You now need an Antivirus program installed to use Windows Update - Sensationalist Headlines

I can't remember the last time I ever searched for an Antivirus, fucking Defender is THAT good.

[QUOTE=Gbps;53039128]Av-test rates Norton as one of the best on the market with almost a perfect score. I consider Norton a form of malware, so it's no surprise our opinions on that differ :v:[/QUOTE] Have you actually used it recently? I used it 10 years ago and it used as much as 500-1000mb ram, it now uses 30 at most and has a money back guarantee if you're not satisfied. Other than seeing some mods with injection .dll files as harmful (which you just add to an exception) it actually outperforms most premium Av's. I don't use it myself anymore because I'm not paying but I was happy with it.

[QUOTE=Starship;53040113]Have you actually used it recently? I used it 10 years ago and it used as much as 500-1000mb ram, it now uses 30 at most and has a money back guarantee if you're not satisfied. Other than seeing some mods with injection .dll files as harmful (which you just add to an exception) it actually outperforms most premium Av's. I don't use it myself anymore because I'm not paying but I was happy with it.[/QUOTE] I haven't used it recently (for obvious reasons) but I figure the reason is that the memory usage is now spread out across the executable itself, the scanner service, the kernel driver, and any office/email/browser plugins it installs. All those tentacles cost CPU cycles as well. In order to do everything that they still advertise, I don't see it being all that different. Perhaps you don't realize how much extra resource you have to spare 10 years later? Also, money-back guarantee isn't a big deal because their marketing target point is convincing your grandma that it's working, not anyone who understands tech.

[QUOTE=Reflex F.N.;53039073]I had been using Windows from the age of 3 till the age of 19, then I decided to switch to GNU/Linux just to try it out. It's been two years since that time and I am still using GNU/Linux. Honestly, if you use Ubuntu, the first month is the only hard part, but then you'll get the hang of it. I got most Windows programs to work properly using Wine, but I still have Windows dual-booted because I use it for gaming, and only gaming; I don't use it for anything else. It also taught me so much about how operating systems work and how computer networks work. If you want to be a power-user, you'll have to get your hands dirty a bit more than on Windows, so you will learn a lot of things about how things work. I started with Ubuntu, which makes things really simple, and if you don't plan on being a power-user, you will rarely have to get your hands dirty, except if you encounter errors, but the Linux community are very helpful, and you'll generally find that someone has already encountered that problem you're having and you'll find exact instructions on how to fix it on websites like AskUbuntu, LinuxQuestions, etc So, if you are considering Linux, I really recommend it, but be ready for a challenging, but really fun, first month. [editline] edit [/editline] If you already know how or have a general idea about how operating systems work, then you will have a much easier time. But for me, I had no idea about how operating systems work when I got into it. I was never interested in how an OS works till I started using it, so it got me interested in the topic. I bought the book Operating Systems Concepts by Abraham Silberschatz a few months ago and am currently reading it.[/QUOTE] As you can see, this is what happens when you do Linux :v: It's a gateway drug.

You *could* just install the microcode update. [url]https://downloadcenter.intel.com/download/27431/Linux-Processor-Microcode-Data-File[/url]

Is windows update a virus now?

I'm the IT-support of my entire family-tree and beyond, and I usually just activate Defender, install Chrome and uBlock on it. None of my apparently brain-damaged relatives have gotten ANY viruses at all (I check them regularly because they need help for things like adding favorites to their browser etc.) so I'm happy with that.

[QUOTE=Mega1mpact;53040421]You *could* just install the microcode update. [url]https://downloadcenter.intel.com/download/27431/Linux-Processor-Microcode-Data-File[/url][/QUOTE] Meltdown can't be fixed with microcode, you need both the microcode and OS level fixes to be secure from both spectre and meltdown.

[QUOTE=SgtTupelo;53040690]I'm the IT-support of my entire family-tree and beyond, and I usually just activate Defender, install Chrome and uBlock on it. None of my apparently brain-damaged relatives have gotten ANY viruses at all (I check them regularly because they need help for things like adding favorites to their browser etc.) so I'm happy with that.[/QUOTE] Pretty much this for me aswell. Altho my relatives still manage to fuck things up, because they browse a lot of russian malware bloated sites and blindly tend to install and run just about anything they get on screen.

[QUOTE=Mega1mpact;53040421]You *could* just install the microcode update. [url]https://downloadcenter.intel.com/download/27431/Linux-Processor-Microcode-Data-File[/url][/QUOTE] The Registry key is still probably easier (I made up a command line string for those wanting to use it "the easy way") as at least you can roll back Windows if something goes wrong with the update. Not so much with a direct CPU microcode update.

Interesting, in the other thread I got shit for not wanting to install an AV, but this one seems to agree on "AV does fuck all"

Last I checked, while Defender has gotten "worse" relatively, it hasn't gotten worse in absolute terms over the years - other AV developers have simply been spurred to do better. Which was the point of the original MSE if I'm not mistaken. I think Defender is "good enough" for most users.

