Why is humanity sometimes so stupid!
I was watching tv last night and an ad appeared from a company on how to make your computer safer.
Turn on the firewall.
Use MS Automatic updates to keep up to date.
Use Anti-Virus software and keep it up to date.
You need to know what the firewall has for an impact (ftp, msn won't work etc without config). You need to buy AV and spyware/adware software. Your contant reboots installing the updates.
There are so many flavours of linux out as well as other hardware vendors such as Apple who can provide an alternative.
Its not that the hardware is flakey, its purely the OS.
Your average home user won't know about firewalls/anti-virus and update importance. Linux and OS X is just as easy or easier to install than XP and its cheapers etc.
When I ask people why they buy Office XP they say they want to use word and excel. Open Office can do the same. I tell them that they can download it for free and that it works just like word and excel and can save in word and excel formats even.
It is so annoying.
It is almost like a religion except they worship the devil.
When you try to show someone that their is an alternative they refuse to acknowledge this despite the fact that its free and runs on their existing system.
Dobby.
Turn on the firewall.
Use MS Automatic updates to keep up to date.
Use Anti-Virus software and keep it up to date.
You need to know what the firewall has for an impact (ftp, msn won't work etc without config). You need to buy AV and spyware/adware software. Your contant reboots installing the updates.
There are so many flavours of linux out as well as other hardware vendors such as Apple who can provide an alternative.
Its not that the hardware is flakey, its purely the OS.
Your average home user won't know about firewalls/anti-virus and update importance. Linux and OS X is just as easy or easier to install than XP and its cheapers etc.
When I ask people why they buy Office XP they say they want to use word and excel. Open Office can do the same. I tell them that they can download it for free and that it works just like word and excel and can save in word and excel formats even.
It is so annoying.
It is almost like a religion except they worship the devil.
When you try to show someone that their is an alternative they refuse to acknowledge this despite the fact that its free and runs on their existing system.
Dobby.
Comments
The reason people will put up with windows is because linux is annoying to deal with, mac is too expensive (we're talking price tags in the store), windows is the ONLY PC platform for games, and windows is easiest to get support for.
You type in "ntsoskernl.exe error" in google and you're not searching for hours looking for an answer.
I can call up my buddies (who all use windows) and ask what a cryptic error means on my windows box, and they'll tell me.
I'm still trying to find an answer to my problem I posted in the "genius bar" here 5 days ago.
It's a windows world, and it wont change until people have a reason to change. Linux is insane, mac is expensive, and "my internet works fine" on windows.
Originally posted by dobby
When you try to show someone that their is an alternative they refuse to acknowledge this...
I was helping someone who didn't know Windoze setup two separate email accounts in Outlook (Look out!), as the emails were going into the wrong accounts, I was asked by one of them (the husband) what type of computer to buy for work. He is an independent worker who has a choice and is not limited by his I.T. Dept.
Of course, I suggested an iBook, but the wife - who works in a big job with Windoze - said that the rest of the word uses Windoze and it was a silly answer because in the real world, everyone uses Windoze. No offense to me, but that's the way the real world is, she said. Not everyone has a Mac, only those pesky graphic artists. Not real business people.
I bit my tongue.
And he proceeded to jump off the Empire State Building, because all his friends did!
Oh, did I mention that they called me over because I was a "computer guy" who could figure out their horrid Windoze PC, even though I hardly ever use the things? Couldn't they find someone else in the real world who could help them?
Originally posted by slughead
[B]I like word and excel better than OO.o's "equivalents."
I bet you like paying for them better too.
because linux is annoying to deal with,
Why? And what do you need to deal with? Virus? Spyware? Adware? Instability? Speed?
You type in "ntsoskernl.exe error" in google and you're not searching for hours looking for an answer.
That's the silliest reason to stay with a certain OS. How about you try one that doesn't give you cryptic "ntsoskernl.exe" mistakes that you need to decypher as if you were some Voodo Guru?
I'm still trying to find an answer to my problem I posted in the "genius bar" here 5 days ago.
What is the problem?
It's a windows world, and it wont change until people have a reason to change. Linux is insane, mac is expensive, and "my internet works fine" on windows.
Exactly why is Linux 'insane'? And if you use a certain OS just because 'your internet works fine', then I must say you're not technically-savvy enough as to give advice to others with regard to Linux, or even Mac. You may very well be, but that's not the impression you give with such 'reasons'.
