[bigshrimpin]

Couple of suggestions to add to the stuff everyone else mentioned:

1. remove unwanted programs from starting up:

C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Start Menu\Programs\Startup

and

C:\Documents and Settings\ "your profile" \Start Menu\Programs\Startup

2. Check registry keys for unwated programs and remove them. (start => run => msconfig may be an easier way to do this)

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Curre ntVersion\Run
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\Curr entVersion\Run

3. If you have over a GB of files sitting on your desktop, your PC will boot really slowly. Moving files to a directory on your C: drive will speed up the boot time of your PC.

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SPYWARE, VIRUSES, ETC.

It's nearly impossible to stay on top of this crap. The best suggestion I have for solving this problem is not to use Windows at all (OSX is not susceptable to viruses or spyware)

The best suggestions I have for protecting your PC are:

1. Keep your PC patched with the latest windows updates.
2. Use Firefox as your web browser.
3. Get a router with a hardware firewall
4. Avoid installing Peer to Peer software like (Limewire, Morpheus, etc.)

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