Al - There is no charge for the occasional updates to the firmware for Linksys routers. I own one and the downloads are free. You won't be notified when one becomes available, so it's a good idea to check every few months to see if one has been released.
There is no software whatever to place on the computer when you use a router--you just connect the router between your computer with a standard network cable, then connect the router to your network connection point (DSL or cable modem, etc.). There's a disagreement over whether or not you need a software firewall with a router. A router will very definitely keep anyone or anything on the outside from getting into your computer. In theory, if there's a virus, worm, or trojan on your system that's designed to send anything _out_, the router won't stop it because it's a one-way device. However, if you have excellent virus protection and are absolutely certain that your computer has no such junk on it, you can safely dispatch with software firewalls, in my opinion and experience, since if your system is clean, it can't send anything out and if your antivirus program keeps it clean, you never will. I've run a router without _any_ software firewall for almost ten years and have never had my antivirus program detect _anything_ on my system, so I'm convinced that you don't need the overhead of a software firewall. In fact, getting that additional overhead off of my computer was precisely the reason I bought a router in the first place. ----- Original Message ----- From: "Alan & Terrie Robbins" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Saturday, September 23, 2006 3:37 PM Subject: [jaws-users] routers Good afternoon, Another question on Lynksys routers and firewall. With the built in firewall which we've established IS accessible with JAWS, what type firewall is it? Are there choices? Also, from my understanding they do get upgraded periodically. Is there a charge or annual fee for this? Is there any software to be installed on the local machine to use the router? With my present lynksys hub I've been using for years it was simply plug it in and go I have three computers running through it. thanks Al Visit the JAWS Users list home page at: http://www.jaws-users.com For a complete list of email commands pertaining to the JAWS Users List send a blank email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Visit the new archives page at the following address http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/jaws-users/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/jaws-users/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