I reckon that 95% of word/excel users would not be able to use the features in word 2 and excel 4 let alone the multitude of options you have in the latest versions.
If you explicitly want a MS machine for a specific purpose (games is a very good point) thats fine. A lot of my companys clients bitch and moan about downloads/virus shit etc but can't consider moving. I reckon MS has worked out a way to make the drive oscilation brainwash you so that you won't want to change despite the fact that linux is only as difficult as XP and a Mac is now as affordable as a better quiality pc.
Dobby.
Originally posted by Gene Clean
I bet you like paying for them better too.
Do you own a mac? Christ, OO.o even broke their promise and said they aren't going to make a native port.
That aside, I do tell my clients to use OO.o. I personally like excel better. I like word better because it's more responsive and some of the features are useful.
Originally posted by Gene Clean
Why? And what do you need to deal with? Virus? Spyware? Adware? Instability? Speed?
Oddly enough, erasing viruses an adware is much easier than updating linux.
That is, of course, if you get viruses and spyware in the first place (which I've never gotten on my PC).
I don't know anyone who'd say stability is a problem with windows unless you're building your own machine (which I do, but the people we're talking about don't).
Originally posted by Gene Clean
That's the silliest reason to stay with a certain OS. How about you try one that doesn't give you cryptic "ntsoskernl.exe" mistakes that you need to decypher as if you were some Voodo Guru?
Support with less time, effort, and money is a silly reason to stay?
You want to know how long it took me to find out what was wrong with my G5 and 6800?
Oh wait, I spent HOURS coming up with my OWN definitive article on the problem, when NOBODY else had...
Me and the people here and Appleinsider talked to engineers at Apple, did a collection of data to see if it was reproducible, and essentially diagnosed and solved the problem ourselves. It was "interesting" being one of the original discoverers but the reality is that's a week of my life I'll never get back, and on a windows box I would've known what was wrong in about 10 seconds.
On windows, every problem has been seen, every problem has been solved, on Mac, you may have fewer problems as a power user, but when you do... oooh lord you're in for a long ordeal.
Originally posted by Gene Clean
What is the problem?
edit: NM someone did answer, the e-mail notification just didn't work for some reason.. here it is anyway
http://forums.appleinsider.com/showt...threadid=51122
Originally posted by Gene Clean
Exactly why is Linux 'insane'? And if you use a certain OS just because 'your internet works fine', then I must say you're not technically-savvy enough as to give advice to others with regard to Linux, or even Mac. You may very well be, but that's not the impression you give with such 'reasons'.
Uh I have a mac, so I obviously know and appreciate the advantages for ME. However, for my clients who ask what computer they should get, when they say "I want an internet with the most megahertz." I give them a cheap windows box with good security (hardware firewall + software zone alarm - IE - outlook).
I tell them what they're getting into, and of their options, but I don't spin it out of control so people usually say "well I can stick within these simple rules, I think I'll go with the cheap solution." I've yet to have a virus or a piece of spyware get through to one of my clients.
Linux is insane (in the eyes of most people) because of the totally ridiculous lengths you have to go through to upgrade. There are exploits for linux--don't kid yourself--but when you need to patch them through a console and not a pretty GUI, most users would freak. In fact, I might even freak.
I myself have used linux on and off for a few years, and I can say that I've yet to see a flavor with a GUI that I can setup in under two hours. In addition, I never can seem to find all the drivers I need so I have to stick with certain video resolutions or not have surround sound or only one of my ethernet ports works or something else totally obscure. By using x86, I realize my machine was built for WINDOWS, and those are the drivers that are released. If I'm really, really lucky some fat man living in his parent's basement will write my silicon RAID driver some day.
And besides, once I get it setup... what games can I play? can I run photoshop? can I configure my firewire devices? I'd have to boot back into windows, which probably came with my PC anyway (I build my own, but for most people this is true).
I'm a huge mac fan, but you have to face the fact that for simple tasks with non-savvy people, it's not the best solution. Linux is even farther removed.
Originally posted by slughead
[B]Do you own a mac? Christ, OO.o even broke their promise and said they aren't going to make a native port.
I own 2 Macs. I use them all the time, same goes with Linux. Windows I avoid like the plague, and don't use it unless I'm forced to. But don't kid yourself, I know that system better than my pocket. Its weaknesses, that is.
