Internet Gateway

[Ronald_E._Young at bcsmac.org (Ronald E. Young)]

My company is planning a connection to the Internet.  We have a dozen users on
a
Novell 3.11 IPX LAN running Windows 3.1, 3.11, '95, and OS/2.  We are also
setting 
up a Windows NT Server for Imaging and MS-Mail.  Internet providers
are suggesting that we have a gateway machine connecting to them over a
leased
line with 28.8K modems.  The gateway machine would periodically poll for mail
and distribute it to our users.  Also our users should be able to go out onto
the
Web.  The gateway should protect our network from intrusion.  The Internet
provider
would host our Web page on the provider's computers.

What is our most cost-effective solution for a gateway machine, considering
both 
time and money?  The provider suggested getting an integrator or a
consultant.  
Some suggested Linux.  I spent a couple of hours trying to bring up Linux on
a 
partition of my Gateway Pentium 1 Gig Western Digital harddrive, but had to
give up
because I had too much real work to do.  We are a VAR and software developer,
but
we don't have expertise it this area.

... Ron Young

P.S. My company is in Norwood, MA.