Why no internet connection after standby?

I think this may also be an unwanted side effect of the latest & greatest ZA 2012!

Whenever the pc comes out of standby mode, it will not connect to the internet. It just cannot see the internet, although it does see the local network and the router and other devices on the network... printer, laptop, phone etc. I can ping all those devices no problem. All the other devices can connect to the internet without problems.
I have to re-boot the pc and then it connects no problem.
This problem again, has only begun since upgrading ZA. I have uninstalled ZA and downloaded a new copy of it and reinstalled it, but it's still the same.

Anyone recommend another good, free firewall? ZA used to be good and cause no trouble... now it's a real PITA!