[Turbopilot]

AVG is for antivirus. Go to Zonelabs.com for a good firewall, which will do a lot more to prevent new threats (as opposed to trying to remove existing threats). It's also a good idea to run a hardware firewall - my wireless router does the job for me, but getting a cheap router even if you don't have a laptop or multiple computers isn't a bad idea, as an extra layer of protection.

My comprehensive list of fully-automatic and free (for home use) protection is:
AVG Antivirus from Grisoft
ZoneAlarm firewall
Spybot Search-and-Destroy (including TeaTimer)
SpywareBlaster(even if you don't bother to manually update it)
Microsoft Anti-Spyware (yeah, really)

I use several other products, including Ad-Aware, but you can install and set up the above and, assuming you haven't already been hit with malware, be safe by setting them to operate completely automatically. I personally don't see the problem with actually clicking on a security program once in a while, but because certain fans of non-Windows operating systems believe that they can be secure without doing anything, I enjoy showing Windows users how they can do the same.

[adamsjas]

My comprehensive list of fully-automatic and free (for home use) protection is: AVG Antivirus from Grisoft ZoneAlarm firewall Spybot Search-and-Destroy (including TeaTimer) SpywareBlaster(even if you don't bother to manually update it) Microsoft Anti-Spyware (yeah, really)

What kind of fool would trust the same company that wrote that buggy, total seive of an operating system in the first place write an Anti-Spyware program?

My god man, get a clue.

[saganite]

I took microsoft anti spyware off my machine after I read that it allowed some spyware into your computer without your knowledge. Running SpyBot, Ad Aware and AVG now.

[Riley]

Here's another little goody for seeing what is really going on when you start up the unit. It is a bit geeky if you're a novice- but if you don't know what a particular item is, right-click on it and select 'Google'.

Autoruns v8.43
See what programs are configured to startup automatically when your system boots and you login. Autoruns also shows you the full list of Registry and file locations where applications can configure auto-start settings.

http://www.sysinternals.com/ProcessesAndThreadsUtilities.html

If you're geekier- you can run System Internals 'Process Explorer' in the same directory, and it will integrate with Autoruns.

Caution: if you have no idea at all what is going on in this- be careful. Have a techhie give you a hand with it.