firewalls

Once you have the set-up and preferences adjusted for Norton Personal Firewall 1.0, this software works quite well for PowerMacs, including PowerBooks, iMacs, iBooks, and Blue & White Macs with G3 and G4 hardware. However, if you are running Mac OS 9.1, there are some technical problems that you might encounter. Norton includes a written manual with this software, which is somewhat helpful.

There are still some Macintosh software application compatibility issues with NPF, especially with Mac OS 9.1. The "Temporarily disable Firewall protection" feature, which one may access by means of the Control Strip, is a great workaround if you cannot get Internet Explorer, Netscape Navigator, American Online, or instant messaging applications (for example) to open. You can set this feature for any amount of time, such as for one or two minutes, and then these applications should load fine. By checking the access history log, you can then use the set-up feature to allow certain IP adresses to have access in the future.

NPF access history logs all allowed and denied access attempts to your computer. You can save this log, and it would come in handy for documentation purposes of any unauthorized access. There is a self-test feature so you can make sure the firewall is working with your configurations and settings.

Firewall protection is now necessary for even the casual Mac user of the Internet because without a firewall someone could gain access to your computer. DSL and cable modem users also need this protection. As well, you can configure any IP addresses into the setup if you are doing any websharing or if you are on a LAN. When combined with NAV 7.0, you can feel more secure about using any online services or filesharing.

At this time, NPF 1.0 is not compatible with the Mac OS X system. An upgrade of NPF for OS X users is expected during the summer.

You can either build a software firewall, or rebuild an old computer to make one. For those of us without that kind of time, Symantec has come up with a low cost solution that works... Personal Firewall.

Easy to install, and easier to use. Once you restart, you're fully protected. Plus, you can adjust the settings to suit your needs. No programming. No building. And a nice, small manual. (We all know Mac people hate manuals... that's why we're Mac people!) If you're using a DSL or Cable connection, you should have a Firewall. If you're on a network, you should have a Firewall. If you're on the web at all, you should have a Firewall.

I found this product easy to install. After installation a handy enable/disable icon appears on your control strip. You are allowed some customizing of operation and a log of access attempts is kept. Of course this product integrates well with other Symantec products (ie. SystemWorks). Overall if you are a home user running other Norton software this probably is the way to go. If you want a stand alone product it might be worth making a comparrison with Open Door Networks "Door Stop".