Your PC:  Proper Care and Feeding

I recently spent some time updating my mom's (and my aunt's) PCs with anti-spyware software and other things, showing them some tricks and tools to avoid getting slammed by viruses and spam.  I also often advise friends and people at work about how to avoid getting zapped by internet nasties, etc.  It's kind of fun, because personally I'm very anal about keeping my PC squeaky clean, and it would be a complete mess if I didn't.  I've got too much important stuff on there to risk losing (no, not porn).  So I thought it would be cool to throw together a list of software I use on my own system in case anyone out there is interested.  There are many sites out there which have lists of "PC essentials", but I wanted to list my own because this is software I use on a daily basis and I know it does a great job for my own needs.  You might find something better out there, but these are my own recommendations, just for kicks!  (I didn't mention anything about spam because it's a little more complicated and I've talked it to death on my Piss Off! page.)

Backups - Acronis TrueImage

• This program will create a backup image of a selected drive, which is basically all the contents of that drive stuffed into a single file.  (It uses compression so the file is actually smaller than the size of your drive.)  If your drive ever gets damaged and you can't recover anything, you can use this backup image to restore it to its original state.  This is truly an awesome program and it has saved me many times!  It's fast and easy to use, and you don't have to exit out of Windows to use it, unlike other backup programs.
• I'd recommend that you run this program once a month and make a full backup of your C: (Windows) drive.  If you'd rather do more regular backups, you can also make incremental backups anytime you like, which takes less time.
• Store your backup images on DVD as well as on another drive/partition if you can, making it easier to revive your PC if needed.  TrueImage also lets you make an emergency bootup CD in case you need to do a full restore.
• Should you ever have to reformat your HD and reinstall Windows (God forbid), I recommend partitioning your hard drive so that all your Windows files and other stuff you want to automatically backup is on the C: drive.  Then install your super-huge game files and other things on another partition or drive...this way, when you do your backups, you only have to backup one drive (C:).  Games are easy to reinstall, but reinstalling Windows can take ages.
• After a fresh Windows install, get all the Windows updates and patches in place and then install all your favorite and most-used software.  Once you have everything ready, make a backup image of your C: drive.  Save this image as your "fresh install" image, and if C: ever gets hopelessly damaged and you have no option other than to reformat and reinstall everything, you can just reformat C: and restore this image...and everything will be shiny and new again.  Neato!

Backups - Manual

• If you don't want to do a backup image of your drive(s), at least make a backup of the really important stuff once a month (every two weeks is better).  Create a folder that contains shortcuts to all your most important data: Photo directories, custom settings folders for various programs, Outlook mail folders, catalog files, iTunes folders & files, etc. Then just backup this stuff on CD every so often so you don't have to re-do it all if your drive dies. This can be a huge hassle which is why it's easier to just make a backup image of the drive that all these things are on, but if you'd rather just backup certain things instead of a whole drive, it's handy to have a folder of shortcuts like this so you don't forget anything.
• Music files - Consider storing all your music files on their own drive or partition, and keep a backup of them on DVD in case your drive goes tits up.  If you use iTunes, make sure you back up the catalog file now and then!  Otherwise, all the customization you've done to your iPod and music collection will be gone if the drive dies.  (Hint:  never, ever click "End Now" while iTunes is shutting down.  Just wait till it's done...trust me, it can get ugly!)

Firewall - Zone Alarm

• ZoneAlarm is (in my opinion) simply the best firewall out there...it's easy to set up and use, and it's a product trusted by zillions.  They offer a free version for basic protection, and it does a great job.  If you want to be able to customize it more and be able to open up specific ports in the firewall (sometimes required for online gaming or video chat, etc.), you can buy the Pro version which is very reasonably priced.  If you're going to use separate antivirus and adblocking software, I'd recommend disabling all the "privacy control" stuff in ZoneAlarm to avoid any conflicts.
• You can also use the Windows Firewall, though it's a little clunky and may not be as configurable as you like, which means that it may keep you from using certain programs which require special network access.
• Once your firewall is in place, test it with Shields UP! to see how effective it is.  If there are any holes, this site will tell you!

