NIS 2005 subscription about to expire need advice please

Discussion in 'other anti-virus software' started by tamba1, Apr 16, 2006.

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  1. tamba1

    tamba1 Registered Member

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    Hi

    I have been running Norton products for many years...

    For the last year I have been using NIS 2005 and it has done a good job in protecting my PC although admittedly it does seem to slow things down quite a bit. Like many of you I have read lots of reviews slating Norton and on various other AV/Firewall products in the hope of being able to decide what product/s I choose next. My NIS is die to expire in a week or so's time and i need to make a decision but am confused as when I think I have decided I read a particulary bad review and do more research and get more negative reviews..

    Norton Antivirus 2006 gets pretty terrible feedback/reviews but the worst seem to be for the Norton Personal Firewall 2006, though as with all reviews there are some positive ones too.

    As I said I have been protecting my PC with Norton: Antipam, Antivirus and Firewall.

    I am contemplating the following Zonelabs Zonealarm products: ZA PRO,ZA Internet Security Suite or ZA Firewall ..... Unfortunatley I have been slightly put off by articles saying it is not recommended for Firewall non experts, and users intervention can cause problems if you dont know enough aout what you are doing/

    To be honest like many people I am after something I can set up and have the piece of mind my system is being protected wihout having its resource swallowed up by the AV, Firewall, Antispam etc

    Re Spyware protection I am using Spysweeper, Spyware Doctor, and scan on a weekly basis with Adaware, EWIDo, Spybot and if particualry concerned will use online AV scanning tools like Kapersky, Bit defender, Trend Micro, Panda

    Please can you give me some advice

    FInally I am also wary about uninstalling Norton products and the problems that can cause though thankfully have found a few linsk in this forum to guide around that problem..

    I look forward to your replies
    Tamba1
     
    Last edited: Apr 16, 2006
  2. tobacco

    tobacco Frequent Poster

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    That's really only a decision you can make.What runs well on one computer might not on another.I would suggest if your interested to download trial versions of some of the other top AV's and try them out yourself.You might find one you really like or maybe see that Norton actually runs the best for you.As for the Zonealarm suite, it's a great firewall but in my opinion would be a downgrade as far as detection rates go.But if your careful, it still might be good enough for you so try it also to see.
     
  3. christophs

    christophs Registered Member

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    NIS 2006 worked well on my compi.
    The automatical daily updates are now included.
     
  4. Blackcat

    Blackcat Registered Member

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    Therefore, you may be looking for a lighter alternative.
    KIS 6 may therefore be a good choice as it has a light system footprint.
    1. Stay with NIS but try to optimize it a little more or add a little more RAM which might speed things up a little. With rebates you should be able to upgrade for little money.

    2. If you decide to switch, make sure you completely uninstall Norton, then it looks like you need to look around for comparable, lighter-weight Suites.

    KIS 6 springs immediately to mind and a Technical release is available for testing, with the commercial version available from mid-May.

    This has 6 main modules; AV, FireWall, AntiSpam, Proactive Defense, Web Scanner, AntiSpyware and Email Scanner.

    Further precise instructions are available for uninstalling Norton products before installing Kaspersky.
     

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  5. Howard Kaikow

    Howard Kaikow Registered Member

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    If you still want to use NIS, http://www.buy.com/ currently has what appears to be a good deal on a package that includes both NIS 2006 and GHost 10.
     
  6. Baldrick

    Baldrick Registered Member

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    Hi tamba1

    Am testing KIS 6 and compared to NIS2006 it is extremely light but seems to be doing a good job. Don't get me wrong. I am not NIS bashing as I used to use it and its predecessors, and while it is the lightest version yet it is still more resource hungry than others out there that provide at least the same level of protection (and some may say better). It is however only a release candidate.......but has caused me no issues to date.

    It is not without a few issues but then again what new piece of software comes to market without these. I would certainly recommend that you take a look at this as a potential alternative.

    Another possible candidate is ZoneAlarm Security Suite 6. Also very good IHMO, more mature than KIS 6 but not quite as 'light' on my PC. Some say that the antivirus component is the main weakness (sourced from CA) but other disagree. It does include the Triple Defence Firewall......and interesting feature that does provide very good security (KIS has a Proactive Defense module that does the same sort of thing). ZASS is available as a 15 day trial.

    Hope that helps? Good luck in your quest!

    Baldrick:D
     
  7. Howard Kaikow

    Howard Kaikow Registered Member

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    I would choose the best AV for my purposes and the best Firewall for my purposes.

    I would not restrict myself to a package that includes both.
     
  8. Baldrick

    Baldrick Registered Member

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    That is one approach if you prefer separate applications. I assumed that as ttamba was referringto NIS2006 an all in one suite was of interest. It really is whatever takes your fancy. After many years of struggling with separate applications I went for an all in one and have not looked back since.

