I am currentley using dial up but optical cable is now available for my home. Ive been told that a stand alone firewall is better than a software system for protection and easy in operaration.
What do u all think.
Thanks
Thank god for technologey

stand along (hardware) will be better then software.
1) it's hardware based (fast) vs (slow) software
2) it's OS independent

However most decent firewall routers are costly (and possibly unecessary), while XP's built in sygate etc are free

Thanks for the info. Currentley im using win.98 but i will be switching to xp soon.
so would u stick with the os firewall or pay the extra$ or the hardware system if u could afford it.

I disagree. You can get a good WIRED router with firewall for well under $50 now. It is the wireless ones that are still expensive. The software firewall is also a good idea, as it can prevent malware you may get in an email or downloaded program from dialing out. It also adds another layer of protection.

I used to get tons of scan alerts on my firewall. I got sick of it and turned off the alerts. The log would show dozens, if not hundreds, of ports scans.

I added a router w/ firewall and I now very little gets through, but my personal firewall has blocked a couple of things over the past couple of years.

(edit) it helps to have the RIGHT software firewall. Stay away from bloatware like norton. Pick up kerio, zone alarm or sygate. All three have both a paid and free edition.

thanks all for the suggestions. next wk. verizon is hooking up my fiber lines and it comes with a built in firewall system. has anyone used their fiber lines with the firewall its the "centra system" that i will be using.
im currently using win.98 2nd.ed. with norton anti-virus.
verizons pack will have anti-virus, spam, pop-up along with it firewall. should i keep norton running or uninstall it or possiable use a diff. program along with verizons.

and will the additional progams slow it down so i dont get my moneies worth. or should i again go with a hardware firewall and disable verizons.

still not sure.

thanks all

Is it a hardware firewall or a firewall built-in to their software?