OO.o is more focused on the OO.o vs. Office front and doesn't have time to write a different version for every 2-3% OS out there. It did for Linux because that's where its base + developers are/work on. So, with respect to that, OO.o has every right to cancel one of their projects.
That aside, I do tell my clients to use OO.o. I personally like excel better. I like word better because it's more responsive and some of the features are useful.
OO.o is not better than Office. I never said that. But for 90% of the people, and pardon my rough estimates, it is far more useful than Office. That's because it doesn't come with 2908328308 'features' that you never use. I consider myself a 'power' user but never have to use, say, PowerPoint, or X option in Word. For this reason, OO.o is better because its simpler, lighter. For others that spend their entire day starring at Excelt sheets and typing in numbers and reports, unfortunately, Office is better. Though it comes with a hefty price - something that I noted in my original response to you.
Oddly enough, erasing viruses an adware is much easier than updating linux.
Yes, of course. Opening Terminal and writing "sudo apt-get update" must be so much harder than running SpyBot + Adaware + ZoneAlarm every day. And lets not mention using a GUI frontend to update, something like YaST or Synaptic - those suckers are so much harder to use than cleaning 1289 viruses.
That is, of course, if you get viruses and spyware in the first place (which I've never gotten on my PC).
Yeah, well, a lot of people do. Statistically. So it doesn't matter if you don't - others do. In big numbers.
I don't know anyone who'd say stability is a problem with windows unless you're building your own machine (which I do, but the people we're talking about don't).
Stability as in running more than 4-5 hours, after which a WinXP system becomes unusable and only a restart can come to the rescue. Stability as in running for months without a slowdown.
Support with less time, effort, and money is a silly reason to stay?
Support from who exactly? The company you paid $200 dollars for your copy of XP or the benevolent users 'out there'? If so, Linux has a far more active community and a far bigger database of documentation than any OS out there. Just because you couldn't get an answer for your question relating to a Mac on AI, doesn't mean that no other OS has support, and all the goods that come with it.
You want to know how long it took me to find out what was wrong with my G5 and 6800?
Oh wait, I spent HOURS coming up with my OWN definitive article on the problem, when NOBODY else had...
Me and the people here and Appleinsider talked to engineers at Apple, did a collection of data to see if it was reproducible, and essentially diagnosed and solved the problem ourselves. It was "interesting" being one of the original discoverers but the reality is that's a week of my life I'll never get back, and on a windows box I would've known what was wrong in about 10 seconds.
I doubt you would have known what was wrong in about 10 seconds. That is a crude exaggeration. I don't see why you relate and compare your G5 to WinXP, seeing as one is a machine and the other an operating system, but you must not believe yourself when you say that 'a week of your life has been wasted', saying it in such a manner as if you never slept during that week and poked your G5 all the time. I'm sure that's not the case.
As for the bug itself; what can I say? I don't make G5's, and I don't make Mac OS X either. I simply don't see why you relate your extraordinary problem with your hardware with support for another OS.
On windows, every problem has been seen, every problem has been solved, on Mac, you may have fewer problems as a power user, but when you do... oooh lord you're in for a long ordeal.
On Windows every problem has been solved? I guess that's why Microsoft keeps releasing patches to its bug-ridden software and OS, and it must be for the same reason that it has earned the reputation of a disease. Of course, its for the same reason that virus-writers and hackers all around the world manage to infect countless numbers of systems - because everything has been seen... indeed...
edit: NM someone did answer, the e-mail notification just didn't work for some reason.. here it is anyway
http://forums.appleinsider.com/showt...threadid=51122
Ah! So there is support [I'd hardly call typing ntsoskernl.exe into Google support... but nonetheless] even on a Mac platform! Seems to me that everyone is 'copying' Windows and its flagship OS.
Uh I have a mac, so I obviously know and appreciate the advantages for ME. However, for my clients who ask what computer they should get, when they say "I want an internet with the most megahertz." I give them a cheap windows box with good security (hardware firewall + software zone alarm - IE - outlook).
Well, its obvious from the "I want an internet with the most megahertz" sentence, what kind of clients you got. Buffoons, so to speak. But a peculiar choice you've made; no IE and no Outlook. What happened to the wonderful Microsoft OS and its software?
