Not to put too fine a point on it, but we found viruses fairly often on computers where people said exactly the same thing; "been using X for years, never had a virus."
This was particularly true of folks who used the free versions.
anyways, I am not trying to convince anyone of anything. Use whatever product you wish. Just passing on an observation made from years of servicing computers and networks.
Paul
Hi-Tec Designs, LLC -- Owner (and self-proclaimed LED guru )
Trotec 80W Speedy 300 laser w/everything
CAMaster Stinger CNC (25" x 36" x 5")
USCutter 24" LaserPoint Vinyl Cutter
Jet JWBS-18QT-3 18", 3HP bandsaw
Robust Beauty 25"x52" wood lathe w/everything
Jet BD-920W 9"x20" metal lathe
Delta 18-900L 18" drill press
Flame Polisher (ooooh, FIRE!)
Freeware: InkScape, Paint.NET, DoubleCAD XT
Paidware: Wacom Intuos4 (Large), CorelDRAW X5
+1 on AVG free. I have used it for more than 10 years without issues. My pc is usually on 24-7 and I spend a fair amount of time on the web. It does not take over my pc as Norton did and as I hear McAfee does.
Mike Null
St. Louis Laser, Inc.
Trotec Speedy 300, 80 watt
Gravograph IS400
Woodworking shop CLTT and Laser Sublimation
Dye Sublimation
CorelDraw X5, X7
I've used McAfee, Norton, AVG and Avast.
All will stop viruses. The problem is, most will also nearly stop your whole computer. Years ago my sister somehow had Norton AND McAfee running. Took 22 minutes for XP to become useable from boot-up. After cleaning them out totally I ran AVG for a few years, until it did the same thing. Then I started using Microsoft Security Essentials. And my computers NEVER noticed it was there. Gee, imagine that...
But then came the end of XP service, and with it the end of MSE. So I've been using Avast since the XP scare, since I have 8 XP's on the internet. One of them is running zero firewalls or AV protection on purpose, just to see what happens. I have a Win98 computer that's been online over 5 years with zero protection. No issues. As for Avast, I love it, at least for XP. Most times it's barely noticeable. At worst, it's somewhat noticeable, but very tolerable.
However, running the same exact free Avast on 8.1 is a different story. When Avast is doing ANYthing, the computer is nearly useless. Windows won't scroll. Zooms won't zoom. Button pushes that are typically instantaneous take 8 full seconds to 'catch'. 8 seconds? What can possibly cause a 3 gig 4-core 8 gig ram computer 8 seconds for a mouse click to open a dialog window? A Radio Shack TRS-80 wasn't that slow!
I don't blame Avast for this, since my non-supported XP's work just fine and my so-called-supported 8.1 doesn't. And I see no reason 10 wouldn't act the same way. I lay all the blame on Microsoft. Conspiracy theorist that I sometimes am, I see no reason NOT to believe Microsoft doesn't turn these computers into slugs on purpose. They didn't make any money on Avast, AVG, Norton or McAfee. It's a good bet that a Win10 running MS AV never misses a beat...
And as for needing special tools to remove AVG, or anything else from your computer, download a copy of 'regscanner'. It'll even get rid of AOL!
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ELEVEN - rotary cutter tool machines
FOUR - CO2 lasers
THREE- make that FOUR now - fiber lasers
ONE - vinyl cutter
CASmate, Corel, Gravostyle
I user Bitdefender free! I agree with Kev about McAfee, Norton, and AVG. I used AVG for years till it slowed my PC down to useless. Avast(free anyway) is just to annoying with pop-ups trying to get you to upgrade.
Bitdefender is pretty unobtrusive, although it is also a tad heavy on memory usage if you don't have a lot to begin with. It is also one of the best rated, although that tends to change often.
Oh, Windows 10 has been working very well here. Been using it since the first pre-release last Oct -Nov(2014). Considering I had mostly been using Linux, that say quite a bit!
Last edited by Duane Meadows; 12-07-2015 at 6:13 PM.