Since the last column, advances in new technology and new Internet services have come along at the usual pace, i.e., it's hard to keep up with what's the latest. For example, how about a snazzy little digital camera memory card, the Eye-fi,  that has a Wifi connection so you can upload your photos to your Live Space directly from your camera?

On the other hand, the criminals have been busy trying - and succeeding - to rip off money from unsuspecting Internet users. For this reason, the first job for 2008 is to check that you have an antivirus program running, and most importantly, it's up to date. Download and install the free AVG antivirus program from Grisoft - it's updated almost every day, scans your computer each day and will protect you.

Your second protection, if you have a Windows XP computer, is to install Windows Defender, another free program, to protect against spyware and malware. There's no excuse for not protecting your computers against viruses and spyware.

Users of XP and Vista computers should have accounts set up for each user. Certainly on Windows XP, only one person - The Boss in Charge of The Computer - should be allowed to be an administrative users - all other users should be confined to limited accounts. This measure is to avoid the installation of malware or spyware by a careless click. Use Windows XP help and support to see how to set up accounts.

Once you know your computer is protected against the nasties, you can begin to enjoy the Internet and get on with learning some new skills. However you still need to be careful. A computer is not - repeat, not - just another home appliance. Because a computer is storing important data, somebody in the household has to take responsibility for the integrity of that data, that is, make sure music, financial records, documents, photos and videos are stored safely and securely.

One area the webDotWizards are making headway is in organising and editing their photos by using Windows Live Photo Gallery, one of the free programs in the Windows Live Suite (others being Live Messenger, Live Writer, Live Toolbar). Then using Photo Story for Windows it's possible to make your own movies to show off all your photos to family and friends online through Soapbox.

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