In IP Addresses and Security, I wrote about how the Internet works — your computer has an IP address, your intended destination has an IP address, and both have to know and use the IP address of the other in order for communication to occur between them.
The article was in response to a reader who [...]

Do you use the Internet every day? Do you surf the web, or just go to specific web sites that you already know? Do you check out web sites that someone’s recommended to you? Or, do you skip all the web stuff and just do emails, mainly with family and friends?
If you answered yes to [...]

Reader Bev Lammert has written me about an alternative anti-spam program that she’s picked:

Hi, I just read my newsletter of which I love but had to comment on your Anti Spam article. You mentioned MailWasherPopFile & IHateSpam. I haven’t tried any of them but I do use one called Spam Bully [...]

I’m often asked about how I handle passwords for all the different sites that require passwords.
The questioner’s eyes get pretty big when I mention that I use random mixtures of letters and numbers for my passwords, and even bigger when I say that I use a different password on every site.
The immediate question is “How [...]

Occasionally when I’m installing a new program, or updating an existing program, I run into a special issue. Yes, that’s probably the right term for it — when my security software does exactly what it’s supposed to do — and blocks the software installation or upgrade/update.
Such was the case this week with the surprise update [...]

I recently updated from NOD32 version 2.7 to the latest v3.0. I found that Eset has dramatically simplified the structure of the NOD32 controls. They had been criticized in the past as creating a great product for advanced PC users.
The new version has a simplified “Standard Mode” that is much easier to use.
The Advanced Mode [...]

Once upon a time, Netscape was THE Internet web browser — and it was a commercial product. Then, along came the big bad wolf. He dreamed of world (wide web) conquest and so he wrote his own web browser; then, he gave it away with the operating system he sold.
It was bad, but it [...]

In every issue of my weekly online computer tips newsletter, I have my current security software recommendations. In that article, I write about the programs that I choose for antivirus, antispyware/antiadware, firewall and antispam. I also include a paragraph in the article on using a cable / DSL router.
But, I guess I haven’t had enough [...]

I guess it’s been a long time since I’ve gotten on the Firefox versus Internet Explorer subject in my newsletter. For a while last year, I beat it to death…
But, recently, in responding to a reader’s question, I mentioned that I recommended Firefox over IE for web browsing. His response was “You Do?”
The reason that [...]

Are you safe when you use the wireless network at your local coffee shop or airport? Maybe. Maybe not.
Are you accidentally sharing your files on your computer? Is your computer “trusting” connection attempts from the other computers at the hostspot?
A reader asked me
To improve security when using Wi-Fi at a coffee shop or traveling, [...]