Infopackets Reader Donna E. writes:

" Dear Dennis,

My subscription to Norton AntiVirus is about to expire and I am thinking about switching to a different software company for my virus protection. I have done some reading on the Internet, but I am still not sure of which products are the best. I have Windows XP Professional on my computer and use DSL for my Internet connection. PS: Thanks for all of your wonderful advice in the newsletter! "

My response:

I personally use Symantec Norton AntiVirus on my system, largely because Symantec has an excellent reputation for quickly implementing fixes to newly-discovered virus threats. If you're thinking about moving to a freeware antivirus solution, you might want to try Grisoft AVG or Avast! AntiVirus.

The newest version of Grisoft AVG "free edition" can download virus definition updates on a scheduled basis (defined by the user) which helps you to stay up-to-date.Grisoft AVG comes highly recommended by a number of users that I've talked to in the past.

The Avast! AntiVirus web site also boasts that their "Home Edition" (free for non-commercial use) includes an automatic update mechanism. I haven't personally tried Avast!, but you're welcome to research the 'net to see what others are saying.

http://free.grisoft.com

http://www.avast.com/eng/avast_4_home2.html

PS: You can also research other freeware antivirus solutions using Google.