    Each to their own!:D
     
  9. tamba1

    tamba1 Registered Member

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    Hi Everyone WOW thanks so much for your suggestions .. lots of advice to consider .. I have tried to reply to your comments in one posting

    Christophs: I see you have NIS 2006 and seem happy with it, no installation probs, no system slow down? No Annying grumbles error msgs and finally I assume you did not have to do a reformat of your PC ? - which makes your feedback on NIS 2006 th emost postive I have read to date :D

    Blackcat: "1. Stay with NIS but try to optimize it a little more or add a little more RAM which might speed things up a little. Now you can see my sys info do you still think I should add more RAM, or shoudl I be OK?

    My System info is as follows:-
    Dell Dimension
    Pentium 4
    WIN XP Prof
    2.66 GHZ
    768 RAM-
    Total Capacity: 111.72 GB
    Free: 86.24 GB

    KIS is something I was considering, will read up more on it

    Howard KaikowThanks for the buying tip -:)

    Baldrick
    Thanks for all your advice very useful too

    So you like KIS6.. great how have YOU found the antivirus component weak or effective?

    You say "not without a few issues" what type of issues have you experienced major ones or minor ones?

    Yes I was interested in an all in one solution but am open minded and will definitely consider seperate AV and seperrate Firewall if that is what seems best for my needs. One of my concerns with seperate sware is the potential conflics that can arise and the hassles in resolving them ...

    I have found this "quest" frustrating because to date I have not had 1 virus on my PC and Norton seems to have done a great job at pretecting us..but am VERY put off at all the negative reviews and the fact that NIS 2005 was extremely resource hungry and NIS 2006 is supposed to be more so ..

    Any other advice about seperate Av and firewall applications would be gratefully recieved

    Many Thanks to you all
    tamba1
     
  10. Blackcat

    Blackcat Registered Member

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    Another 256MB stick of RAM would not go amiss on WIN XP ;)

    But your present spec seems fine so you should be able to run most AV's/Suites without any slowdowns.
     
  11. Baldrick

    Baldrick Registered Member

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    Hi tamba

    Will try to reply specifically as follows:

    So you like KIS6.. great how have YOU found the antivirus component weak or effective? It is supposed to be one of the best. Full scan takes a long time but from what I have read there is little or nothing better. Updates signatures several times a day

    You say "not without a few issues" what type of issues have you experienced major ones or minor ones? You should check out the relevants posts at the Kaspersky Labs Forum. Vert useful and revealing. Gald to say that most if not all the issues are resolved.

    Yes I was interested in an all in one solution but am open minded and will definitely consider seperate AV and seperrate Firewall if that is what seems best for my needs. One of my concerns with seperate sware is the potential conflics that can arise and the hassles in resolving them ... Same here....that is why I move to an all-in-one-suite

    I have found this "quest" frustrating because to date I have not had 1 virus on my PC and Norton seems to have done a great job at pretecting us..but am VERY put off at all the negative reviews and the fact that NIS 2005 was extremely resource hungry and NIS 2006 is supposed to be more so .. Used NIS since 2004, up to and including 2006. NIS2006 was significantly lighter on my system but there were problems after an update that Symantec were slow in resolving and I got fed up with waiting/dealing with their Support function.....so I moved. By the way NIS did a great job protecting my PC. I thknk that all the main suites; NIS, ZASS, PC-Cillin, F-Secure and KIS do a great job.....it is just a case of what you are looking for. For me it is lightness in resource usage and granularity of control

    Hope that is of further help? Good luck in your quest! But remember.....this is my opinion. The best thing is to trial the software for yourself as what works well on my PC may not on yours.

    Baldrick:D
     
  12. tobacco

    tobacco Frequent Poster

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    The first scan using KIS 2006 took 1hr 15mins on my machine which is about the same as my F-secure.But there is a setting you can select to scan only new and changed files from now on which would cut the time down to guessing 10-15mins.I've used F-secure for 2 years with no infections but am so impressed with KIS 2006 that i think i might switch to it.Lots of features and would recommend giving it a try.
     
  13. Baldrick

    Baldrick Registered Member

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    Hi tobacco

    I think that you need to be careful as to how much you read into the scan only new and changed files option as the user manual states that this only operates if the existing file has not changed snce the last scan AND the virus signature files have not been updated. If they have (and they can be several times a day) then this option will not come into play even if ticked. This is for obvious reasons, ie, there may be new signatures to be applied and therefore it makes sense to rescan even unchanged files agianst these new signatures otherwise you risk missing a very new threat.

    I have this switched on by have yet to see it have an affect.....as there have been so many virus signature updates. To reduce scan times I have change my scan from 'ALL' to 'BY CONTENT' instead where only specific file types are scanned based on an analysis of the file header (so that a nasty cannot masquerade with a .txt extension and so not be scanned, etc.).

    Hope that this helps?

    Baldrick:rolleyes:
     
  14. tobacco

    tobacco Frequent Poster

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    Thanks for the heads up Baldrick.You are obviously more through than I.Have not read the manual.Switching from "all" to "by content", how long are your scan times now compared to before?.
     
