this


Question ... Why do you use norton 360?
Infact, why use any norton product, its the biggest rubbish ever made, and even worse; you have to pay for it


in a post somewhere.

so can anybody point me in the right direction for protecting my computer without paying? im currently using the free version of avg but im not sure if it has firewall included with it?

and help greatly appreciated as always.

cheers

Norton is very strange. At the start of the PC era, let us say in the 80´s Norton products were musts for PC´s - Norton Utilities, PC Tools had a similar offering but nowhere near as good. And Peter Norton´s books, the guides to the PC, were very informative and extremely helpful. However, sometime in the 90´s, Norton went the way of most software companies, bloated products, ignoring the customer ( their anti-virus became almst impossible to remove from a computer, use of rootkits in their products.)

Lately, however, they seem to be getting back on track. Check the reviews for Security Suites - Norton has a much smaller footprint, and uses far less of the processor. Now I use freeware products on this comp, but not for long, I am tired of their nag screens and less than optimal funcionality.

So I keep an open mind about software, seems to go in cycles. If I were a true fanatic I would go back to Linux; my last Linux setup handled all my periphicals ( still working on CD file formats).

For Anti Virus protection I use Avira AntiVir Personal - FREE Antivirus which has served me well for quite some time.

It's very configurable, updates regularly, and fares quite well in reviews too.

If the nag screen is an issue that can be easily overcome using tips readily accessible on google.

Since I'm using a router I don't fret about a firewall and simply have the built in XP one running but if I wanted one there are free ones out there like Zone Alarm.