I would welcome some advice on what virus protection I should use. I have a Windows 98 OS and I use Firefox. I am aware of the fact that it can be vulnerable but changing to a better OS - possibly Linux is not really on the cards. I have been using avast! but I get the impression that it does so much computing that it could well be the cause of the very slow response to typing that occurs on occasions. I also have Ad-Aware and Spybot which I run occasionally. There is also CCleaner which I have not used recently. I probably should use just one and become familiar with its capabilities.CCleaner is good for clearing the crap (thus the name) from your system, but does no real-time protection. I recommend it for light system housekeeping - but that is it.

Avast! is really heavy like AVG and is a menace on resources - especially on RAM. I would go for the lightest AV you can get - depending on your surfing habits. If you download a lot of stuff, you need something ROBUST. I would visit TrendMicro and see what they have. SpyBot is one of the best free adware you can get - but Ad-Aware is usually sufficient and would be my only preference.

I am a STICKLER for resource conservation, so I go as light as I can go and avoid pirate software, cracks and so forth.

This is a good rule for anyone to follow: If you ever get a scareware message box saying 'your computer is INFECTED, etc.' Calmly close the browser using TASK MANAGER. Click on nothing. Behave as though your browser just crashed. You can save a lot of trouble from java TROJANS that try to get in that way. They call it scareware for a reason.I will get rid of Avast! I do not do a lot of downloads. It is mainly email. I will use CCleaner to get rid of crap then do Ad-Aware regularly. Thanks for that advice. I as slow to respond because I was not advised that there had been a reply even though I clicked on the reply box.Quote

Avast! is really heavy like AVG and is a menace on resources - especially on RAM. I would go for the lightest AV you can get