I tell them what they're getting into, and of their options, but I don't spin it out of control so people usually say "well I can stick within these simple rules, I think I'll go with the cheap solution." I've yet to have a virus or a piece of spyware get through to one of my clients.
Well a hardware firewall and software zone alarm must make up for, say, $100, if not more. Do you include that in the price when you say "cheap solution"? And you need to tell your clients to scan the computer for spyware, because they don't tell you they're there themselves.
Linux is insane (in the eyes of most people) because of the totally ridiculous lengths you have to go through to upgrade.
Hmmm... that's why I hear that the City of Berlin has decided to switch to Linux - together with its 18,000 computers. Maybe they haven't done their homework, or just don't know how 'hard' it is to upgrade on Linux. Care to tell them?
There are exploits for linux--don't kid yourself--but when you need to patch them through a console and not a pretty GUI, most users would freak. In fact, I might even freak.
For a pretty GUI, refer to my previous links. Specifically, YaST and Synaptic. There are others if you wish, like Draconfig, etc.
I myself have used linux on and off for a few years, and I can say that I've yet to see a flavor with a GUI that I can setup in under two hours.
You can setup Slackware in under 40 minutes and you can set up Linspire in around 30-35 minutes. With the full-blown Office suite, and other numerous software you don't get when you install WinXP - which, I must say, takes more than 1 hours.
In addition, I never can seem to find all the drivers I need so I have to stick with certain video resolutions or not have surround sound or only one of my ethernet ports works or something else totally obscure. By using x86, I realize my machine was built for WINDOWS, and those are the drivers that are released. If I'm really, really lucky some fat man living in his parent's basement will write my silicon RAID driver some day.
No, you said that you build your machines yourself. So, they're not built for Windows. They just happen to be compatible for Windows. Or Windows seems to be compatible with them. Windows, beeing the #1 OS in the world in terms of size, of course, has the biggest number of companies writing drivers for it. But, unless you used some very special piece of hardware when you built your machine, Linux will find and configure your hardware automatically. That is, assuming you're talking about a recent distribution of Linux which are more comparable to WinXP in terms of being 'modern'. Comparing WinXP to a 1997 Red Hat distribution would not be fair.
And besides, once I get it setup... what games can I play? can I run photoshop? can I configure my firewire devices? I'd have to boot back into windows, which probably came with my PC anyway (I build my own, but for most people this is true).
You can run some games, but I doubt that anyone ever uses Linux to play games. Get a console. And no, you can't use Photoshop because Adobe has not made one yet. But this has nothing to do with the OS itself; Mac has Photoshop and its kinda better than the Windows counterpart. So, your argument is not working here.
I'm a huge mac fan, but you have to face the fact that for simple tasks with non-savvy people, it's not the best solution. Linux is even farther removed.
Mac is, possibly, the most simple OS out there to use for a novice. Its pretty, its stable, its easy to understand and more importantly, its intuitive. I regret to say that Windows is not. And just because you are forced to use it since elementary school and eventually become familiar with its UI and its 'way of working', does not mean that its 'easy' or 'simple'.
As for Linux; Linux is highly versatile - from idiot-proof Linspire, to geek Gentoo/Debian. Before making such statements, give Linspire a try once. Maybe you'll see that sometimes, grass is greener on the other side.
Originally posted by Gene Clean
OO.o is more focused on the OO.o vs. Office front and doesn't have time to write a different version for every 2-3% OS out there. It did for Linux because that's where its base + developers are/work on. So, with respect to that, OO.o has every right to cancel one of their projects.
Yes, but I guess that's a reason to use windows over mac: native OO.o support
That's seriously one of the reasons I recommend it.
Originally posted by Gene Clean
Yes, of course. Opening Terminal and writing "sudo apt-get update" must be so much harder than running SpyBot + Adaware + ZoneAlarm every day. And lets not mention using a GUI frontend to update, something like YaST or Synaptic - those suckers are so much harder to use than cleaning 1289 viruses.
OK it seems a lot has changed.
Who the hell runs adaware every day?
Originally posted by Gene Clean
Yeah, well, a lot of people do. Statistically. So it doesn't matter if you don't - others do. In big numbers.
A lot of mac users forget their passwords and can't login, does that make the platform inferior?
