email now with accounts with GMail and Yahoo.
If you would like a Gmail account PM your email address & I'll send you an invitation.
Andy
once you have broadband the need for offline email is reduced therefore an online email might be worth consideration. It seems a lot more secure to me if the likes of Gmail are holding spam mails on their servers rather then than on my PC. Mind your they seem very good at blocking spam anyway. I exclusively use online email now with accounts with GMail and Yahoo.
If you would like a Gmail account PM your email address & I'll send you an invitation.
Andy
Roger said:
Yes. Comparing like for like, (2Mbit) Plusnet is £14.99 v. £18.75 for Metronet.
Andy said,
Thanks Andy. I've got a Yahoo account at the moment. Useful when I could access it at work but not any more. It's pretty good at stopping spam and I doubt I'll ever use more than 5% of a 1 Gb mailbox, so I'll stick with it for now.
cheers
Ike
Yes. Comparing like for like, (2Mbit) Plusnet is £14.99 v. £18.75 for Metronet.
Andy said,
Thanks Andy. I've got a Yahoo account at the moment. Useful when I could access it at work but not any more. It's pretty good at stopping spam and I doubt I'll ever use more than 5% of a 1 Gb mailbox, so I'll stick with it for now.
cheers
Ike
DaveL
Established Member
ike":3af4agji said:
But do you realy need 2Mbit?
For a bit of surfing and forum use 512Kbit is plenty, why pay for more if you are not going to make full use of it?
It's beginning to feel like 'sticking the pin in blindfolded' choosing an ISP.
I could slide into an agony of indecision between 512K, 2Mb or whatever, when it's a difference of about £2 p.m. but whats the point?.
The bottom line for me is the 1st year cost - getting started. Some of the cheapest tarrifs exclude the connection fee - £50-£70, or no hardware included (£20-£30).
I have found Norton Internet Security 2005 on special offer for £22.50 - so that's the software sorted. With connection and 1st month sub, a grand total of £49 to get going safely.
I ain't gonna lose any more sleep (yet)! :roll:
cheers
Ike
I could slide into an agony of indecision between 512K, 2Mb or whatever, when it's a difference of about £2 p.m. but whats the point?.
The bottom line for me is the 1st year cost - getting started. Some of the cheapest tarrifs exclude the connection fee - £50-£70, or no hardware included (£20-£30).
I have found Norton Internet Security 2005 on special offer for £22.50 - so that's the software sorted. With connection and 1st month sub, a grand total of £49 to get going safely.
I ain't gonna lose any more sleep (yet)! :roll:
cheers
Ike
RogerS
Established Member
Well Ike, to be honest I didn't realise that price was your only criteria.
Good luck with your system.
Good luck with your system.
Roger says:
That's because it isn't. I looked at price against stated performance, and there is such a large spread on price for a given performance. Note I didn't say u]actual[/u] performance. That's the point though. I can't afford £20 or £25 p.m or whatever, so I'm having to take calculated risk that cheap ISP A might in fact not be rubbish (at least for my needs), compared to well recommended ISP B or C. Hopefully I'll get good bangs for my bucks.
Ike
That's because it isn't. I looked at price against stated performance, and there is such a large spread on price for a given performance. Note I didn't say u]actual[/u] performance. That's the point though. I can't afford £20 or £25 p.m or whatever, so I'm having to take calculated risk that cheap ISP A might in fact not be rubbish (at least for my needs), compared to well recommended ISP B or C. Hopefully I'll get good bangs for my bucks.
Ike
Alf
Established Member
Ike,
I know exactly what you mean. I, too, had to look for best bang for the limited buck. It's a total 'mare, and frankly something of a lottery as far as I can tell, but crossing your fingers and hoping for the best at least costs nowt. :lol:
Cheers, Alf
I know exactly what you mean. I, too, had to look for best bang for the limited buck. It's a total 'mare, and frankly something of a lottery as far as I can tell, but crossing your fingers and hoping for the best at least costs nowt. :lol:
Cheers, Alf
