Getting a Computer for Christmas?

It's Christmastime which for families, especially in the past, means electronics under the tree. Family or relatives may be getting you or your loved ones a new laptop or desktop. Before you frantically hook everything up just to begin downloading movies, music, etc., please follow these tips:

1) Make a system restore/ backup disc. Go out and buy a blank DVD and let the system create a restore point. If at some point down the road your computer becomes corrupted, this disc may save your computer's life and you some money on taking it to a technician.

2) After you've created the backup disc and gotten online, use Internet Explorer (or whatever browser you use) and download Ad-Aware, Spybot, AVG, and SuperAntiSpyware. These programs have free versions and can keep a majority of viruses and other digital junk off your system.

Ad-Aware deletes tracking cookies and the like. You can check out their free version at:

http://www.lavasoft.com/products/ad_aware_free.php

Spybot- Search and Destroy detects and removes spyware, adware, adbots, and viruses. You can download it at:

http://www.safer-networking.org/en/spybotsd/index.html

AVG is Anti-Virus Internet Security. This is one of the best antivirus programs around. Check out their download page at:

http://www.avg.com/download

SuperAntiSpyware is a be-all, end-all tracking cookie, spyware, rootkit, adware, adbot, etc. remover. I use it frequently. You can get yours at:

http://www.superantispyware.com/download.html

3) Unplug from the Internet. Pick a program and run it.

4) Get some coffee. Read a book. Watch a movie. Learn a foreign language. This is going to take a while.

5) Clean. Finish. Restart/reboot. Run another program. Repeat.

6) Remember that you need to "clean" your system at least once a week. Be sure to update the programs, and then let them scan the systems for problems one-by-one. I also suggest running Ad-Aware before running Spybot. Also note that Norton's may disagree with these programs, so you'll want to disable it before updating/running them.

One final note: these are the programs I use and have not had a problem with. There are always newer programs, such as Avira, who are up-and-coming. Check out Download.com for software reviews from the Editors as well as the public.

With these suggestions, you'll hopefully be able to use your computer longer. Happy Holidays!