AVG anti virus = virus?

Originally posted by Methuselah
so is this discussion going to turn into one on how to deal with personal issues and experiences or are we going to talk about ways to better your life in the world of computers? just out of curiosity, do you work for MS or something? you seemed to take offense to my suggestion.

This started as a personal issue, a specific problem with a specific program, and it was thinking of that that I said that I do not recommend moving to Linux.

In other circumstances I could make that suggestion, but if someone is complaining about a specific Windows (I suppose, the operating system was not mentioned) program, saying that he/she should change to Linux because of x reasons is not really answering the question.

And I do not work for Microsoft or took offence with your suggestion, I only think it is a disproportioned way of solving the problem reported.

Also, I have noticed that many people use the "change to Linux" answer because they simply do not like Microsoft and they do not even know what Windows can really do.

I use Windows since 1993 and I never had a problem that I couldn't solve or a virus/Trojan/spyware attack.

im taking on board all this linux talk and am installing Xubuntu on a virtual disk as i speak.


had no virus related issues yet, ran avast only to find, nothing. found a couple of red blob thingies on Ad-aware, nothing new.

running linux on a virtual disk via vmware or virtual PC will not give you the full perspective of what linux is about. plus you still have windows in the background hogging resources. thats why vmware ESX server is built on a linuxi platform to run multiple virtual servers. linux at idle takes up 1% resources (CPU/RAM and SWAP)

if you havent made linux the only OS on the machine, then you havent experienced linux to its full potential. those adware things are probably actually attacks built for windows, not linux. now im not saying there arent spuyware/adaware and viruses built for linux, im just saying that you arent going to get a definate answer until you convert it completely over or at least set up a dual boot system.

well this shall do, im not trashing my old junk for something that i have little knowledge about, as of yet at least, which is why im using a virtual machine. maybe, one day, ill set up a duel boot with linux but for now this will do.

besides, im having no problems with windows, that arent out of the ordinary at least, so there ill be no migration yet.


also, been in linux for 2 hours now, still not 100% sure what on earth im doing but all is good.

reply to post by ArMaP


im sorry you got offended. ive never seen anyone defend the idea that microsoft produces good OS's and that they are a company that is all about money, not productivity to help people with their computers. purposefully releasing an OS too early and with specific software compatability list. just watch Mac commercials, those are Mac vs Windows not Mac vs PC.

as for your AV problem, I use Symantec and have never had an issue with virus's unless I was downloading stuff using p2p software like limewire.
If you are going to stick with windows I would recommend using opensource software, ClamAV is the only AV program that comes to mind but there are a few others. if you dont go linux, opensource is an alternative. plenty of people creating new programs, updates, tweaks, snap-ins, plug-ins to keep everyone else happy. they survive off of donation unlike some companies who steal ideas from each other and then charge you for it.

My ex installed AVG when I was out over the phone, and they had said that my norton anti-virus was'nt working right!
I felt as if it was giving me problems, removed and now, I am using
The Shield Deluxe!

NOD32, its credentials are the best in the buisness and it has next to no performance impact.

Get it.

[edit on 5/3/2008 by C0bzz]

Originally posted by Methuselah
im sorry you got offended.

I thought I said that I wasn't offended.

If I got the words mixed up, then I will say it again: I was not offended by your post.

ive never seen anyone defend the idea that microsoft produces good OS's and that they are a company that is all about money, not productivity to help people with their computers.

I have seen people saying that Microsoft produces good OSs, but I was not saying it.

What I was trying to say was that if someone has a specific OS and a problem with a specific program that runs on that OS I do not see it as a reason to change OS, only as a reason to change (if they can not or do not want to solve the problem with the specific program) to a different program.

As a rule, I try to solve any problems before changing to a different program, and I apply that idea to OSs.

For example, many people say that Windows is not good as a web server because it has too many flaws and is easily attacked, but the two computers that I manage that run websites never had any security problem or any problem of any kind.

One of them is running since January 2003 and is only switch off when I have to change the hardware of when it has a power failure.

purposefully releasing an OS too early and with specific software compatability list.

That is what happens when the comercial side gets preference over the development side, forcing a release on a specific date is never a development option.

just watch Mac commercials, those are Mac vs Windows not Mac vs PC.

There is no such thing as Mac commercials in Portugal, at least I haven't seen any.

as for your AV problem, I use Symantec and have never had an issue with virus's unless I was downloading stuff using p2p software like limewire.

I don't have AV problems, are you answering my post or talking to funny_pom?

eh,

if you have never been hacked before then you probably dont have anything worth hacking.
the DoD gets attempts all the time, and just a few years ago the Chinese hacked the DoD network and had a lot of it mapped out. know I know the Air Force uses nothing but MS software along with other expensive licensed/purchased software.

why deal with something that
you have to pay for
gets attacked a lot
isnt very reliable

why do you think people are starting to use opensource software?
because it works better. they even make opensource software for those people who dont want to dump windows. stuff like openoffice, media portal, firefox etc....

im simply saying, why deal with one thing if there is something better out there? your not running away from anything, your just upgrading to something with more stability and less issues, and moving to that different OS is a learning experience in itself.

