Anthony A

You can add filters to Opera but there are no widgets for ad blocking. Look here for filters. http://my.opera.com/Tamil/blog/ad-block Some pages just don't work well in Opera. I don't come across many anymore but there are still a few. One thing you can try is to change how Opera identifies it's self. When you find a page that doesn't load properly right click a select "Edit Site Preferences" In the dialog that opens select the "Network Tab". At the bottom you we see a selection box to change how Opera identifies it's self. Try changing it to FireFox or IE.

Well there is a good reason to dump it

I can assure you that isn't normal. FF is a hog but not like that. That guy probably hasn't shut down FF in a month or he has 500 hundred extensions installed but that isn't normal even for FF.

FireFox uses the most memory of the 7 browsers I have installed.

Why?

Where do you live that you have all this video surveillance?

A few thoughts on the new AVG 8. I read the help file, all 100 + pages of it. http://www.grisoft.cz/filedir/doc/AVG_Free...uma_en_80_1.pdf After doing so I find AVG 8 to be very similar to AVG 7.5. They changed some graphics but the basic structure is very similar and in fact better laid out IMO. As for bulk/footprint. When I first read the size of the install was 46 MB I was thinking bloat. Than I thought about it. The AVG 7.5 installer was 35 MB download. It DID NOT include AVG AS as the the new AVG AV does. AVG AS was separate download and was 15 or 20 MB. So if you used AVG AV and AVG AS you are actually getting a smaller package now. Also when I look at the footprint of an app I don't just look at it's physical size on the HD. I look at how many processes it runs and how much CPU and RAM it sucks from my machine.You could have a tiny app that takes up only a few MB of disk space bit it is a massive resource hog. AVG 7.5 was very light on resources and I haven't heard anything different about AVG AV 8 yet. Many people here used AVG AS. As you know it was only a scanner. No real time protection in the free version. It now appears that you get the real time AVG AS protection built in to the AVG AV 8 for free. There are not may free real time Anti Spyware apps available. Windows Defender and Spyware Terminator are the two I'm aware off. The only real negative I see with AVG AV 8 is the tool bar which is totally optional.

Go with the two I linked or the Panda one. All 3 do not require an install.

Here are two more. Both are no install apps. F-Secure Black Light. Link is at the bottom of the page http://www.f-secure.com/security_center/ Trend Micro Rootkit Buster http://www.trendmicro.com/download/rbuster.asp

AntiVir rates higher than AVG and Avast for detection rates from what I have been reading but it's updates are a PITA and there is a nag screen. If AVG is that bad I will have to try AntiVir any ways.

I agree with the tool bar feedback but having said that I use the Google Tool Bar on both FireFox and IE7 and I like it. Has many nice features. It's the only tool bar I have ever installed because as mentioned most are just junk.

Virtual partition and disk cache are two different things. When Returnil virtualizes your system it can do it in two methods. One is on the disk (disk cache). The other is in RAM (memory). The virtual disk partition is a different thing.

This is one program I recommend reading the help thoroughly before installing. Returnil has finally smartened up and is now providing the help files on their site. When I first installed it they didn't. Pro version http://www.returnilvirtualsystem.com/index...tion-Manual.pdf Free version http://www.returnilvirtualsystem.com/index...tion-Manual.pdf

I agree. The new version has an option to use the disk as the virtualization method if you want but I prefer the memory option. Just so you know the 1.70 version will stop working for you after 2 years. The new version stops after one year. They force you to update. I read this today on the Returnil Forums on Castle Cops.

I don't like what I'm seeing and reading. RIP AVG AV you were very good at one time.

I use both.

I use Opera (currently 9.5 beta 2). I found most of the widgets useless but I did find a nice weather one but it was constantly crashing Opera so I dumped it. It crashed both 9.27 and 9.5 beta.

I am interested in hearing some reviews. The download is 46 MB I was reading over the documentation and the free version is really stripped down compared to the paid version. In 7.5 there isn't that much difference between the paid and the free version.

Well that is sad. Now we have lost Ad-Aware and AVG AS. Ad Aware 2007 is not good and unless you use AVG AV you lose the AVG AS.

This crap does not sound good to me. The pop ups I have been getting from AVG were a sign of things to come with AVG. How is the new version resource wise.? How many processes running and how much RAM? How fast are the scans?

Might want to read this. http://msmvps.com/blogs/chrisl/archive/2004/07/04/9546.aspx

I can handle the odd pop up to especially if I get to use a very nice app like AVG AV for free. The browser hi jacking I will not tolerate though. It only happened once but if it happens again AVG is gone.

Explorer is not Internet Explorer. Explorer is part of your operating system and you need it to run.

If I have to pay thats the one I would probably get too.

That just leaves Avast if you want to go free ware. Than if they start with the pop up BS we are screwed