Can one minimize the amount of internet traffic generated by a netbook when tethering it to a cell phone?

Question

I would like to tether a netbook running Windows XP, via USB, to a Nokia E63 cell phone. I have a smallish data plan:500MB/month. I simply want to pick up mail and browse the web. It would be nice to avoid having the laptop update itself or other such thing that would burn through my data allowance. Is there any way to accomplish this?

Answer 1

You would need to turn off all unrequired Internet access.
This would include Windows Update, Java update, Adobe update and whatsoever.

To find out which are the products that phone home, you would need to trace :

1. Internet access on your computer, for example using Fiddler.
2. All products that get run automatically when you boot or are scheduled to run. You can use Autoruns for Windows for this.

The trick would be to do and then undo all these changes, once you would like to return the computer to its non-tethered state.