"Walter R." <wer25@example.com> wrote in
news:vaLuf.9535$ka.917@tornado.socal.rr.com:

> I am using Win XP SP2 and continually have trouble with Zone Alarm Pro.
> The folks at Zone Alarm are not very helpful, either. I would like to
> replace Zone Alarm.
>
> For a new Firewall, I would like to use the Windows XP firewall.
> However, I will miss the anti-ad features of Zone Alarm. Are there any
> other programs, preferably free, that prevent banner ads and other
> flashy ads?

Avant Browser <www.avantbrowser.com>. It's an IE shell with tabbed browsing,
ad blocker, flash blocker, popup blocker and a whole lot more.

Someone said that the outfit that purchased it was known as a spamware
provider, and though that might make them better at stopping it, it seems a
little chancy. Do you have any specifics?
"Rock" <rock@mail.nospam.net> wrote in message
news:%23d22i4cEGHA.1180@TK2MSFTNGP09.phx.gbl...
> Galen wrote:
>
> > In news:eIJDZoQEGHA.3920@tk2msftngp13.phx.gbl,
> > Vanguard <vanguard.code@comcastNIX.net> had this to say:
> >
> > My reply is at the bottom of your sent message:
> >
> >
> >>"Galen" <galennews@gmail.com> wrote in message
> >>news:O12JYWQEGHA.3148@TK2MSFTNGP10.phx.gbl...
> >>
> >>>Firewalls - Basics:
> >>>http://kgiii.info/windows/all/securi...ls-basics.html
> >>
> >>
> >>Note the Sygate got bought by Symantec who promptly killed the
> >>product which was their intent (and it has been with other competing
> >>products that they have acquired in the past). Be aware that many of
> >>the features mentioned for firewalls in many reviews is against the
> >>paid or Pro version and not the freebie version.
> >>
> >>You can do a Google to find product keys published online for the
> >>Sygate Personal Firewall Pro (stick with the prior 5.5 version and
> >>not the 5.6 version). Obviously you are cracking the product to,
> >>ahem, steal it, but are you really stealing when you are grabbing
> >>something out of someone's garbage that they threw away? I leave it
> >>to you to figure out your ethics regarding digging in someone else's
> >>software trashbin and despite that doing such will affect absolutely
> >>no loss in revenue for a product that Symantec deliberately trashed.
It's
> >>not like you can actually buy the firewall from Symantec so they
> >>cannot lose any revenue on it. For sure they still retain their
> >>intellectual property rights to it.
> >>Some reviews will tout the DLL authentication feature of Sygate.
However,
> >>it had a vulnerability in version 5.5 for which there was
> >>never a report that it got fixe in version 5.6. Also, DLL
> >>authentication is flaky. It will report DLLs that are not called by
> >>a program so I don't know on what event Sygate is triggering. For
> >>example, a background program that has no I/O (no window and no
> >>keyboard or mouse input) will alert that a Logitech DLL was called,
> >>yet if you use SysInternals' File Monitor you will not see any calls
> >>made to that DLL. What Sygate is using for its trigger regarding
> >>which program is calling another is flawed, so disable that flaky
> >>feature. You'll be answering prompts forever, even after authorizing
> >>the access and later getting the same prompt for the same program and
> >>DLL, and getting it again and again. Otherwise, I like the Sygate
> >>firewall a lot.
> >>The Sygate firewall is just a firewall. It is not censorware. That
> >>means it will not block ads. It does its job very well because it
> >>did not devolve into bloatware. It has an IDS (intrusion detection
> >>system) which will become stale due to the lack of any updates after
> >>Symantec killed off the product. You can use the free Prevx 1R
> >>product to compensate by adding its IDS function (the 1R
> >>full-function version is beta, always will be, and why they offer it
> >>for free; the old Prevx Home free but reduced functionality version
> >>is no longer available).
> >
> >
> > Alas, another link to remove from the page... I'll be down to just one
> > pretty soon from the looks of things or I'm going to have to start
> > recommending shareware products.
> >
>
> Kerio is back.
>
> --
> Rock
> MS MVP Windows - Shell/User
>