When used correctly (i.e. everything isolated and as few of the built in features used as possible), Windows can be equally virus-free as a mac
Originally posted by Gene Clean
Stability as in running more than 4-5 hours, after which a WinXP system becomes unusable and only a restart can come to the rescue. Stability as in running for months without a slowdown.
I've not noticed my PC slow down after days of being on. Months I have not tried, as I pay my own power bill. I'd fail to see how not being able to run for months on end is considered "unstable."
Originally posted by Gene Clean
Support from who exactly? The company you paid $200 dollars for your copy of XP or the benevolent users 'out there'? If so, Linux has a far more active community and a far bigger database of documentation than any OS out there. Just because you couldn't get an answer for your question relating to a Mac on AI, doesn't mean that no other OS has support, and all the goods that come with it.
Support from everyone you know, as they all use PCs.
Also, I'm willing to bet that there's a lot more documentation for windows online than any single linux variant.
Christ, M$' bug reports are listed online, that alone has to be half the man pages.
Originally posted by Gene Clean
I doubt you would have known what was wrong in about 10 seconds. That is a crude exaggeration. I don't see why you relate and compare your G5 to WinXP, seeing as one is a machine and the other an operating system, but you must not believe yourself when you say that 'a week of your life has been wasted', saying it in such a manner as if you never slept during that week and poked your G5 all the time. I'm sure that's not the case.
With the ntsoskernel.exe problem I knew in exactly 10 seconds.
I KVM'ed over to my mac, typed it in google, and clicked in the first link... I knew what was wrong right then and there.
If that didn't work, I could call any one of my friends, who also use PCs.
Originally posted by Gene Clean
As for the bug itself; what can I say? I don't make G5's, and I don't make Mac OS X either. I simply don't see why you relate your extraordinary problem with your hardware with support for another OS.
Well it's very simple. I've yet to find a problem with my PC that I have not been able to pinpoint in just a few minutes (aside from the ones shutting off at random, which could easily happen to a mac).
The resource base for windows is larger than any other platform, therefore, however large my problem would be, researching would be the smallest part of it.
Originally posted by Gene Clean
On Windows every problem has been solved? I guess that's why Microsoft keeps releasing patches to its bug-ridden software and OS, and it must be for the same reason that it has earned the reputation of a disease. Of course, its for the same reason that virus-writers and hackers all around the world manage to infect countless numbers of systems - because everything has been seen... indeed...
I didn't say every problem has been solved by microsoft, I said every problem has been solved PERIOD, so long as it isn't something that has to be fixed by M$.
For instance, boot errors and all those "cryptic" error messages have a definition somewhere, and it's just a few clicks away.
Actually, I'd prefer the blue screen of death to apple's kernel panic any day.. at least I can write it down and look it up!
Originally posted by Gene Clean
Ah! So there is support [I'd hardly call typing ntsoskernl.exe into Google support... but nonetheless] even on a Mac platform! Seems to me that everyone is 'copying' Windows and its flagship OS.
Oh by the way, I failed to mention that there was NO KNOWN FIX FOR MY PROBLEM. I'm gratful to those who helped me but it took me 2 days to find out that "safari sucks, can't fix it."
Originally posted by Gene Clean
Well, its obvious from the "I want an internet with the most megahertz" sentence, what kind of clients you got. Buffoons, so to speak. But a peculiar choice you've made; no IE and no Outlook. What happened to the wonderful Microsoft OS and its software?
M$ sucks, OK? Does that make you feel better?
On to reality though, windows is necessary for some people, IE is necessary for nobody.
Originally posted by Gene Clean
Well a hardware firewall and software zone alarm must make up for, say, $100, if not more. Do you include that in the price when you say "cheap solution"? And you need to tell your clients to scan the computer for spyware, because they don't tell you they're there themselves.
Yes, I do.
Like I said, I tell them how to avoid spyware, and they do it. Like you said, you never use windows, all you know about it, apparently, is that viruses and spyware magically appear.
On an unprotected machine, you're right, but with a few minor adjustments and compromises you never have to see a piece of spyware or virus.
Just in case, usually install anti-virus and "Adaware" and show them how to use it, and they freak out and look every time they see a new virus on the news... to find absolutely nothing.
Originally posted by Gene Clean
Hmmm... that's why I hear that the City of Berlin has decided to switch to Linux - together with its 18,000 computers. Maybe they haven't done their homework, or just don't know how 'hard' it is to upgrade on Linux. Care to tell them?
