Hi ive got zonealarm free edition version 10 firewall installed but ive been told that the programe has gone downhill and to change to another firewall.. also ive got AVG free edition anti-virus and have been advised to change to MSEis all this advise correct or are there better free programs out there.

I used Zone Alarm for many years and liked the simplicity of its configuration. Recently though it seems to have become much more intrusive doing things like installing unwanted toolbars in, for example, Outlook.

AVG I dropped a long time ago in favour of Avast, primarily because AVG was unable to find my internet connection and wouldn't update. However, even Avast seems to have become more bloated than it used to be and it does slow down the PC.

With Windows 7, I now use MSE, Windows own firewall, SpywareBlaster and Malwarebytes.

I can't help feeling that these previously good programs have been spoilt by trying to be too clever for their own good instead of sticking to what they used to do extremely well.

What do you think of the built in firewall that comes along with windows 7

I believe it does the job and that it is much more secure than the offering in XP, but I haven't examined its detailed configuration settings. Put it this way, a check on the Shields Up website showed the PC to be totally secure.