....not knowing as much about either Firewalls or A-V software as I should, the differences are, A-V software screens information sent to your computer as you try to access it, be it email or an infected website, while a Firewall protects you from invasions by hackers attempting to access your computer while you are online.

I have Norton Internet Security (which includes both anti-virus software and firewall software) on one laptop, and I have Norton anti-virus software and Zone Alarm firewall software on the other. You need both! Hackers with malicious intentions can ruin your day very quickly.

...in a thread on this BB last month, an anonymous poster started an ugly thread. ...another anonymous poster jumped into the discussion, providing some details of what was on the first guy's hard drive! The second guy was someone who knew how to easily hack into the first guy's computer, because it wasn't firewall protected.

Bob