I am looking for a more anonomous internet browsing and visiting site. I thought of using Tor. Will installing the package in the Debian repository give me this? How would I configure it? or would it be better to download the package from the Tor website?

From what I've read Tor uses relays, but not sure how to access those. I am reading into info about Tor at the moment.

Thanks

Personally I would recommend that you install it directly from the tor repository because packages there are more up-to-date. Then you'll need to configure it and set your OS/programs to use it as a proxy. A better option would be to use a pre-configured opeating system like Tails. You do not need to worry about the relays, as tor will connect to them automatically. Be advised that Tor is a low-bandwidth network, so websites may take a while to load.

~dis

Why not use torbrowser? It is a ready to use solution.

Remember; tor is fine for anonymity but not for security.

In other words, refrain from doing your banking and anything else sensitive or risk getting hacked from an unscrupulous tor node.

I think you should first answer the question "why do I need Tor ?". Or "what do I really want/need ?". Without answering these, and knowing exactly what Tor is, what it does and does not do, you should not be using it.

I just don't like the idea of organizations that would be able to track where I go or what I am involved with on the Net. I was thinking of using Tor or Tails as a distro for this. I have heard also of people using VPN for this. How would these differ?

Thanks

Firefox extensions like NoScript, Adblock, and Ghostery will prevent companies from tracking you and feeding you ads (and targeted ads). These provide privacy.

Tor is said to provide anonymity, which is different and probably not what you need. You would need this if you live in an oppressive country and need to access sites that are blocked. Doing this, however, attracts unwanted attention to yourself. I would recommend you use Tor only if you need it.

VPN's are another attempt at anonymity, but you need a VPN server probably in a country where the logs can't be retrieved easily.

Don't forget Request policy, cookie monster and HTTPS Everywhere. You may also want to clear your browser cache each time firefox exits to prevent e-tag tracking and site-preferences to prevent HSTS tracking. Also disable WebRTC in about:config.