I am trying to implement a secure proxy for my work. [This article][1] suggests using SSH Tunnel + SOCKS Proxy Forwarding. I do not really understand SSH or SOCKS, so I am feeling my way towards a working arrangement.

I have an account with a *zero-support* hosting. They have a home-brew control panel where I have a choice of `bash`, `tcsh`, and `zsh` for turning SSH access on. I am plain confused. What are these options? Which would work for what I have in mind?

My host, does try to provide some guidance on SSH usage, which only makes me even more confused. It discusses *configuring the public and private keys*, *uploading the public key*, and *launching an SSH session*.

While I could spend hours to read on all these new terms, I fear that the SSH being talked in my hosting documentation might not be the same thing required for a secure proxy, in which case, such reading would not be my present number one priority.

I should also mention that I am on a Xubuntu machine, and this, being my first encounter with **nix* world, has only started a few days ago.
 
Could you shed some light on the matter? Thanks.


  [1]: http://embraceubuntu.com/2006/12/08/ssh-tunnel-socks-proxy-forwarding-secure-browsing/