Antivirus software

[Adcadet]

What do ya'all think of antivirus software. I get Symantec for free from my school, but it insists on running all the time and sucking up RAM. Are the free ones any good? I was thinking about AVG and Avast. Maybe I'll just reinstall Symantec and try to trick it into not running all the freaking time.

 

[Fushigi]

I've been using the free AVG for sometime without any problems. On the pay front, I use CounterSpy for anti-spyware. $30 for a year subscription for 2 PCs.

Symantec is a virus. Try uninstalling it and then scanning the registry for the dozens of configuration turds it leaves behind.

 

[CougTek]

I run NOD32 for virus and Adaware for spyware. I never find virus, but I stumble on a spyware peice once a month on average.

Adaware is free, NOD32 is only free if you know a certain files mirror...

 

[Santilli]

What's the speed of the computer you are running on? McAfee made the P2 400mhz unusable.

I'm running Penicillin, from TrendMicro on my main machine, and, even though it's expensive, and minorly annoying, it really works.

NOD32 seems fine.

GS

 

[Handruin]

I've installed NOD32 on several machines. That's been my choice for AV these days.

 

[Tannin]

NOD32 is quite a lot too expensive here in Oz. Otherwise I'd have tried it out long since - too many smart people here have recommended it. Trend Micro is good, well-priced, and is only anoying in some minor ways. Besides, I use their superb Housecall service all the time, so I like to see a few dollars going back their way, all else being equal.

Vet is OK, but not as good as it used to be before CA bought it. Finally, we sometimes use Norman Anti-virus. It works just fine. Alas, like Trend Micro AV (and like most of the others too, it seems), when it comes to resubscribe time, the hoops you have to jump through are just too obnoxious and difficult for most ordinary users to cope with. the AV companies really need to get their act together on this one.

Which one do I use? I use Mercutio Anti-virus and Spyware. Best product on the market for savvy users (which includes everyone here). Use a hardware firewall, don't mess with Kazaa and similar dodgy stuff, don't open dodgy emails, don't surf with IE. That's it: finito. I check once every month or three with Housecall, but never find anything.

PS: McAfee is pox.
PPS: Symantec products generally and their AV products in particular are pox with the puss running out and turning green.

 

[Buck]

NOD32 - antivirus


PS: Tony, what's the price of NOD32 in Australia?

 

[Mercutio]

I think Mcaffee is several steps worse than Symantec.
And Symantec is pretty bad.

I support Symantec Corporate, which I don't like, but use for some of my clients and at my trainer job. I like Kapersky just fine, and I've been glad to use that as well. I provide AVG free on many of the computers I build.

And for myself I continue to not use any of the above, because they all basically suck.

 

[Tannin]

Can't remember the price exactly, Buck, but after several glowing recommendations here on Storage Forum (not least yours) I tracked down the local distributors intending to try it but found that it was out of the question, commercially speakng. I think there was maybe $5 or $10 difference between my buy price and a realistic retail selling price. By the time you pay freight and finance charges, then install it on someone's machine, that's not viable.

Most retail AV products sell for $99 or $95. You can't try to sell a 12 month AV product for $120 - people won't pay that much. In any case, we sell a 10 to 1 mix of OEM A/V as opposed to retail. We are, after all, a hardware shop, so most of the people who come to see us are buying a new system or an upgrade. This makes theTrend Micro (and one or two other) OEM AV products at around half the price of the retail ones vastly more attractive.

If NOD32 had a competitively priced OEM product, I'd be glad to try it. (Though I have to say that Trend Micro is a product I'm more than happy to sell.)

 

[Buck]

Makes sense Tannin. Although, I don't resell NOD32. After the machine is setup, I help the customer purchase and install it online. They end up paying the same $39.00USD that I would, plus it is registered in their name, hence it will be easier for them to update when the annual subscription expires.

 

[Handruin]

In the US, NOD32 is reduced in price for renewals at $27.30 USD which seems OK.

For Australia (via their website) the initial price is $64.50 for 12 months and $45.15 for a renewal. Is that more or less than your price Tony? They mention resellers on their website, but no specifics. Send them an e-mail and ask what it would take to resell their product directly. maybe it will be better than your distributer. Granted, if you're happy with your current products, then it probably isn't worth the hassle.

Much like Mercutio, I don't normally run AV on my systems. However the other day I was walking my sister through the install over the phone and I installed it on my system so that I could guide her through it. I've left it on my machine and barely notice any performance degradation.

As for McAfee...performance sucks, we use it at work and I hate it. Norton has proved to be useless on more than one situation. I've had to deal with a couple norton-didn't-stop-the-known-virus support phone calls.

