Ask A Geek

Q: Why am I having problems installing a free antivirus program on my computer?

A: The first thing we have to point out is that not all free antivirus programs are actually antivirus programs. Some are very bad pieces of software that will infect your system and cause you to have to reinstall everything to get things cleaned. Our current recommendations for free antivirus software is currently limited to Avast and AVG.There might be a few more out there that are good but we highly suggest you do a lot of research before installing any programs on your computer be it antivirus programs or even toolbars. Read the rest of this entry »

Q: My old computer crashed so bought a new one. As a project I decide to try to fix the old one my self. I bought a scrubber and cleaned the system, reinstalled Windows XP and it works fine. I want to install Ad-Aware Free & Advast Free. Is this a good choice? Do I need Both? Is there other security I should install?

Q: I have Norton Antivirus 2007 and Webroot Spy Sweeper 2007 installed on my home desktop computer, which uses Windows XP. I recently purchased a Dell XPS laptop for use while I am on assignment away from home. Can I use my Norton and Webroot software that I have on my home computer on my new laptop? Or do I have to purchase new software?

A: I can definitely answer your question. But first let me advise you that there is a superior alternative to Norton Antivirus. It is called Avast! Antivirus. I encourage you to take a look. Moving now to your question, the legal use of a computer program is governed by something known as a EULA (End User License Agreement). Each program has its own EULA. Sometimes, it is legal to use the same program on multiple computers. Other times, it is not.

For home and home office users, there are two different versions of Norton Antivirus 2007. There is the kind that can only be installed and used on one computer at any given time. Click here for an example of the single-user version. Then there is the kind that allows you to install the software on as many as three different computers. Click this to view the multi-user version. If your copy of Norton Antivirus 2007 was included with your desktop, chances are almost 100% that it is the single-user version. If you downloaded the program instead of purchasing it on CD, contact Symantec (the company that makes Norton software). As you can see from the previous two links, there is a large number 3 on the box of the multi-user version, while no such number appears on the single-user version.

The EULA for Webroot software is more obvious. Webroot provides a customer support article entitles Installing Webroot products on multiple computers. According to the information contained on that webpage, no purchasable Webroot software may be installed on more than one computer at any given time. In other words, you will need to purchase an additional software license for your Spy Sweeper software.

It is worth mentioning that Apple’s Mac OS X and Linux-based computers are currently immune to computer viruses, etc. You may wish to consider switching to one of those operating systems the next time you are in the market for a new computer.

Hopefully you have found this answer to be informative and helpful.