Virus Scanning - Norton Antivirus

• In my experience, Norton Antivirus is faster and more effective (not to mention less annoying) than McAfee Antivirus.  It does a great job, and its LiveUpdate function makes it easy to stay on top of all the latest viruses out there.  It also scans incoming/outgoing emails for viruses and other nasties, which is probably the most common way people get infected.  I'd recommend setting it to use SmartScan, which only scans common virus-prone file types...otherwise it will scan every file every time you do anything, which is totally unnecessary and can slow your system to a crawl.  You can also get Norton Antivirus as part of the excellent Norton SystemWorks package.

Web Browsing - Firefox

• I switched to Firefox a few months ago and dumped Internet Explorer entirely, and I haven't regretted it since.  It's safe, fast, and does everything I need it to.  The extensions available are really cool, too...I've got the one called AdBlocker installed, and it works wonders!  The popup-blocking built into Firefox is also extremely easy to use, and now I never get popups I don't want, and the ones I do want pop up just fine.
• If you're still not convinced and want to keep using Internet Explorer, I'd recommend that you install the GoGoData Toolbar.  This thing wipes out most ads (including those infuriating animated ones) and knocks out the popups as well while allowing the ones you want.  It's also got some spyware detection and protection features as well as other goodies you might like.  It's free, it's won lots of awards, and it's not a security concern like the Google Toolbar...so I'd recommend using it if you're going to use IE.  (If a particular site refuses to cooperate with your whitelist, try disabling the adblocking by clicking the Ads button and trying again.  MSN Web Messenger is one example.)
• If you're a little more passionate about your adblocking and popup-blocking and want more customization (especially in the adblocking dept.), you can't go wrong with AdSubtract.  I was a long-time user of this program before I switched to Firefox and it was no longer necessary, but if you're still using IE and want to really slam the ads, this is the program for you!  I've tried 'em all, and this is absolutely the best adblocker I've ever used.
• Set your browser to clear out all temporary cache files daily.  If you want to get anal about which cookies are stored on your system, set your browser to delete all cookies at the end of each session except for the ones you want to keep.  (If you use CCleaner, it will do this for you as well.)

Spyware - Ad-Aware / Spybot Search & Destroy

• Let's face it:  spyware is evil, and you don't want it on your system!  And the more spyware you have, the slower things get...soon your internet slows to a crawl because so many programs are tracking you and "phoning home" to report on what you're doing.  I recommend running Ad-Aware at least once a month to find and clear out any spyware crap that may have found its way onto your system.  Be sure to update the spyware definitions before each scan (it will probably remind you to do this).  I've also discovered that Spybot Search & Destroy finds things that Ad-Aware doesn't, and vice versa, so they're a good pair to use together.

Daily Care & Cleanup

• My brother recently told me about CCleaner (a.k.a. Crap Cleaner), and this thing is amazing.  It's an itty-bitty program (free) for your PC which will dig through your system and get rid of all kinds of useless and unneeded junk. Temp and cache files from various programs, old Windows log files, and many other kinds of stuff which Windows would clean up itself if anyone at Microsoft was paying attention.  I'm absolutely anal about keeping my PC clean and organized, removing all unnecessary stuff when I find it, and this program removed 180MB of stuff I had no idea existed!  CCleaner will also scan your registry for errors and tell you what's up with those, and it will fix the ones you'd like fixed.  It's incredibly easy to use (it practically runs itself), so give it a look and see what it finds.  I'd recommend setting it to run automatically each time you boot up, and maybe run the "Find Issues" feature once a month.  Also, be sure and tell it which cookies to keep, so it will clear out all cookies except the ones you want, which is a good thing.
• Norton Disk Doctor (part of the Norton SystemWorks package) is great for defragmenting your hard drive every few months, which keeps your files nice & tidy and speeds things up considerably.  Also use it to find and fix issues with your registry and other Windows problems, though it's a lot slower than CCleaner.