system
8
Delta and Lee16 - I totally agree with your comments regarding firewall use. People need to know how to use what is installed.
However, the particular newbie I am concerned about is very computer illiterate (and elderly). The chances of teaching appropriate security measures are pretty much nil unfortunately. They wouldn’t even know how to install a new program in the first place. I have to do that for them via a remote connection. Through a tightly configured firewall hole, I might add! 
The dillema is (1) All computer users should know what they’re doing before going online, and (2) Some users are incapable of this. I think that this class of users should not be thrown off the Internet if they have knowledgeable people willing to help support them. I am willing to support in this case, so I’m basically setting up a computer to allow them to do only what I grant them and they must come to me for help for other situations. The online activities that I’m granting are email, web browsing, remote support from me, and automatic updating of antivirus and WindowsUpdate. I am a tad leerly of automatic WindowsUpdate given the history of some patches, so I’m still mulling over the best solution to that problem. It goes without saying that I am also trying to lower them as a target by installing Thunderbird and Firefox instead of IE and outlook. Same thinking goes for avast really. Probably less targeted than norton or mcafee. Other than the programs I have setup with firewall holes, everything else will be blocked. Silently. They will not be allowed to create new firewall rules. They will surely be left wondering “what happened?” if I block something unexpected with the firewall … which is why I asked my initial question about avast in the first place.
In playing with avast for this newbie’s system, I think I have convinced myself to make the switch personally from my currently installed norton AV. Avast really is a very nice program … I’m glad I found it!
Thanks again for all the helpful replies.