As promised, this article will explain in much detail how to surf the internet without having to worry about popups, spyware, and even advertisements.

First things first:

The Browser: For whatever reason, people are not comfortable switching away from Internet Explorer (unless you are a Mac owner, in which case, it took courage to do what you have done, and you should be proud of yourself for your accomplishments) In any case its no surprise that the browser market is dominated by Internet Explorer (recently their latest version is 7.0 -- which I feel slows down all  systems I've used it on [I smell conspiracy to get you to upgrade, thus being forced to buy Vista], but many people do not know that there are far better alternatives out there.

Step 1- Get Firefox: Firefox is a truly free internet browser than is highly customizable and works on all systems (Windows, Mac, Linux, Unix, BSD's, etc). Firefox can be obtained by going to www.getfirefox.com . Click on the download link, save the file to your computer (I prefer saving temporary files to the desktop for easy deletion after installation). Right out of the box, Firefox is great at blocking popups, detecting phishing sites (sites that attempt to steal your password), and customizing it to look and feel just how you want it to. It is also faster and more compact (filesize and execution time) than Internet Explorer 7.

Once you have Firefox installed, you can begin tweaking a couple of settings. To modify the options (settings) in Firefox click on Tools then click on Options. There on the first tab [MAIN] I like to enable (check) "Show Downloads window when downloading a file" and "Close it when downloads are finished". I also like to have "Always ask me where to save files" (The default is the desktop).

Next, click on the [Privacy] tab where you can modify your history preferences. I uncheck all the "History" boxes. On this tab you can also choose to check [enable] a box that reads "Always clear my private data when I close Firefox" which has a box next to it that reads "Settings" where you can choose what you want cleared and stored upon exiting Firefox. I also uncheck the box that says "Ask me before clearing my private data"

Those are the most important settings that I like to perform on my Firefox installations. Now we'll move onto the Firefox addons.

Step 2- Firefox Addons: Firefox has a huge repository of Addons which help power-users accomplish anything they may want or need in their browser. I will explain how to install some important addons which will save you time and bandwidth while surfing the internet by preventing advertisements and protecting you from malicious spyware or malware.

1. Adblock Plus: This addon to firefox is wonderful, it allows you to block any graphic, flash, or javascript and even block entire servers. However it is far easier to simply let the next addon take care of the blocking for you.
   1. Install Adblock Plus by clicking here then click on the "Install Now" button. A small box will appear warning you about only installing software and addons from trusted sources. This website that you are installing Adblock Plus from is from the creators of Firefox themselves, so believe me when I say that it is a trusted source. Click the "Install" button when you can, and wait for it to install Adblock Plus.
   2. Once it has installed, it will notify you that you must restart Firefox in order to utilize Adblock Plus. You may do so, by clicking the "Restart" button in the window.
   3. Now that the browser has restarted you will notice a new button by the address bar / search box in Firefox that says "ABP". This is the Adblock Plus logo, but since we want to keep things nice and simple; click on the Down-arrow next to the stop sign ABP logo. Highlight "Options" and uncheck "Show tabs on Flash and Java". Then click the down-arrow once more, go to "Options" again, and uncheck "Show in tollbar".
   4. Adblock Plus is now installed, but not blocking anything as of yet. The following Addon will automatically update blocklists. Block lists are full of servers that serve advertisements, popup ads, spyware, and many other sites that should be blocked.

1. Adblock Filterset.G Updater: This addon handles the blocklists and keeps it up to date by blocking all known servers of advertisement content, spyware, viruses, and other malicious websites.
   1. Install Adblock Filerset.G Updater by clicking here then click on the "Install Now" button. Follow the same procedure that you did for installing Adblock Plus in the previous addon installation.
   2. Once it is installed, you must restart the browser once more. Click on the "Restart" button and wait for Firefox to reappear.
   3. You will be greated by a configuration box for the Adblock Filterset.G Updater addon.
   4. I like to check all three boxes for this addon.
      1. "Extension Enabled"
      2. "Suppress Update Message"
      3. "Use Whitelist (Beta)"
   5. Next, click on the "Force Update Now" button and it will download the latest block list. IT will then show todays date and time next to "Last Update: "
   6. This addon will continue to update itself as often as there are updates to the block lists, keeping you free of advertisements and other annoyances while surfing the internet.
   7. Please note, that many if not all, websites generate revenue through their advertisements, thus by disabling advertisements you are potentially taking away from their profits. This being said, if you like a site, and want to continue to see it online, disable Adblock on their site

1. NoScript (Optional): NoScript is an addon that blocks all JavaScript and Flash on all websites, until instructed not to block them. This is why I say it is optional. For the common user it may be a little annoying to have to tell NoScript every website that they want to view Flash and JavaScript on. The NoScript addon is actually capable of protecting against "Cross Site Scripting (XSS)" which is a method hackers are able to utilize to attempt to install malicious software on your computer.
   1. Install NoScript by clicking here then click on the "Install Now button" Again follow the same procedures as before to complete the installation.
   2. Again, restart Firefox when prompted to do so.
   3. Once you have restarted Firefox you will notice a new icon on the bottom right of your status bar which shows a blue "S" inside of a white circle. This is the NoScript addon.
   4. By default, NoScript blocks all websites. It uses a "White-listing" approach to protect users from malicious JavaScript and Flash.
   5. This means that if you do install the addon, you will have to tell NoScript every site that you wish to allow Java & Flash on. Which is easier than it sounds.
      1. To allow Java & Flash for a website, simply visit the site you wish to allow.
      2. Next, click on the NoScript logo and choose the server you wish to allow Java & Flash from.
      3. You may notice several options depending on the site. Choose the server that should be in bold which should be the same as the website that you are currently visiting.
      4. Doign so will refresh the page, now allowing Flash and Java
      5. You may notice other servers listed such as "Google Syndication" which is Google's advertisement system, or "Google Analytics" which is a Google statistics analyzer. You can have NoScript block these items and you will not be tracked by Google on any page you visit.
2. Use OpenDNS (Optional): OpenDNS is a free service that blocks many malicious websites at the Network level. It even corrects minor typo's when typing in URL's such as converting ".cmo" to ".com" and ".ogg" to ".org"
   1. To utilize OpenDNS click here and follow their instructions.

Thats it! There are some more advanced methods for protecting yourself online such as Tor. If you wish to have me write up a how to on getting even more protection while surfing the internet, simply ask.

Here are some pictures that will show you the difference between running Internet Explorer 7 (with no advertisement blocking) and Firefox with the Addon's I described above:

CNN.com in Firefox without Ads

Cnn.com in Internet Explorer 7 with Ads