Originally posted by Methuselah
if you have never been hacked before then you probably dont have anything worth hacking.

There have been attempts, but none was successful.

why deal with something that
you have to pay for
gets attacked a lot
isnt very reliable

It is already paid
I never suffered a successful attack
It's reliable, if it wasn't I wouldn't use it

why do you think people are starting to use opensource software?
because it works better. they even make opensource software for those people who dont want to dump windows. stuff like openoffice, media portal, firefox etc....

Because it's cheaper.

From what I have seen, the open-source alternatives to paid software (like openoffice) are not as good as the software they want to replace.

im simply saying, why deal with one thing if there is something better out there? your not running away from anything, your just upgrading to something with more stability and less issues, and moving to that different OS is a learning experience in itself.

The problem is that they are not better just because they are open-source, some are better, but most are not.

And most people have greater difficulties adapting to a new environment than to little changes to what they know.

Also, I never had stability problems with Windows, even with Windows 95.

Sorry, double post.

Never refresh the page before you are re-directed back to the thread after making a post.

[edit on 6/3/2008 by ArMaP]

There have been attempts, but none was successful.

what are you using for intrusion detection? how do you know when someone attempts? how do you know they didnt just browse your stuff and see nothing they liked?

[edit on 6-3-2008 by Methuselah]

reply to post by Methuselah


At the moment (and since a hard disk failure) I have none.

Before I had an open source IDS, Snort.

But 158MB free are not enough to install it, and I do not have the money to buy a new hard drive.


Edit: 158MB are enough to install Snort but the less disk space I use the better, Windows, like Unix, likes disk space, and the only time I saw a SCO Unix system on its knees and almost unrecoverable was when it was left without disk space after a bad mannered program grabbed too much.

[edit on 6/3/2008 by ArMaP]

Linux / UNIX and Mac systems are NOT nessesarily better. I've been dual booting Linux and Windows for the past 6 years. Not one BSOD. Not one successful hack. Not a single issue.

And let's be truthful here. Do you REALLY think it's impossible to hack Linux? Maybe for script kiddies, but if USA were using Linux then it wouldn't chance anything. China would still of easily hacked it. Linux is generally only more secure to script-kiddies, rather than REAL hackers.... And it's not like it's hard to block script kiddies either.

I would be hesitant to recommend people Free OS. You may not understand what there needs are. For example, unless someone comes up with clocking tools, low level fan control, and a way to run ALL Windows applications on a free OS, with _NO_ compatibility issues.... then I'm with XP.

Linux / UNIX and Mac systems are NOT nessesarily better. I've been dual booting Linux and Windows for the past 6 years. Not one BSOD. Not one successful hack. Not a single issue.

never heard of anyone ever having a problem with any of these. I personally haev had less problems with these OS's.

And let's be truthful here. Do you REALLY think it's impossible to hack Linux? Maybe for script kiddies, but if USA were using Linux then it wouldn't chance anything. China would still of easily hacked it. Linux is generally only more secure to script-kiddies, rather than REAL hackers.... And it's not like it's hard to block script kiddies either.

well being that its open source and kernels are being changed all the time... yes I would think that its would still be harder to hack. and since its open source, you can build your own kernel that no one knows about or has ever seen, browsed, networked with, etc... and you would never know how to attack it. thats the beauty of linux, its always changing because people care about how computers work.

158MB are enough to install Snort but the less disk space I use the better, Windows, like Unix, likes disk space, and the only time I saw a SCO Unix system on its knees and almost unrecoverable was when it was left without disk space after a bad mannered program grabbed too much.

well that sounds like a SYSAdmin issue, plus 158MB free? what kind of system are you running? your first computer ever built? 10GB of HDD space you can actually store about 4 fully functioning Operating systems, one being windows XP.

Oh and Linux can run windows applications and ones just like them...

Originally posted by Methuselah
well that sounds like a SYSAdmin issue, plus 158MB free? what kind of system are you running? your first computer ever built?

It's not the first, but it's a 10 or 11 years old computer with two small (I don't remember their sizes at the moment) disks that are both semi-broken, so I can only use the first half of one and the second half of the other.

I know that computers and computer parts are cheap these days (especially when bought with Euros ) but unfortunately I don't have any money to spend on hardware (that is why I am using Windows Vista on a 5 years old computer).

reply to post by emile


This is just to add a confirmation of what you said:

Avast! does not detect or stop Trojans.

I tested it myself last week and it did nothing while I installed a Trojan (I don't remember its name) and it did nothing after.

I had to remove the Trojan manually.