A PC friend of mine would like to get wireless internet service.<br>She is looking at Verizon at a cost of $60 per month.<br>Is Verizon a good way wireless internet service provider?<br>Is there a wireless internet service provider that is cheaper than $60?<br><br>She is also worried about viruses. Any thoughts on that?<br><br><br>

Of course she should should worry about viruses, she has a PC.<br><br>The ISP has nothing to do with a PC's vulnerability to malware.<br><br>------> JD's Trivia game<br><br>------> MCF-MM Trivia game

Well, tell her to make sure she has a firewall -- either on a DSL/Cable modem hardware, or software, and a virusscan. Personally I haven't had a single virus on my PC thus far. Actually, I have been lucky enough not to get hit by a single virus ever. (and it probably will happen soon enough, as I just jinxed myself. )<br><br>I'd be more concerned about the security of the wireless itself in her behalf. Lot of people run their Wi-Fis without any encryption leaving them vulnerable for more than just somebody 'stealing' their bandwidth.<br><br>

How does the speed of wireless internet compare to DSL or Cable internet?<br><br><br><br>

Is there anything she can do about the wireless security?<br>Just use a firewall, right?<br><br><br>

Yes, find out if the wireless signal, itself, is encrypted.<br><br><br>

Topper,<br><br>I had Verizon a long time. I think it tops out at 3Mbps / 768 Kbps. Cable [ Comcast for me ] is 6 o 8 Mbps and blazing! I love it. I don't have a lot of people around me so I suppose I am getting exclusive use sometimes <br><br>Verizon plans differ in other areas of the US. Ordering exclusively by internet can sometimes get you bonsus stuff. You 'chat' via a window with the agent. Worked for signing up my son.<br><br><br><br><br><br>

Comcast cable in Oregon [prices vary]<br><br>The plans are for 'subscribers' [already have some other Comcast service such as phone or cable TV] or non-subscribers. I am a non-subscriber. Have DirectTV and Verizon phone.<br><br><br><br><br><br>

Best thing is probably to just set up the WPA encryption on the wireless router as soon as the Wi-Fi network is up and running and she has access on her computer. Same with an Airport network, I wouldn't run one without encryption. And for the WEP encryption, Akula, for one, would probably confirm that WEP can be hacked quite easily (I can't, but I'm no hacker, haven't even tried). And yes, use a firewall from the get go.<br><br>Personally, I've been running Zyxel's P660HW-D1 DSL modem/firewall/NAT/Wi-Fi&ethernet router combo for about a year now and been quite happy about it. My girlfriend's laptop is on it wirelessly on WPA encryption and my W2k box via ethernet. And no, the firewall is not running on the default out-of-the-box setup completely, though that would probably be adequate for most purposes too. That kind of all-in-one combo would probably be the easiest and most hassle-free setup for your friend as well.<br><br>EDIT: If it's cable, then there are for instance these from Zyxel. Not sure what the ISPs give out there included in the service, but what my dsl provider gave on the deal, was quite crappy. Yeah, it was a similar combo thingy I got now, but it had too many issues and problems and I found it to just plain suck.<P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1><EM>Edited by MicMeister on 02/10/08 02:31 PM (server time).</EM></FONT></P>

Does she want to be totally wireless - no cable connection, no modem to be tethered to? My wife's niece and nephew-in-law had their laptop here a few weeks ago with a wireless access PCMCIA card that connected via their cell service. Is that what she's aiming for?<br><br><br>