1. Get some kind of anti-virus software. Consumer Reports recommends PC-Cillin, which is cheap and doesn't bog the system down.

2. Start using Mozilla Firefox. It's attacked less often than Internet Explorer.

3. Avoid clicking on attachments. Avoid using MySpace. Avoid Yahoo Instant Messenger.

4. Get a copy of the Ultimate Boot CD for Windows, and learn to use it to clean the system of most viruses. What UBCD doesn't catch, the other antivirus software should catch.

5. Get a firewall/router. The one I like is the Linksys WRT54G, but any kind is fine. A hardware firewall will add some security by being a little harder to hack than a computer with firewall software. (You should still run the firewall software.)

6. Set up an extra user with limited access. Use this as your main account, dropping into the administrator (or computer_owner) account to install software.