softwareadvice

Advised Products

In terms of e-mail clients, I would most highly recommend Outlook Express. Outlook Express is made by Microsoft, is free, is not ad supported, is included with Windows XP, and is the most flexible - I guarantee that it will work with any sort of spam-killer or with any type of email client (excluding web-based accounts, i.e. Hotmail.) If you want a more 'professional' design, investigate Outlook (EXPENSIVE) or Eudora (cheaper). Note that Eudora tends to be less compatible.

Spam, spam, spam. Nowadays, most people get more spam than they do legitimate email! Well folks, I have the solution. Standard spam filters are highly unreliable - they use content filters. Way too often do content filters delete wanted mail. The solution? AllSpamGone by A1Tech. AllSpamGone works very well. Rather than searching email for specific words, it uses a different, patent-pending technology. When it receives an email from an unknown sender, it will send a message back to the sender, requesting that they fill out a quick, one-time form to confirm legitimacy. With most spam, the message will be bounced-back, causing AllSpamGone to delete the email - because the bounce means it's spam. FoOlPrOoF!
AllSpamGone

Web Browsers

Well, there are only two good ones to pick from - but they are both free, and both work really well. We all know what those two are - Internet Explorer and Netscape (a.k.a. Mozilla) Each has their own pros and cons. Internet Explorer is open-source, so any company can easily write software that integrates into it. However, Internet Explorer is a flat-out basic. It has no features by itself. It just browses, so it almost always works. Now about Netscape. Netscape is not open-source, but it does have something of a popup blocker. BTW, when you download Netscape, you get: Netscape Navigator - the browser, Netscape Communicator - which I find to a horrible email client, and Netscape Composer - a web page builder which I would give a 7 on a scale of 1 to 10. I will warn you however, applications can't 'interface' as well with Netscape.
Get Netscape
Netscape is based on an open source browser, 'Mozilla'. I prefer Mozilla (Firefox) over Netscape. Mozilla turns the strings over to you, and let's *you* pull them.

Here an ad, there an ad, everywhere a pop-up

Plenty of programs deal with this one - everyone just hates how web pages are FLOODED with popups and banner ads - I personally hate those really jiggly ones. A new wave of advertising was included in Windows XP - the messenger service pop-ups. Well, I give you the program that can stop it all - without stopping pictures you want to see - AdsGone. AdsGone rocks. It's $20, is a one-time fee, includes lifetime upgrades and one-year email support, and works flawlessly. Get it NOW - free trial!

AdsGone

Virus!!!!!!!!!!!

Did you know there are over 60,000 known viruses? It's true. It's also true that that number grows an average of 3 each day? Did you know that not all viruses destroy data, but leak it to public websites? It's no joke. If you don't have anti-virus protection, then you shouldn't be suprised to see your email address and password, credit card numbers, or other confidential information on-line. You need protection. I recommend:
Norton Antivirus 2004 by Symantec @ $50 or
McAfee Antivirus by McAfee @ $50 or $60 (depending on what you get)
Which one is better? Honestly, I think that when it comes down to protection, it's a perfect tie. I would suggest Norton; I like it's interface better, but that's still just opinion. Check 'em out, get the one you like working with.

Spyware - The Unwanted Eavesdropper

What is Spyware? It is a program that does not do damage to your computer, and doesn't replicate, but is silently installed when visiting innocent web sites. This software will then silently download ads, sell your internet connection, record and then email keystrokes, etc. I have a good, free, solution - Spybot Search & Destroy. It's free, completely free, no ads. It has an integrated updater so you can quickly get spyware definitions - then it will destroy the spyware.
www.safer-networking.org