Re: antivirus recomendation
blb wrote:
> Hi
> Can anyone suggest what is the best antivirus for a home pc, windows xp,
> broadband internet? I have Norton internet security - and it has been
> suggested that it may be slowing down my computer. I am also looking with a
> tight budget in mind.
> Thank You !
You'll get nearly as many differing opinions as you will responses.
I'll start by saying that I don't think any security "suite" is a
good choice. It'd be better to use smaller, less-resource-draining
stand-alone products. And, having had personal experience with
Verizon's business practices, I certainly wouldn't trust anything they
offer. Even if the product/service itself is fine, there'll be hidden
costs and "unadvertised" conditions and limitations associated with it.
I had used, and recommended, Norton Antivirus and then Norton
Internet Security, for many years, on Win98, WinNT, Win2K, and WinXP,
all without any significant problems. I had used McAfee prior to that.
But it's been several years since I've been tempted to try McAfee
products. Their quality seemed to take a steep nose-dive after they were
acquired by Network Associates.
However, when my subscription to Symantec's updates for Norton
Internet Security 2002 came up for renewal (at a cost substantially
higher than the preceding year's subscription), I decided to try less
expensive solutions. I downloaded and installed the free version of
GriSoft's AVG (
http://www.grisoft.com/us/us_dwnl_free.php ). It proved
to be easily installed, easy to use, and quite effective. Additionally,
I was pleasantly surprised to see a small but very noticeable
improvement in my PC's performance, once I'd replaced the Symantec
product. Another free (for personal use) anti-virus product is AVAST! 4
Home Edition (
http://www.avast.com/eng/avast_4_home.html), which is what
I've used without problems on both WinXP Pro and Vista Business.
For a recent comparison of anti-virus products:
Retrospective / ProActive Test
http://www.av-comparatives.org/
--
Bruce Chambers
Help us help you:
http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx/kb/555375
They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary
safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. ~Benjamin Franklin
Many people would rather die than think; in fact, most do. ~Bertrand Russell
The philosopher has never killed any priests, whereas the priest has
killed a great many philosophers.
~ Denis Diderot