Tuesday, November 3, 2009
AVG 9.0
AVG has released version 9 of their popular anti-virus software. AVG has been on my favorite anti-virus software list for a long time. It uses very little computer resources, and the free to private home users is a good marketing program.
Some of the improvements include up to 50% faster scans, and new additions including root kit and phishing scam detectors. My review of a installation on an Intel Atom 230 netbook with 1 gigabyte shows a usage of 10 megabytes while idle. A review of CPU usage during a scan ranged from 25% to 40%. Not bad for a gutless netbook.
AVG is free for home users, but they do charge for business users. The paid version does include extras such as more in depth scanning for malware.
One problem I had when I tried to download the free version is that CNet was hosting version 8.3. On the download page go to the Installation Files tab and choose avg_free_stf_en_90_698a1730.exe to download version 9.
Some of the improvements include up to 50% faster scans, and new additions including root kit and phishing scam detectors. My review of a installation on an Intel Atom 230 netbook with 1 gigabyte shows a usage of 10 megabytes while idle. A review of CPU usage during a scan ranged from 25% to 40%. Not bad for a gutless netbook.
AVG is free for home users, but they do charge for business users. The paid version does include extras such as more in depth scanning for malware.
One problem I had when I tried to download the free version is that CNet was hosting version 8.3. On the download page go to the Installation Files tab and choose avg_free_stf_en_90_698a1730.exe to download version 9.
Labels: anti-virus, AVG Free
Sunday, January 20, 2008
Another Free Option for Virus Protection
There is very little reason to pay for virus protection for your home computer. Some of the options include AVG Free and Blink and possibly a free suite from your Internet Service Provider.
My ISP, RoadRunner, is now offering a free Internet security suite from Computer Associates. I do not have personal experience with CA security software, but they do make good backup solutions that I have used extensively.
There you go. You have no excuse for not installing a good anti-virus protection if you are using a Windows computer. If you do not have RoadRunner check with your ISP to see if they do offer a free package.
Why would an ISP do this? Two reasons. The first is a little more to talk about in the marketing message. The second and most important reason is that Internet Service Providers have a financial interest in keeping your computer clear of malware and trojan horses. If any computer on the network that is pushing out SPAM or other unwanted traffic, they are footing the bill for the bandwidth. It is low-cost insurance to protect customers than it is to purchase more bandwidth and to increase their network capacity.
My ISP, RoadRunner, is now offering a free Internet security suite from Computer Associates. I do not have personal experience with CA security software, but they do make good backup solutions that I have used extensively.
There you go. You have no excuse for not installing a good anti-virus protection if you are using a Windows computer. If you do not have RoadRunner check with your ISP to see if they do offer a free package.
Why would an ISP do this? Two reasons. The first is a little more to talk about in the marketing message. The second and most important reason is that Internet Service Providers have a financial interest in keeping your computer clear of malware and trojan horses. If any computer on the network that is pushing out SPAM or other unwanted traffic, they are footing the bill for the bandwidth. It is low-cost insurance to protect customers than it is to purchase more bandwidth and to increase their network capacity.
Labels: AVG Free, Blink, ISP, security, virus, Windows
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