 

[Bung]

The NZ price is around $70, Aus is about $65 with discount for subsequent years. Even allowing for local taxes and exchange rates there's a gap. Maybe the local resellers are paying the US$39 equivalent.

I haven't checked whether the Nod site refuses sales where CC details don't match region.

 

[Tannin]

I can't remember the details now, people, just that I checked out the main website a few months back, followed their links to wholesale suppliers (or found them some other way, can't remember), and the numbers didn't add up. Maybe they have dropped their prices now? I'll look into it next time I need some A/V stock. (Early next year, I imagine, I have enough Trend and Norman to last till about the start of Feb.)

 

[e_dawg]

NOD32 and PCcillin are the two best choices so I've heard. Myself, I use AVG Free 7.1 on all my personal computers.

 

[time]

Handy's NDO32 pricing for Australia is correct. However, as Bung pointed out, there is a discrepancy between Oz pricing and the rest of the world, although not to the extent that Tannin's drug-induced hazy recollection seems to indicate (too much Tea).

I have been a NOD32 reseller for a couple of years, and know a bit about the distribution here. The guy who does it pushed NOD32 hard in the early days and gave Eset some exposure. He certainly doesn't pay more than other distributors - the opposite is more likely. It actually goes further than the markup: quantity breaks aren't as good and there are related pricing policies which are a little unusual. Based on my personal experiences with him, I think he marks it up because he's an arrogant, greedy asshole - just my personal opinion, of course.

As for support, it's a case of: what support? If you can contact him by phone, he's technically quite useless. As a reseller, you get no better access to online support than end users, and that's not great, consisting largely of peer support in public forums on Wilders.

The margin is 30% on new sales, which are made by making an individual funds transfer for each customer and emailing the receipt in an email with a predefined format. After a delay of about a day, you get an emailed response with a licence key. You'll also have to download the latest non-trial version of the software, install it on the customer's PC, enter their licence key, and download the latest updates (partly to check it's working).
Less bank fees, you gross AU$17.

Renewals cost 30% less than the initial purchase, and reseller margin is reduced to 20%. This translates to about AU$7.60 gross profit, which I find doesn't cover the time to essentially repeat the whole process (new licence key, etc).

On top of this, the fact that the pricing IS over the odds, combined with a 10% tax that customers DON"T have to pay when buying from an overseas website, means you can't really compete on price. Instead of AU$65, the customer only has to fork out about AU$53.

It gets worse with multiple licences: even without the tax, a customer with 7 users to renew can buy better retail from an overseas website (eg New Zealand) than I can buy wholesale. :boom:

However, it's still gives me less hassle than any other A/V program, so I continue to recommend it. Whether I bother to resell it is questionable.

 

[Handruin]

My impression was that this isn't a piece of software you resell to actually make money on, but rather you include with one of your quality machines as part of your complete package. If the end result is less viruses, better performance, and low maintenance, then even if you break even (or take a small loss), you'll still end up with a happier customer.

 

[Tannin]

making an individual funds transfer for each customer and emailing the receipt in an email with a predefined format. After a delay of about a day, you get an emailed response with a licence key. You'll also have to download the latest non-trial version of the software, install it on the customer's PC, enter their licence key, and download the latest updates (partly to check it's working).

Not a hope in hell.

I take it you are serious, Time. All that bullshit paperwork for one lousy software sale?

Never in a million, million years. Hell would freeze over first. I wouldn't consider a procedure like that for a product worth five times that much. Who TF are they kidding? I simply can't believe that any company would operate that way.

Hey - Norman Anti-virus, when they first started distributing in Australia, had a procedure where you had to make one call to complete the installation. I bought five of the product, then discovered the bullshit telephone requirement. I don't have time for this shit. When my distributor called to ask if I wanted to buy more, I said "no way".

Result #1: the next day, Norman's distributor called me direct, listened to my point of view, and saw it my way. If you buy a copy of Norman Anti-virus now the telephone registration bullshit is nothing but a faded memory.

Result #2: we are happy to sell it.


It's called "customer feedback". Successful businesses know about it. Failures don't do it.

NOD can stick their business where the sun don't shine. Absolutely no way we would take crap like that. Ever.

 

[Tannin]

Trend Micro procedure:

1: Install software, entering 16-digit licence key printed on the box
2: Reboot. Right click, select "update now"

That's it. Finito.

Customer registration with Trend is something the customer can do at his own convenience. The customer is also in a better position than I am to know how to do this: i.e., he probably actually knows his name and address and email address and all that stuff you have to put on registration forms. How am I supposed to know that stuff? Getting the retailer to do that sh*t is totally out of court.