Vista - help!!

What necessary steps could i take to make my system safe? like what settings could i change?

thank you!

Safe in what sense:

1. safe for browsing on the internet
2. safe from people not using it without my permission
3. etc.

mrprofessor,

Welcome to the forum.

There is no way to make your system safe, but you can make it safer. This is mostly a matter of behaviour. Avoid certain pages. If uncertain when surfing to a page, set Internet Explorer security settings to high. Close any suspiscious pop-ups with ALT-F4. Make sure you have a good antivirus program and a firewall. Make sure you have DEP turned on (search for DEP in Start - Help and Support ) and keep windows updated. I would say default settings in most cases are the safest; do not turn off UAC.

I have never had any serious infection on any of my computers.

As well as all the good advice Submarine gave you, make sure your security programs are updated regularly & your system scanned frequently.
It's also a good idea to use a antimalwareprogram like SuperAntiSpyware or Malwarebytes. Both have a free & paid version.[ Links supplied below.]
Spywareblaster is another good layer of protection & runs quietly in the background. [Read about it in link below.]
The inbuilt Defender is also worth consideration.
If you have a router firewall then the inbuilt Windows firewall should be adequate.
Your best security measure is the hand that clicks the mouse.

SUPERAntiSpyware.com | Remove Malware | Remove Spyware - AntiMalware, AntiSpyware, AntiAdware!
Malwarebytes.org
SpywareBlaster® | Prevent spyware and malware. Free download.

Wow thank u very much!!!!

You are very welcome.

problem!! my avg anti-virus keeps picking up this cookie. What steps should i take to solve this?

Hi again mrprofessor
Cookies are a fact of life & are generally harmless.
I suggest that you delete cookies before scanning with your AVG.
On IE go to Tools - Delete Browsing History - Cookies - Delete Cookies - Close.
[ I usually go one step further. Tools - Delete Browsing History - Delete All - Yes.]
See how this goes & let us know.
BTW Are you using AVG Anti Virus free or paid?

Heey thank you for ur time. I am using the free version. And the cookies are coming from firefox

Do you know how to delete cookies in Firefox?
Which version of Firefox are you using?