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Used by the professionals and the amateurs, everyone who has ever been online no matter how new has heard of Norton Anti Virus. From the time Mr. Norton graced the box to the present, this has always been the premier application in anti virus software. Consistently earning high marks for accuracy and ease of updating, as well as frequency, beating out Symantec’s star performer has not been easy. This is with good reason. While there are excellent applications on the market, time and time again Symantec does it well. This is particularly true with the e–mail integration scanning.
On the surface not much has changed between this rendition and previous ones. Last year’s edition looks amazingly familiar. However there are some major additions to the program. The first is improved scanning of compressed files. All previous versions of Norton Anti Virus could scan compressed files like zip files only during manual scans. NAV’s new real time scanner finds and now deletes hidden viruses as they are being downloaded. This is a much sought after feature that I know users have been clamoring for to be incorporated into NAV. In the 2004 version, it is here.
The second big new feature is the ability to detect and destroy spyware, adware and other similar hacking tools that have found their way to your hard drive. Always wanting to be the first, this is the first time I have ever seen anti spyware incorporated into an anti virus application. While this feature may not be as comprehensive as the potent Spybot or Lavasoft’s AdAware, one cannot fault Symantec for trying. While I doubt if this feature can be a replacement for dedicated applications, for those that want to save time and space, this is certainly preferable to nothing at all.
New positive points for Symantec is that NAV is now just as fast as McAfee’s offering. This is a big time first. However, NAV does require more system resources than McAfee. However if it is not running in full automatic scan mode, some system overhead can be decreased. As it has always been with NAV, it does require some system resources to run. On the good side, the impact is not major.
The slight loss in system performance is offset by NAV’s accuracy. When it comes to hitting the viruses, Norton Anti Virus 2004 still edges out others in that arena. In addition, they have always been excellent when it comes to issuing updates to combat new threats.
Just like last year’s model, setting up options and preferences is the same as before. The interface is relatively intuitive, but one does have to go through some menus to find specific functions. By default, NAV comes out of the box ready to run at full strength. If you wish to adjust this, you can during installation. My approach has been to go for full strength protection, and then back off if it is more than you need.
For those with broadband and constantly on connections, the advantages of a full strength virus scanner running at all times at full levels can be a positive. This is even more so when coupled with a solid performer like Zone Alarm as a firewall.
Another change that users will encounter with NAV 2004 is the active activation process. Once the program is installed, you will be promoted to register it online. Should you fail to do so, the program will stop working fifteen days after installation.
Certainly this is an inconvenience, but on the pro side, Symantec is not too picky about multiple installs, provided you do not go crazy and try installing one program on more than three machines at one time. The concept behind this is to stop piracy and end repeated installs on multiple systems. The way it is implemented is to discourage large scale abuse. Certainly it is not something most end users want to go through, but when the policy is reasonable and allows for at least one application to sit on at least three machines, that does not seem out of bounds.
Every since I began computing, anti virus software has been in two camps. NAV on one side and McAfee on the other. When it comes down to details, e–mail integration, accuracy, updates and ease of use, Symantec’s application has an advantage. With the inclusion of scanning compressed downloads on the fly, spyware removal, faster times and their superior e–mail integration scanning with Outlook and Outlook Express, it is hard not to find a real flaw with this consistently impressive program. While I have yet to see what McAfee has done with their new version, NAV has once again produced a solid performer.
With anti virus software each year brings a new version. Experience has taught me that it is better to simply upgrade the entire program, which means buying a new one every year, rather than simply updating the profiles list for viruses. The engines always improve every year and in terms of real life experience, just budget every year for a new software package. With many applications you can get by from year to year with the same one. When it comes to firewalls, anti spam software and virus protection, plan on updating annually.
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