Norton's Internet Security (Symantec Norton Internet Security 2004)

Member Name: johnnyho

Product:	Symantec Norton Internet Security 2004
Date:	22/02/05 (348 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Decent protection, Updates easy to obtain and install

Disadvantages: Expensive, Uses too many resources

I have been using Norton programs for a good few years now. And everytime a new edition comes out, they get worse. I first started using Norton Anti-virus in 2001, on a relatively fast computer back then. The program was fine, loaded up not too quicky but gave quite good protection and regular updates were easily downloaded (even on a dial up connection) and installed. It was when I got a broadband connection at home when I decided that I required a firewall. So I browsed the internet looking for one. I got Norton personal firewall 2002 in the end, as I had a decent experience with the antivirus. Everything worked fine, slowed down the startup and overall running of the computer slightly, but I sort of expected this anyway.

It was when both the antivirus and the firewall's subscriptions ran out that I decided not to just pay for the extra year subscription but to get the new package, Norton Internet Security 2004. How wrong I was.

Installation was a bit of a bitch, as the old programs had to be removed manually as it would not install properly if you just went over it. After uninstalling the two old programs, I was able to install it. Installation was quite simple, just the same as any other installation. After installation, I had to restart the computer. I noticed that the computer took much longer to boot up, nearly twice the amount of time. I put this down to the new program had just been installed, and didn't think twice about it.

Once my computer started up, Norton got me to run Liveupdate, a program installed with Norton to retreive updates from the symantec website. This was relatively simple, but took quite a long time and the files I noticed were a lot bigger. Maybe because there were more virus definitions or whatever, but you will probably need broadband to do it easily.

After the liveupdate, the computer still seemed like it was slowed down. Start ups always still took much longer than they used to. The program itself I think does work, but it needs to be constantly updated. Norton is also very annoying as it requires you to run a full system scan quite regularly.

Maybe symantec decided to make it like this as it was expected to run on much quicker machines than the older programs, but it still used a lot of system resources. The firewall also has some sort of pop-up blocker, so on certain websites, you must disable the firewall and reload the page. Not very useful.

If anyone is looking for a antivirus and firewall, I suggest that you do not purchase Norton. I have also heard the McAfee is also not too good now. But have heard good things about Panda's suite. Maybe give them a try. I probably will when my subscription for Norton runs out.

Overall, a useful program that helps protect you against viruses and attacks. But slows your computer down too much. Also, very expensive for what it is.

Summary: