Virus Protection

[Dani]

Norton or McAfee for virus protection for Windows XP? I want something with a light footprint.

[tylerg]

Norton or McAfee for virus protection for Windows XP? I want something with a light footprint.

I'd actually reccomend Avg Antivirus far above McAfee or Norton. McAfee and Norton are both massive resource hogs - McAfee especially is pretty bad about this. Avg is light, does its job well, and automatically updates itself as needed. If you like you can shell out for a license, but there's no need as they have a free version available for non-corporate use.

Here's a link to the free version from download.com:
http://www.download.com/AVG-Anti-Virus-Free-Edition/3000-2239_4-10342876.html?tag=lst-0-2

[DMR]

I'll second tylerg's recommendation, Dani- AVG is light, fast, frequently updated, and free for personal use.

I've used it on my own machines for quite some time, and it's also what I install on clients' machines, usually right after I discover that they let their subscriptions to Norton or McAfee run out. :mrgreen:

[jwenting]

Whatever you do, steer far far away from Norton.

Personally I'd suggest Kaspersky for overall quality but it may be a tad heavy.

[Lightninghawk]

Whatever you do, steer far far away from Norton.

Personally I'd suggest Kaspersky for overall quality but it may be a tad heavy.

Amen! Norton went bizerk with the release of 2005. I still use 2004 system works. It runs very nicely, still heavy though.

Mcafee - fair, they are climbing slowly back to where they used to be. Somewhere on the top. But they are still aways from it.

AVG - is the best anti-virus out there. And the free version is just as good as the costly one. Good news? Yeah. I mean you're only paying for a few extra options. It's mostly a trojan hunter but it finds almost everything. (personal record was 3003 viruses on one machine here at the school, and the computer still ran :O )

Kaspersky - Now this bad boy right here. (Kaspersky Anti-Hacker & System Mechanic 6 Pro). They are dominating the utility word right now. You have to remember this is a heavy one. So it may not be what you're looking for.
Some of the features are:

- Kaspersky Anti-Hacker is the anti virus program and firewall
These Tools also included:

Optimization Tools

* Boost Internet speeds up to 300%
* Tweak over 100 hidden Windows settings
* Recover, Defragment, and Optimize Memory
* Start Windows Up Faster!
* High-speed Disk Defrag and Optimization

PC Fixup Tools

* Clean and optimize your system registry
* Purge invalid uninstaller information
* Find and fix broken shortcuts

System Cleanup Tools

* Get rid of junk files on your PC (make sure they are junk :P )
* Cover the tracks you leave behind (you wouldn't believe some of the options here)
* Find and Remove Duplicate Files (this works like a dream)
* Stop annoying Internet popup ads

Security Tools

* Securely delete sensitive information
* Eliminate PC Parasites with SpyHunter (it works... i prefer adaware and spybot)
* Create system snapshots to track changes

Maintenance Tools

* Easy PC maintenance wizard
* Easy access with the Utility Bar
* Schedule your PC's maintenance
* Access logs and system statistics

[Dani]

Thanks guys. I"ll look into AVG. I used to use Norton but it got too resource intensive for my taste so I switched to McAfee, which I felt had a lighter footprint. My subscription is nearly up and I was debating whether to renew or not.

[dlh6213]

Check out Nod32 and other info in this thread...
http://www.daniweb.com/techtalkforums/showthread.php?t=30612&highlight=nod32

[Thomas00]

If you had anti-virus protection and not anti-spywre protection then that is the main reason. You need both. Check out our Virus Removal for spyware removal is available or not.more information on protecting yourself in the future on <snip></snip> which give you both i.e anti virus & spyware.

[cohen]

I would recommend McAfee.

AVG, not so much. If you are going free, go Avast.

Cohen :)