Buying Guide - Software
Please check back later as we post the results of our recent consumer-grade protection software. Preliminary results:
- Zone Alarm Pro: Still the top dog in software-based firewall programs. It's a pain to train (and many folks neglect to run the very informative tutorial, so they miss out on the best tips to use ZAP well), but worth it in the end.
- Norton Internet Security 2005: Much-needed improvements to this all-in-one suite allow us to give it a thumbs-up for folks who don't want to deal with multiple programs. But watch out, the anti-spyware capabilities are still limited. We recommend you team this product with Webroot Spy Sweeper.
- Webroot Spy Sweeper: Fast and thorough, but still doesn't catch everything. We recommend you add a 2nd program (such as Ad-Aware SE Personal, or Spybot Search & Destroy) for weekly scans to catch what Spy Sweeper misses. But even if you don't, Spy Sweeper gives you reasonably good protection (full-time) against the mass of spyware poised to creep into your computer.
Some general recommendations:
- IBM notebook and desktop PCs (primarily for reliability, and much better tech support than Dell!)
- Maxtor One-Touch external hard drives for backup
- Sony DVD burners
- HP iPAQ Pocket PCs
- Netgear ProSafe security routers
- Cisco PIX and Sonicwall SOHO and Pro series firewalls
- We like Tom's Hardware Guide as another source for advice on the newest hardware and software.
- Microsoft Windows XP (Home or Professional) with Service Pack 2
- Microsoft Office 2003 (especially Outlook 2003)
- Norton Antivirus
- Zone Alarm (basic, Plus, or Pro)
- Ad-Aware (basic, Plus or Pro)
- Spybot Search and Destroy (beware of imitators)
- Pest Patrol
- Webroot Spy Sweeper
- Surfwatch
- We like the reviews at ZDNet for advice on consumer computer software