[Update: It looks like Avast has resolved the problem. Virus defs version 090719-0 do not have the problem. Right click the Avast icon in the system tray and go to the updating menu if you need to force the update. I removed the exclusion I had below and all was well.] I went to start Windows Live Photo Gallery a little while ago and Avast popped up a message that it was a generic trojan. I was 99% sure it was a false positive as I’d run the program earlier [...] Read the rest »
McAfee VirusScan Plus free with VMware Fusion – Overpriced
I’ve recently been casually looking at virus software to see what’s out there. My impression of McAfee overall is negative but I can no longer remember the specific reason why that is. It’s bundled with VMware Fusion so I figured since it was free I’ve give it a try. Now, I expect a few strings but McAfee was so egregious all its products are now dead to me. And since VMware’s branding was incorporated into the McAfee interface itself which implies they approved I’ll view them skeptically in the future. [...] Read the rest »
10 Favorite Macs Apps (that I don’t use enough)
Yesterday I wrote about my 10 Most Used Mac Apps according to Wakoopa. I was a little surprised by some of the apps that showed up on the list and a few apps I really like didn’t show up in the top 10. So these are the apps I wished were on, or expected to show up in, the top 10 list. In reverse order this time. 10. Quicken for Mac (aff) – I wouldn’t call this a favorite. It came with my first Mini so I used it. I [...] Read the rest »
Security Quest #1a: Introduction and Catching Up
I’ve been running another site called the Spam Chronicles which was last updated after Patch Tuesday in August. I’ve accepted that I don’t have time to keep both sites up to date. So, long story short – I’ll stop even thinking about updating the Spam Chronicles and will instead incorporate the new content here when it’s appropriate. The current Spam Chronicles will stay up, no reason to pull it down. When winter sets in I may find time to do a redesign. A new feature here will be the Security [...] Read the rest »
CA Gives Away Antivirus Software/USB Drive
I don’t know what it means CA thinks of their software but I’ve noticed that CA has been bundling their antivirus software with a 2GB USB drive and making it free after some rebates. As always, there’s some catches and hoops to go through. Several retailers are offering a competitive upgrade rebate of $40 along with a general CA rebate of $10 which means the $50 bundle can be had for the cost of shipping and tax (if they apply). You have to be willing to go through the hassle [...] Read the rest »
Avast Antivirus Sound Tip
I’ve noticed that people are complaining that Avast announcing “Virus database has been updated” is an annoying feature. A compaint I whole heartily agree with. Here’s how to turn that off: Start Avast AntiVirus Select Settings from the menu Select “Sounds” from the settings dialog Click the “Settings” button (or just check “disable all sounds” and be done with it, if that’s what you want.) In the “Program Events” window, scroll down until you find “avast! abtivirus”. These are all the Avast sounds. (Speaker icon means enabled) The first one [...] Read the rest »
Avast! Antivirus – Free Windows Anti-Virus Software
I avoided the “Must Have” label for this one but it was tough. If you don’t like your current AV software or are about to spend money on some you should look here first. Avast Personal Edition is free (for home/non-commercial use) and is complete anti-virus software that does well in independent tests. I use it on all my Windows machines and recommend it whenever I can. When I was looking for AV software a couple years ago Avast came to my attention because it had scored 100% in Virus [...] Read the rest »