For institutions, where you only really need 1 person to be savvy for every 100 computers, linux is great, and in fact, way better than windows.
For home users, however... that's a different story. They have to setup, maintian, and find support all by themselves. Good luck sending a 40 year old temp on a linux forum...
Originally posted by Gene Clean
You can setup Slackware in under 40 minutes and you can set up Linspire in around 30-35 minutes. With the full-blown Office suite, and other numerous software you don't get when you install WinXP - which, I must say, takes more than 1 hours.
Windows takes an hour? Not on my machine...
The last time I installed linux was in 2002, it took at least 2 hours including getting my devices to work.
On a Dell or other popular PC, everything usually can be installed all at once.
Originally posted by Gene Clean
No, you said that you build your machines yourself. So, they're not built for Windows. They just happen to be compatible for Windows. Or Windows seems to be compatible with them. Windows, beeing the #1 OS in the world in terms of size, of course, has the biggest number of companies writing drivers for it. But, unless you used some very special piece of hardware when you built your machine, Linux will find and configure your hardware automatically. That is, assuming you're talking about a recent distribution of Linux which are more comparable to WinXP in terms of being 'modern'. Comparing WinXP to a 1997 Red Hat distribution would not be fair.
The people who write the drivers to every component in my system are writing and updating them for windows, and rarely anything else.
I have installed a distro after 1997 and I had a fun afternoon searching for drivers or ways to configure my devices better that didn't exist on linux.
Originally posted by Gene Clean
You can run some games, but I doubt that anyone ever uses Linux to play games. Get a console. And no, you can't use Photoshop because Adobe has not made one yet. But this has nothing to do with the OS itself; Mac has Photoshop and its kinda better than the Windows counterpart. So, your argument is not working here.
"Mac and Linux can't play games"
"Buy a console, of course!"
Aren't macs already expensive? Now I gotta buy a console too?
You may buy your console, I'll play better games and save money by using my PC for entertainment and work.
Originally posted by Gene Clean
Mac is, possibly, the most simple OS out there to use for a novice. Its pretty, its stable, its easy to understand and more importantly, its intuitive. I regret to say that Windows is not. And just because you are forced to use it since elementary school and eventually become familiar with its UI and its 'way of working', does not mean that its 'easy' or 'simple'.
For most people, they don't need anything more than a few apps and a desktop to put some icons.
Windows does that as easily as a mac.
For anything more complex, I'll agree, but I don't see how word processing or reading e-mail is harder on windows.
Originally posted by Gene Clean
As for Linux; Linux is highly versatile - from idiot-proof Linspire, to geek Gentoo/Debian. Before making such statements, give Linspire a try once. Maybe you'll see that sometimes, grass is greener on the other side.
I'll take a look sometime, if I can ever figure out how to dual boot windows.
Originally posted by slughead
Yes, but I guess that's a reason to use windows over mac: native OO.o support
That's seriously one of the reasons I recommend it.
The OO.o crew dropped their own Mac port (which they had hardly done any work towards anyway) because the Neo/J crew had already done such a nice job of making a native (non-X11) front-end for OO.o. Semantics aside, I think you can call Neo/J the "offical" Mac OS X OO.o port now.
It might be nice if "someone" made a beautiful, Cocoa-fied through-and-through native port. But as the OO.o crew realized, that's an obscene amount of work, and it would effectively fork the Mac port from OO.o. Neo/J is much more closely integrated to OO.o's main effort, and can remain so.
Windows is still the way to go for a lot of novice computer users. I almost always suggest someone starts out this way, to many times have I gotten blasted for suggesting OSX or Linux to someone. The first time they go into CompUSA it?s all over, it?s like 200 to 1 in hardware and software selection. I always get that call, ?Dude why did you install this on my machine there?s like no software!? When it comes to family or friends and the sake of my sanity I will always conform to the industry standard and abide by the Microsoft way.
Linux is still a bitch to setup correctly, the first time a novice user try?s to install a DVD player the SUSE box is going out the window.
Apple is making great strides in providing inexpensive alternatives for a PC user but the problem is there SLOW machines! Apple just isn?t worth it unless you can afford a PowerBook or PowerMac.
You don?t have to pay a cent for firewall, anti-virus or ad ware removal programs, there?s a lot of free ones out there and most HP, IBM or Sony?s come with them installed with auto-update enabled.