Posted: 10/20/2009 7:27:40 PM EDT
Ok guys, please don't ridicule me, for I know next to nothing of computers and i'm only in my 20's  . I have never really been concerned with computer security but here lately i want to update my computer to protect myself and my machine. My computer (a Dell Inspiron 5150 laptop with windows XP) came with Norton/Symantec something or the other program on it but it expired a long time ago and i even have to disable the security to allow my computer to communicate with my wireless router. Is there a good program i can download or do i have to buy one (i checked the norton icon that pops up and it wants me to buy a subscription to their service).
Would the download or purchase of the program allow me to run some sort of checkup on my machine to delete any potentially harmful stuff? Any answers are greatly appreciated and i'm sorry for being computer retarded 
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Ok guys, please don't ridicule me, for I know next to nothing of computers and i'm only in my 20's . I have never really been concerned with computer security but here lately i want to update my computer to protect myself and my machine. My computer (a Dell Inspiron 5150 laptop with windows XP) came with Norton/Symantec something or the other program on it but it expired a long time ago and i even have to disable the security to allow my computer to communicate with my wireless router. Is there a good program i can download or do i have to buy one (i checked the norton icon that pops up and it wants me to buy a subscription to their service).
Would the download or purchase of the program allow me to run some sort of checkup on my machine to delete any potentially harmful stuff? Any answers are greatly appreciated and i'm sorry for being computer retarded You don't want to run 2 AntiVirus programs. You may need to go to the Symantec site to get a utility to remove it. Then for AV I'd look at NOD32 for a paid product or for Free, I'd look at Avira AntiVir, Avast or AVG. More products now are starting to combine AV with malware detection with perhaps even a firewall. I'm more of a purist and run separate components myself. http://service1.symantec.com/Support/tsgeninfo.nsf/docid/2005033108162039?OpenDocument&seg=hm&lg=en&ct=us http://www.eset.com/ http://www.free-av.com/ http://www.avast.com/ http://free.avg.com/ That takes care of virii. For Spyware & malware it's OK to run multiples as one probably won't catch everything. For Malware, I look to Malware Bytes AntiMalware, Spybot Search & Destroy and Super AntiSpyware. In some cases you might need to donwload specialty cleaners, but these should be a decent start and they all have free versions. http://www.malwarebytes.org/mbam.php http://www.safer-networking.org/ http://www.superantispyware.com/ I'd also suggest to keep fairly up to date on running Windows updates so the OS is patched (although I don't always practice what I preach e.g haven't applied SP3 since it will break some of my software). Although you have a router, you may also want to consider throwing in a software firewall too...I wouldn't run the windows firewall but would try something free like Comodo, Outpost or Online Armor. http://update.microsoft.com http://www.matousec.com/projects/proactive-security-challenge/results.php#products-ratings Some might feel these gets too complex for a computer neophyte, so see what the others have to say...as I'm sure others will have their own favorites...and remember this information is worth twice the amount you paid for it! 
And...I hope you've got your wireless connection protected running something like WPA or WPA2 |
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That thing would be shit-hot running Ubuntu. I like Ubuntu. To the OP, if you want to try it first, you can download a "Live" CD image and boot from the CD to see how Ubuntu is going to look and feel without worrying about an install. Most of the virus and spyware creators target windows so you not likely to pick up much, if anything when running Linux. Unfortunately all programs youwant to run may not have a Linux version available. |
| My biggest gripe is that theres no Media Monkey for Linux. I never did try running it off of a disk. I just installed it on an ancient PC I had laying around to try it. Good advice though. Ubuntu is definitely not for everyone but you're young enough that you should recover from the initial shock of switching. |
| Microsoft Security Essentials - free, low overhead, and effective. |
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alright, thanks guys for your help. For starters i got rid of that shitty norton program, i looked and it expired in 2005 . I downloaded the antivir program and i'll see how it does for now.
Are there any other programs you recommend i download? I saw someone mentioned a malware/spyware thing, is this essential? |
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I used to recommend Avast, and still do, but Security Essentials works really nice. I am converting my home systems to Security Essentials |
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I replaced Avast with this, and have been very happy with it. |
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My biggest gripe is that theres no Media Monkey for Linux. I never did try running it off of a disk. I just installed it on an ancient PC I had laying around to try it. Good advice though. Ubuntu is definitely not for everyone but you're young enough that you should recover from the initial shock of switching. As far as I know there isn't a unified all-in-one multimedia tool. Mplayer comes close, though. All the parts ARE there however, it just needs a front end. |