  15. springer

    springer Registered Member

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    Any thread concerning NIS catches my eye.

    I used Norton for years, last version NIS 2005.

    I have an older Pentium II computer, with Win2K Pro, and about 350 megs of RAM.

    Man oh man did NIS 2005 ever throw a brick into my system. For those using older computers with less RAM and slower processing rates, IMHO, NIS is very bad news.

    That aside, one tip about length of scan times...

    Exceedingly long scan times can be an indication sometimes of a computer bogged down with a lot of junk, particularly in the temporary internet files. A computer that is being used by general public could be a real collector of this.

    My daughter complained of long scan times, getting worse.

    I convinced her to download CCleaner (free), and run it...a couple times.

    First sweep dumped...and I'm not making this up...2950 megs of garbage, or IOW, 3 gigs. My entire C drive is only 4 gigs, and I manage to keep 1700 megs of it free.

    CCleaner is, IMHO, an absolute must have program on any computer. That said, mind the registry cleaner app if you're not comfy with going that far...although it really shouldn't cause any problems.

    I sweep my computer every day before shutting it down. There's a setting in the options which will prevent "Temp" files from being cleaned for 48 hours. I keep this unchecked so that they get cleaned as well...which prevents possible nasties from parking there and waiting for start-up the next day to launch themselves.

    One other new app I've come across recently is "SiteAdvisor", for both Firefox and IE. I'm now sold on this one, and would not be without it. Could be a real boon on a publically used computer.

    :cool:
     
  16. Howard Kaikow

    Howard Kaikow Registered Member

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    I also use a PII system.
    Don't blame NIS.
    350MB is way to little memory.

    I do not run manyapps, and I am currently using about 395MB. System has 768MB, max for the mobo.

    The performance increase of adding memory is enormous.
     
  17. springer

    springer Registered Member

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    And you're right, too little RAM...which is common of older computers. I only have 350 megs because I added some.

    What I discovered about NIS 2005 through online research is that it's a resource hog. Newer systems can handle it. Older ones get seriously bogged down...but Norton doesn't tell you that when they're offering the renewal, and their software is an entirely other thing than you're used to.

    The firewall would shut off on its own, usually when I wasn't around, telling me it was time to renew again. :eek: Microsoft Outlook took an eternity to deal with emails. :mad: And yada yada yada. o_O

    IOW, I paid my money, pulled my hair out for a couple months, and finally gassed the program through the uninstall, and then hunting down and deleting (with a serious vengence) every file and registry entry to do with Symantec, NAV and NIS.

    500 megs of RAM is probably the bare minimum, and a gig is ideal. Then NIS probably works fine.

    So, now, instead of paying out money for aggrivation, I exploit the world of freebies. :shifty: To that end, and quite successfully so far...

    I use AVG Free, Zone Alarm Free, Spyware Blaster Free, Spyware Guard Free, Ad-Aware Free, Ewido AntiMalware Free, Win Patrol Free, SiteAdvisor Free, IE-Spyad Free, Bazooka Free, CCleaner Free, RegSeeker Free, and EasyCleaner Free, CWShredder Free...

    Plus judicious settings of privacy and security settings in IE and Firefox...

    And, employing a strict policy of not deliberately wandering into minefields, ever since I have not had so much as a single tracking cookie discovered on my system...even by Free online scans by Kaspersky and BitDefender and the like.

    ...touch wood.

    :cool:

    A little knowledge...thanks in large part to Wilders and Spyware Warriors forums...can go a long way, eh?

    ;)
     
  18. Howard Kaikow

    Howard Kaikow Registered Member

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    Free or not, much software will bog down if one does not have enough memory.

    A good example was a few weeks ago, I was helping my sister install some software that I also had.

    She has the same PC as I, but she has only 384MB of memory and I have 768MB.

    It is quite easy to exceed 300MB of memory use. Which leaves little for other programs.

    In the case of the program she had installed, effectively, she could not run anything else whilst it ran. Whiilst, running th esame/more programs, I had plenty ofmemory and saw no such problems.

    If you intend to keep the computer, it would really pay to go to http://www.crucial,com/ and max out your memory. Note that Newgg sometimes sells Crucial memory for less than Crucial, but check crucial first.
     
  19. springer

    springer Registered Member

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    Howard...

    Absolutely right. My computer definitely will not handle games at all, at least not those of the last few years. (I have a PS2 for that.)

    Mostly I use it for light surfing, and word processing...and it suffices.

    So well that I really can't justify upgrading...yet.

    BTW, and totally OT...

    For the PS2/XBox users here who get into single person shooter games, try the new one out, "Black". :eek: :eek: :eek: :eek: WOW!!! We're talking serious adrenaline rush stuff. Never seen anything else that comes even close.

    And Ace Combat Zero is due out this month. :D
     
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