[mjolnir]

First thanks for the help and insight on my issues.

Well to Dapper Dan, yes i have always used a router and had the security set to the max, not a good enough router to block specific ports that i want to though (wrt54g). I wouldn't know what ones to block to be secure yet receive updates and the like.

Also I have vista on one machine and xp on another and a router and have installed every firewall on earth on both, and within seconds hes in my Windows system. Updates wont won't work, gets very slow, and eventually completely crashes, can't run a program or even shutdown. I also look at the event viewer.

I have Windows and SUSE both installed cause i need Windows to run programs i wish i could run in SUSE.

I have a wired connect and recently forgot to unplug it, went to windows and in minutes it is all messed up and have to reinstall everything again.

I'm not sure if this is what you're talking about Themer but I go into my router and release and renew DHCP and still have the same IP, I don't know.

And abreck my Vista is a OEM, I don't know if that would work or not but I could try it on the XP system as its not a OEM version.