I currently use Norton, however i wanted to know if theres something better available which would either use very little resources OR easily shut down when not surfing the web thus freeing up the resources for games.Ive just tried Panda Platinum Internet Security (only because it seemed highly reccomended) and it installs 7 or 8 new services to my xp setup and adds an additional 11 running processes!..and this is AFTER shutting the friggen program down, LOL.After realizing that you no longer have to download a virus or click to execute an infected file...these days, just simply surfing the net and nothing more can leave you infected. With this in mind im searching for something that would protect me while surfing the net, so if some pop-up decides to infect me unknowingly it wont get passed the anti-virus program. But it also has to be easy & fast to shut down all its resources when playing games.Can anyone offer any ultimate solution to this problem?Dave

I use Avast. Very easy on my system, and Ken Salters FSAutostart can shut it down and start it up with no problem.

Use search. There was a huge thread on this subject in the last 2 months. Some of the best anti-virus programs are freeware.Michael J.http://www.reality-xp.com/community/nr/rsc/rxp-higher.jpg

Without a doubt Nod32, small, quick and very good.Dan.

I use Trend Micro PC-cillion 2002 which in fact has caught 5 virus lately even though I did not scan for them because one feature called "live scan". You can also simply click to disable the firewall to connect to games without losing the protection. I am sure there are many to choose from that are just as good but I really like this program. I can even view daily logs showing who has scanned my computer ;-)Best Wishes,[h4]Randy J. Smith[/h4][h3]P M D G's 747-400[/h3][h4]coming to a runway near you[/h4][/font color]Caution! Not a real pilot, but do play one on TV ;-)AMD 64 3200+ | ASUS KV8 DELUXE | GFORCE 5700 ULTRA @535/1000 | Maxtor 6Y080M0 SATA 80 GIG | 512 DDR 400 | Windows Xp Pro | Windows Xp Pro 64 |

I'll go with Dan on this one. Without a doubt NOD32: Small footprint, reliable updates, easy to shut down, and works faultlessly with FS Autostart. And it scans all your mails too. Btw, IMO Norton is the pits, bloated and slow, and not even very good at doing it's primary job, which is to catch and kill all viruses. The only software I know of that's worse than Norton is AOL, and that should tell you everything you need to know...BestGrahame (EDHL)

I'm with BA747heavy on this;avast is superb - resource lean, shuts down with 2 clicks of your mouse & is freeware.Leaves all others, payware & freeware, for dead.Josh :)

I also use Avast. It allows me to say ARRRR ...

wow, thanks very much everyone, for all your replies...it seems so far that avast and nod32 are most popular with some of you, so i suppose ill try them both out to see which one fits the bill here. Can any of you comment on whether or not these 2 programs have actually stopped a virus from entering your pc while just surfing around the net?...or are they best used for manual scans instead?...oh, and also is there any word by either of these 2 companies regarding a compatibility patch for xp SP2 comming out this week?Thanks again!Dave

Yes, Nod32 has stopped one virus whilst browsing.Also, it must be the most updated virus program ever, one day I remember it updated itself 4 times :-lolAlso, the big thing for me is that it can scan 3 HDD's, (one 50GB, one 60GB, and one 120GB) in less than 5 mins.Where as Norton used to take 5 hours :-lolTry Nod32, you can get a free 30 day trial, I bet after trying it you will keep itDan.

So I guess Norton isnt as good

Guys, when in a topic like this, don't forget to check the Resources Database, and if you know of a program that needs to be added, please do so. Help the community by providing a link, and then when we get into dicussions like this one, you have a handy reference to pass on to your fellow simmers.

Yes, sadly, Norton has become a very bloated and poorly performing product when compared to some of the competition. This is especially true with the 2004 version of Norton AV. I've tried most of the AV software available and, like many of the others here, believe NOD32 to be among the very best. I use it because is seems to have much less of an impact on overall system performance than some of the others and has top-notch virus definition updates. But, as always, all mileage is variable.Doug

ok im now trying NOD32 and have a quick question...it does seem to be the least intrusive out of several others ive tried thus far, using on ly 2 additional running process in winxp.My question is, how do i kill the NOD32KRN.exe process?...whenever i kill it it just starts again a few seconds later.Dave

I gave the trial version of NOD32 a whirl, but it didn't recognize my default e-mail program (Eudora), then asked me to run Outlook and set it as default. No thanks.I'm happy using AVG.