Many people forget that Windows 2000 already had a firewall. Yes, it works very well. But if You have high speed connections You should use both a software and a hardware firewall....

It feels good about Microsoft's new strategy about security. Hopefully You can uninstall their antiviral application.

I just hope I can turn off the damn thing when I get my hands on their "next" super OS.. unless i'm running AmigaOS5.0 by then (hopefully). - Way to much DRM in the upcomming Windows OS, and MEdia PLayer 9.

Antivirus is for the uneducated masses of morons.

So, too much DRM is offering the obtion to add DRM to your music, if you so please, in the encoding process?

How do you know what DRM in Longhorn will be? Simply, you don't.

It does'nt take much imagination to know what any implementation of DRM and "rights management" will be detriment to consumer fair use rights. Microsoft knows that most people will buy their operating system anyway so they are trying to please Hollywood/Disney/RIAA in all ways possible to get them to use Windows Media PLayer 9 (and latter) formats for all their products.

I know the person who distributes RAV in New York and there's a couple of things that is happening. RAV for Linux and other third party OS's may not be developed anymore. RAV for Windows is probably going to be merged with Windows and so forth. RAV for Linux is one of the best I've seen and I'm sad that Microsoft will crush it for Linux.

As viruses become more and more devious, there is an obvious need for greater cooperation between all OS vendors and antivirus specialists.

Just because a feature is incorporated into MS Windows doesn't necessarily mean that it's the best available on the market. It does, however, give the consumer an "entry level" introduction to a product type.

I guess we'll all have to wait and see what this move can do for everyone concerned, both producers and consumers.

It doesn't look like RAV has integrated firewall options like McAfee and Norton. A good firewall is at least as important for nontechnical computer users at home using broadband as is anti-virus protection.

XP's built-in firewall is sufficient for most users, don't you think?

XP has a firewall built in, as the user mentioned above.

Keeping those components discreet and separate has multiple advantages not worth going into.

Anyone remember the "anti-virus" in windows 3.x? It basically checked file sizes to see if they'd changed. Very funny/freaky.

I personally am glad that MS is at least adding more interface for the AV manufacturers, rather than relying on them hacking on top of the OS with their own custom methods. However, one would definitely be concerned that a more open interface to various OS functions that an A/V product must connect with would allow even more opportunity for malicious code to attack & infiltrate.

We need more than third party support, and I hope this is a good 1st step. This should have happened years ago IMHO.

For years MS has compromised on security for useability's sake. Now its time to tip the scales in the other direction a little bit.

No doubt it *would* have happened sooner if not for all of the antitrust furor. Has anyone actually benefited from the lawsuits against Microsoft, other than the lawyers?

What anti-virus are you talking about? CP Anti-Virus (DOS 6.22) worked (at least for me)...

If anyone bothered to check you would know that MS already has a firewall in the form of ISA Server.

http://www.microsoft.com/ISAServer

I believe it was oringinally developed by a company in Isreal which was later bought by MS several years ago.

The product has been around at least 4 years.

I did read that a firewall would be included in Windows XP but did not find it. (I thought it would be a separate icon at least in a Start Menu subfolder like Accessories or Systems Tools.) With a "Windows XP firewall" search from the http://www.microsoft.com/ISAServer craigbonline supplied I found http://www.microsoft.com...owto/networking/icf.asp which does work. The ISA Server is only for, well, servers like Windows Server 2003 not clients like XP. When I did find the firewall checkbox as per the link above, it was off by default which, of course, doesn't protect anyone unless they know how to find it. Previously, I bought the McAfee, Norton or Zone Alarm Pro. I guess I don't need to for XP. Does Internet Explorer also have any pop-up blocker setting available (like Mozilla)?

The XP firewall settings are in My Network Places/Local Area Network under the advanced tab. Internet explorer does not have a pop up blocker like Mozilla or Opera. Although you can go into tools/security and add websites to a restricted list that have pop-ups like ads from from Gator that will block them. The best solution is to use Opera, its the fastest 3rd party browser and most user friendly. Mozilla Firebird is still broken and has like virtually no features. Mozilla itself seems a little bloated.

MozillaFirebird works fine for me... it's a fully-featured browser... what does it not have?

Actually, the built in firewall is only "off by default" on certain types of connections, depending on what you selected in the internet connection wizard. Also, it's not that great, since it only blocks inbound connections, and not outbound ones (such as from trojans).

Isn't this (ISAServer) the newer version of their Ms-Proxy server? Not a personal firewall at all... Geared more towards a lan...