A good reminder came by way of a Montreal Gazette article on antivirus software, one of the fine newspapers published by our Neighbors to the North: "Okay, okay, this year, I’ll get anti-virus software.' Say it and mean it."

Marc Saltzman, who penned the piece, brings up a great point: since buying a new PC (given the state of the economy for many people) is perhaps not a priority, protecting the one you have should be.

He talks about five of the six things we urge everyone to do. Here's our list (in order):

1. Run antivirus software
2. Run antispyware
3. Keep your OS and the software you run updated
4. Perform backups
5. Defragment your hard drive

The only thing missing:

Run firewall software.

The default one built into Windows doesn't count. It stinks. In overall importance, we'd put firewall software at the top of the list tied for first for number 1 with antivirus software.

While you're running through this checklist yourself, take a look at our new antivirus reviews for 2009. There's a new #1 "best antivirus software" on our list for 2009, and it has built-in antispyware and offers an optional firewall software, too.

With our coupons you can have a complete PC security solution and be out the door for under $30, and you'll be three steps closer to keeping the bad guys out and protecting your computer.

Bear this in mind, too, the most important thing on your computer probably isn't the computer itself. It's the data.

And even if by some strange chance you put zero value on the data on your computer, there's still the cost--both in time spent and actual cash spent--to get your computer fixed if it gets infected.