AntiVirus Warning

- by Dawn Gray

It is a sad day when the antivirus software
messes up your computer more than the @#$& virus
you got in yesterday's email. The more complex
antivirus software gets, the more it becomes
like a virus itself. In honor of my recent
discovery of a new problem with my antivirus
program, here are a few pitfalls of popular (and
not so popular) programs:

1. "Norton Crash Guard crashes my computer."

This is the first problem I noticed with
Symantec's popular suite of computer protective
software. Norton Crash Guard immediately forced
my brother's new Compaq computer even with
errors that would normally just shut down the
program involved. (That was just the worse case.)

On other computers, loading Crash Guard slowed
down the computer so much I felt compelled to
take it off.

2. "Norton AntiVirus is keeping me from
accessing the internet."

When I first installed Norton AntiVirus, I had
to call our internet service provider AND Eudora
in order to access email again. It turns out the
program tries to route all email through their
server to check for viruses. You have to go into
your preferences and reset them in a way that
will work with your internet service provider.

I'm not the only one, either! I recently
received a message from a direct mail guru who
said he was offline for almost 12 hours because
he loaded Norton AntiVirus to delete a virus he
inadvertently picked up from an email message.

3. "Norton Systemworks is slowing down my
computer."

My Dad recently took a computer in because it
was having some problems. The technician told
him they recommended everyone uninstall the
Norton Systemworks computer monitor (the little
window that tells you how much your drive is
fragmented, how much of your CPU you're using,
etc.).

They claim the little box does nothing Windows
doesn't already and slows your computer down
10%! (I believe them. I remember how much faster
the computers were before we loaded it, and my
computer at home has been fine without it.)

4. "Internet Explorer (IE) won't work!"

This was my big problem for over a year. It
started (coincidentally) about the same time I
loaded Netscape 4.7. I've heard of other people
having problems with Netscape and IE on the same
computer, so I assumed Netscape was the problem.

I tried installing Netscape and re-installing
it. I tried uninstalling IE and re-installing
it. Nothing worked.

Sunday night, my antivirus program (Aladdin's E-
Safe Desktop) gave me an error when IE
accidentally popped up. I unloaded the program,
and IE started to work! I don't know why I
didn't think of it before. I uninstalled the
program and now IE works fine.

IE has ActiveX, a language that has been found
capable of delivering viruses, and Microsoft is
constantly using it to send update information
to users. My virus protection software shut down
the program for my computer's own good!

5. "What about McAfee?"

Well, maybe McAfee is better. It's been working
okay on my computer for about a week now.
However, I've heard horror stories about them
from some of my subscribers as well! In the
past, I've had problems with updates.

"There's always hope!"

I polled my subscribers about the best antivirus solutions, and Trend
Software's PC-Cillan won. You can download their software (priced competitively
with Norton's AntiVirus and
McAfee's Virus Shield at http://www.trend.com/

One subscriber also recommended a free solution: AVG anti-virus from
http://www.grisoft.com

Good luck!

About the Author

Dawn Gray writes Busy Marketing Tips! Subscribe
today by emailing

subscribe@busymarketing.com and get free
Search Engine Tips.

Featured Article: AntiVirus Warning by Dawn Gray .

Renew Your Hard Drive: Here are the Simple and Easy Ways to Cleanup your Hard Drive “Renew Your Hard Drive: Here are the Simple and Easy Ways to Cleanup your Hard Drive” By Steven Presar You know that a regularly scheduled simple maintenance may help keep your computer in shape. There are plenty of third-party programs to help you keep your computer in peak form. However, Microsoft Windows provides you with a solid toolbox of built-in programs to help you keep your computer in shape. Check out the Windows START menu, through the PROGRAMS area, then ACCESSORIES, will reveal a group of computer hard-drive helpers called SYSTEM TOOLS. Backing Your...

Setting Up Your AntiVirus Software There is far more to antivirus software than just opening the box, inserting the CD and installing software. To be properly protected you may actually want to do a little more than that. You see, a good antivirus program does a lot more than you might think. In this article we will be discussing features of Norton Antivirus 2002, one of the best and most full featured programs available. Similar functions exist in the other major scanners. The first thing you must do in this day and age is purchase and install antivirus software. If you don't have this installed you are l...

Macafe Free Download Antivirus , Nortons Anti Virus , Nortons Antivirus , Free Nortons Anti Virus Software , Nortons Anti Virus Software , Nortons Virus , Norten Anti Virus

Disclaimer and Terms of Use: The content on www.protect-my-pc.org is provided for general information only and is not a substitute for professional advice. We are not responsible or liable for any action made by a user based on the content of of this site. We are not liable for the contents of any external websites listed, nor do we endorse any commercial product or service mentioned or advised on any of the sites.

Privacy Policy: We do not collect or store user information.

Important Note to Authors: If your article is not displaying properly or if you'd like us to make a change, email us by clicking on the contact link. Please include the article url.