what do you guys use for firewalls...whats the best firewall software outthere..i used zonealarm but it acts wierd sometimes and locks down. anybody have any other firewall recomendations?

Every user has an opinion on firewalls; as well they should. You'll get plenty of them here. 8-) I use Zone Alarm on my main PC (never have to touch it) and Sygate on my test box (it's more configurable than ZA). Kerio and Agnitum are also reliable firewalls. If you're looking for ease of setup and reliability, go with Sygate, since you've expressed misgivings about ZA. Then test your firewall for stealthing at Gibson Research. For one-stop firewall shopping, go here. Solarian

Sorry about the bad link for Gibson Research. Good one below. Then scroll down the webpage for ShieldsUP. Gibson Research

There are quite a few good firewalls out there and I have tried afair few. I found ZA too be good but it does tend to be abit of a resource hog and your system does run a little slower. The support system sucks big time though Kero is okay...pretty simple to operate and does the job. Sygate monitors your system pretty tightly...sometimes a little too tightly. It will restrict some wanted activity if it is not properly trained. The one I use is Outpost. It protects quite well. The support is above average, and it is one of the few firewalls that comes with a set of basic plugins (ad blocker, block by sight or by keyword, DNS cache...) and it is also expandable so you can add plugins as you wish. Used it for a while now and haven't had one problem. There are lots of other good ones out there so you need to experiment and find one that works for you.