I have the full norton loadout but it seems to be making the computer very slow. I've heard that it has today become a load of massive bloatware and has a reputation for slowing computers down. So I'm thinking, do I need it? I mean, what about viruses and all? Opinions?
I'm wondering whether it might have anything to do with the fact that, among other things, my supposed 8 mbps ADSL connection is actually testing at a blazingly fast 116 kbps or so. On the other hand it may also be my connection itself that is the problem. BT Total Broadband, which I'm starting to hear bad things said about. Such as other people's experiences that sound just like mine (speeds comparable with a 56k modem at worst, dual ISDN at best, on a supposedly 8 mbps connection).
Norton is a virus dump it and then burn the disks. Windows Firewall and windows defender are better IMHO. (free) oh and if your worried about picking up email virus use a free on-line email like hotmail.
You could take a photograph of your ass and tape it to your modem and it would be more effective at stopping viruses than Norton.
The Norton home suite is bloatware. You need to ditch it. The corporate version is a lot better, but still not all that great.
http://free.grisoft.com/ I recommend this to any of my users who ask me about virus protection for their home computer.
My new laptop came with a 90 day trial. With 89 days remaining, I uninstalled the whole thing yesterday. 1 day was more than enough to convince me of the suckage. Shockingly, I gained probably a 10 fold speed increase. It was like switching from dial-up to cable, only I already had cable.
Norton sucks more cock than a Tex/Evenflow/Storm/Ash meetup at a Village People reunion in a San Francisco leather bar during Fleet Week.
AVG's free anti virus has worked for me for years. It's much leaner than Norton. It's updated daily as well. Windows Firewalll is probably ok as well. ZoneAlarm's free firewall isn't bad either. Bottom line: better stuff is available for FREE!
It's amazing how Norton went from the best antivirus suite to the absolute worst. Nero is currently working its hardest to do the same thing. When are software companies going to learn that their product isn't the sole focus of computer use (auto-startup, icons littered everywhere, resource hogging) and that it doesn't need to be everything and the kitchen sink (I want to burn CDs/DVDs, not have a shitty media player take over all my file associations)?
Norton IS a virus!! Slowed my old computer down to a dead crawl it was such a resource greedy POS, and even after I uninstalled it, the puter was never again as fast as when it came out of the box.
Yeap... remember Norton SystemWorks in 3.1 and 95? That was a badass program that solved all kinds of cryptic OS issues. Now norton is TERRIBLE. I had a version of Symantec Antivirus Corporate Edition that was about 3-4 years old and it wasn't bad though. Even though it is the same company as Norton, the Symantec-named products are aimed at large networks and they are a lot more lightweight, and basically all around better than the Norton-named counterparts. But at the moment I don't use any AV. I realized after scanning twice per week for 4-5 years and not getting any results that I was just waste resources on an AV program. I don't even have my parents set up with any AV anymore. They don't know what they are doing with computers really and I still seriously doubt they will have any virus problems. Get check for OS updates frequently. Take heed of warning messages about running files, activex controls, etc. Use a router. That's about all you need. A router without a firewall still eliminates quite a few security problems. A router WITH a firewall is amazing. Basically I just scan my PC with an online virus scan about once a month now. Even that is really probably due to baked-in fear and is really unnecessary.
Just a personal anecdote here: my cousin got a computer a couple years ago. I screwed up and neglected to install an antivirus program on her PC. It wasn't a problem until just two weeks ago. All it took was a classmate bringing some homework on a flash drive over for them to work on. Windows' virus/malware tools managed to recognize there was a big problem but it wasn't robust enough to handle a full-fledged outbreak. We're talking well over 100 viruses/infected files and an equal amount of spyware. Getting the system to properly boot was a ton of work let alone cleaning the entangled mess. And this was a system that never had a problem before and was up-to-date on everything. Shit happens. It's why I still use an antivirus. If real-time protection bothers you check out Clamwin. It's what I use. Just a plain old file scanner set to update and run while I sleep.
I concur with everyone who has said you should ditch Norton. Crappiest POS I've ever had the misfortune of installing on my PC. AVG Free has been a breath of fresh air. Fast, efficient, trim.
The scenario you describe won't be stopped by anything other than real-time protection. Even then, I'm dubious as to whether or not you'd really contain any damage. Email any necessary files via a webmail system like gmail. They are scanned for viruses automatically. Frankly I don't see very many situations where a USB key is useful anymore.
Come on, are you kidding me? File size limits, the slow upload speeds that most ISPs cap users at, file type limitations, there are tons of situations where emails aren't practical. USB drives are compact, have lots of space, are quickly re/writable, and are an essential tool to any tech worth his salt. But that's not really the point. The point is there are always situations that can arise completely out of your control that can put you at risk. We're living in a world where iPods and OEM CDs have shipped with computer viruses on them. Exploits can exist months before Microsoft patches them. There's always a risk. Your actions can make it small or large but it's still there. Is that all that experience you have not using antivirus programs talking?
