Antivirus

Can I be totally honest Alexx, I haven't used an antivirus scanner ever since I switched to Windows 7 Professional. The operating system does a great job warding off most issues. Are you sure you have a virus or is it a program that's being installed in the background without your knowledge? All virus programs are sluggish and irritating.

The no.1 antivirus in the world is you. Learn how the internet works and how they plant things on your computer. Remember, free is never free on the internet. When they say free, think about what else is going to be installed on your computer.

Whatever you do, do not go with AVG

By the way, I think you can disable this option on most virus scanners.

Interesting topic. Before getting into teaching, I worked with computer for a long time. In my experience, I will tell you to never use a free antivirus (AV) alone. Free AV's will let you down. Norton, It's the worst of the paid. Next in line would be Bit Defender. They are both resource hogs that do not do as well as advertised. If I am going to give up some of my resources, I'm going to give it up for something that works. Me, I will not use a free AV.

Avast, It's OK, But, It's weakness is Trojan Mal Ware. AVG, It's weakness is everything. It's the sorriest free AV out there. Microsoft Security Essentials runs a close second to AVG

The best paid AV out there right now is Kaspersky. It's the big dog of paid. You put it on a clean computer and you can forget it for a year. I've had it for 9 years. It's given me 100% security for 9 years.

But, If you can't afford Kaspersky, This is what I would do if I couldn't. I would use Avast free addition.

But, I would back it up with the paid addition of Mal ware Bytes Anti Mal ware. It's a very good program. You only have to pay for it once. 27.95 and it's yours for the life of the computer. Mal ware Bytes will pick up where Avast leaves off. You are going to need the real time security that only a paid addition will give you. Never, ever trust a free AV alone. It's not wise. Another thing, You can back both of these up with the free edition of Super Anti Spyware. You should be good to go for a long time.

Thanks for the replies.
I think you are right, for everyday use an antivirus is not so important. I also don't remember if I ever got a virus that I couldn't deal with.

It's just that there are some times when, although you get a windows warning, you really want to check a downloaded program!!

Well, I guess that, if I ever really need an antivirus, I'll use Avast!. I'm not spending a penny at anything else 

lol I know what you mean.