Decided To Get Brave and Remove Cover to HP Desktop (e-mail, screen)

[mensaguy]

Originally Posted by rubber_factory

Antivirus software is, to me, one of life's great mysteries.

Why do people purchase it?

It slows your computer down, it does not prevent viruses, and it does not clean up viruses if you get one.

I don't know about where you come from, but here on Earth, AV programs, properly configured, do not create major slowdowns, they DO prevent infections, and they DO remove virus programs when one is introduced.

[Ninjahedge]

I think he is just a script kiddie that is dissapointed he does not have as many zombie-puters as his friends....

[rubber_factory]

I'm from this place where we don't run A/V, and we don't get viruses, because we aren't dumbasses.

[scarmig]

I never get STD's because I never kiss 'em on the mouth.


Hey, if that works for you, great. Lots of people aren't as brilliant as you and want an extra layer of protection.

[Tek_Freek]

Plays football without a nut cup.

[thrillobyte]

Originally Posted by Ninjahedge

It does prevent viruses if you get the right one.

Between definitions of known ones, and heuristic scans/monitoring of possible patterns, it can give you warnings about malicious scripts on web pages or other things.

If you get the right one, it really does not slow your machine down!

Yes, I got BitDefender. My machine still runs fast. As to whether it will work as well as free antivirus I don't know. The computer guy said stay away from free antivirus programs--they're just not comprehensive enough. Bit Defender also has ID protection. I figure paid programs have to have something to offer or word would get around to just not blow your money on paid software that doesn't work any better than free.

[EscapeCalifornia]

Originally Posted by thrillobyte

Yes, I got BitDefender. My machine still runs fast. As to whether it will work as well as free antivirus I don't know. The computer guy said stay away from free antivirus programs--they're just not comprehensive enough. Bit Defender also has ID protection. I figure paid programs have to have something to offer or word would get around to just not blow your money on paid software that doesn't work any better than free.

There's no evidence that paying for an antivirus gets you a better product. Norton and McAfee are proof of that.

[thrillobyte]

Originally Posted by EscapeCalifornia

There's no evidence that paying for an antivirus gets you a better product. Norton and McAfee are proof of that.

Yes, I hear you. McAfee & Norton came up #7 & 9 in the top 10.

AntiVirus Software Review 2009 - TopTenREVIEWS

[rubber_factory]

Originally Posted by Tek_Freek

Plays football without a nut cup.

Did that for 7 years!

That's actually a good analogy. It is far more painful to play football with a cup, to the point that it is counterproductive.. which is why NFL and college do not use them.

Sort of like A/V, good for people who don't know better.

[mensaguy]

Originally Posted by rubber_factory

..... Sort of like A/V, good for people who don't know better.

That is ridiculous! I had to remove a rogue from a machine last month that we eventually determined came from a court reporting site, hidden behind the "Enter Here" icon. Picking up that infection had absolutely nothing to do with "people who don't know better." I cleaned "Vundo" off a machine that picked it up when the user tried to pay a bill at a local government site. Again, the user did nothing wrong.

Using AV software is not optional on any machines I work on.