I recently bought a new computer with Windows XP. My ISP
is AOL and I want to firewall the connection. According to
AOL, AOL must be accessed from the sign in screen and not
Windows dial up. Therefore, when I set up a connection in
network and internet connections and then firewall it, it
doesn't work. I can still connect through my desktop icon
but the connection I set up doesn't indicate I am online.
I have asked AOL twice how to activate the firewall and
nobody apparently can answer me even though they say I can
use either the Windows XP firewall or a third party
program. They keep telling me which programs to make sure
can be accessed through the firewall but not how to get it
in place. Can anybody help?

America Online installs its own connection settings that override
the ones that come with Windows XP. America Online's
connection settings don't include a way to turn on Windows XP's
built-in firewall.

Visit the following web site for instructions on downloading
a FREE firewall program for your computer.

Ref: http://www.updatexp.com/free.html

--
Carey Frisch
Microsoft MVP
Windows XP - Shell/User

Be Smart! Protect your PC!
http://www.microsoft.com/security/protect/

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Frustrated" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message:
news:f08101c40c2b$849cc490$(E-Mail Removed)...

|I recently bought a new computer with Windows XP. My ISP
| is AOL and I want to firewall the connection. According to
| AOL, AOL must be accessed from the sign in screen and not
| Windows dial up. Therefore, when I set up a connection in
| network and internet connections and then firewall it, it
| doesn't work. I can still connect through my desktop icon
| but the connection I set up doesn't indicate I am online.
| I have asked AOL twice how to activate the firewall and
| nobody apparently can answer me even though they say I can
| use either the Windows XP firewall or a third party
| program. They keep telling me which programs to make sure
| can be accessed through the firewall but not how to get it
| in place. Can anybody help?

Greetings --

If you're using AOL, you'll either need to find a 3rd party
firewall that is compatible with AOL, or switch to a real ISP that is
compatible with the real Internet. This is because AOL is an on-line
content provider that ignores international Internetworking standards
in favor of its own proprietary products, and has deliberately made
its connection software incompatible with both WinXP's built-in
firewall and WinXP's Internet Connection Sharing feature. AOL's
proprietary connection applet is deliberately designed to preclude
your setting/adjusting any of its properties, to include
enabling/disabling WinXP's ICF and ICS.


Bruce Chambers
--
Help us help you:
http://dts-l.org/goodpost.htm
http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html

You can have peace. Or you can have freedom. Don't ever count on
having both at once. -- RAH

"Frustrated" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:f08101c40c2b$849cc490$(E-Mail Removed)...
>I recently bought a new computer with Windows XP. My ISP
> is AOL and I want to firewall the connection. According to
> AOL, AOL must be accessed from the sign in screen and not
> Windows dial up. Therefore, when I set up a connection in
> network and internet connections and then firewall it, it
> doesn't work. I can still connect through my desktop icon
> but the connection I set up doesn't indicate I am online.
> I have asked AOL twice how to activate the firewall and
> nobody apparently can answer me even though they say I can
> use either the Windows XP firewall or a third party
> program. They keep telling me which programs to make sure
> can be accessed through the firewall but not how to get it
> in place. Can anybody help?