[QUOTE=GoDong-DK;53042670]Last I checked, while Defender has gotten "worse" relatively, it hasn't gotten worse in absolute terms over the years - other AV developers have simply been spurred to do better. Which was the point of the original MSE if I'm not mistaken. I think Defender is "good enough" for most users.[/QUOTE] What has Defender done that you think has made it worse?

[QUOTE=damnatus;53041875]Interesting, in the other thread I got shit for not wanting to install an AV, but this one seems to agree on "AV does fuck all"[/QUOTE] Sorry that nobody thinks you're hot shit for not using an anti virus

[QUOTE=Reflex F.N.;53039073]I had been using Windows from the age of 3 till the age of 19, then I decided to switch to GNU/Linux just to try it out. It's been two years since that time and I am still using GNU/Linux. Honestly, if you use Ubuntu, the first month is the only hard part, but then you'll get the hang of it. I got most Windows programs to work properly using Wine, but I still have Windows dual-booted because I use it for gaming, and only gaming; I don't use it for anything else. It also taught me so much about how operating systems work and how computer networks work. If you want to be a power-user, you'll have to get your hands dirty a bit more than on Windows, so you will learn a lot of things about how things work. I started with Ubuntu, which makes things really simple, and if you don't plan on being a power-user, you will rarely have to get your hands dirty, except if you encounter errors, but the Linux community are very helpful, and you'll generally find that someone has already encountered that problem you're having and you'll find exact instructions on how to fix it on websites like AskUbuntu, LinuxQuestions, etc So, if you are considering Linux, I really recommend it, but be ready for a challenging, but really fun, first month. [editline] edit [/editline] If you already know how or have a general idea about how operating systems work, then you will have a much easier time. But for me, I had no idea about how operating systems work when I got into it. I was never interested in how an OS works till I started using it, so it got me interested in the topic. I bought the book Operating Systems Concepts by Abraham Silberschatz a few months ago and am currently reading it.[/QUOTE] Just the fact you needed what it seemingly a long church induction testimonial that to explain why you prefer GNU now just reinforces that it's not ready for regular consumers.

[QUOTE=101kl;53042785]Just the fact you needed what it seemingly a long church induction testimonial that to explain why you prefer GNU now just reinforces that it's not ready for regular consumers.[/QUOTE] This is pretty faulty logic. If he had wrote the same amount about why he prefers Windows would that make Windows unfit for regular consumers?

[QUOTE=Chubbs;53042905]This is pretty faulty logic. If he had wrote the same amount about why he prefers Windows would that make Windows unfit for regular consumers?[/QUOTE] I don't think it was intended to be logical, he was just making a joke about how he said it took a long, tough time to learn Linux without giving a reason to switch.

The reason that I switched to Linux initially was W10's invasiveness (changing file asssociations, installing bloatware, ... ) and at that time updates could not be postponed indefinitely. I've been using it for a few years now (for my work) and in my humble opinion it is an inherently better system than Windows. 1) almost no reboots required for updates. 2)it is designed to be fast. 3) you are completely in control of everything., ... For private I use mac, because I wanted something Unix-like but without the whole hassle of software incompatibilities and tiny things that don't work, etc.

[QUOTE=Number-41;53043096]The reason that I switched to Linux initially was W10's invasiveness (changing file asssociations, installing bloatware, ... ) and at that time updates could not be postponed indefinitely. I've been using it for a few years now (for my work) and in my humble opinion it is an inherently better system than Windows. 1) almost no reboots required for updates. 2)it is designed to be fast. 3) you are completely in control of everything., ... For private I use mac, because I wanted something Unix-like but without the whole hassle of software incompatibilities and tiny things that don't work, etc.[/QUOTE] See I also love Linux. As a programmer, it's great and a lot easier to use than Windows (install things through the terminal and it just "works" instead of the runabout I've had with Windows doing the same thing) [B][I]BUT [/I][/B]the critical issue for me is the lack of support on Linux Vs. Windows. Quite a few programs I use are Windows only, or the Windows version is just better overall. I tried using Visual Studio on my Linux box and it refused to work at all (VS being the best C++ IDE I've used in a long time for example). If the support was better (it's getting better but not quite there yet) I could see a lot more people moving over but until then.... most will just dual boot with Windows being their primary OS (like myself).

[QUOTE=joshuadim;53039133]What's wrong with Avast?[/QUOTE] Avast has slowly devolved into nagware and they've been caught inserting stuff into e-mails (as someone already mentioned) as well as a couple other things that are generally unpalatable for an antivirus to be doing.

[QUOTE=joshuadim;53039133]What's wrong with Avast?[/QUOTE] We use it at work (why i don't know). They added a "secure vpn browser" automatically installed on your PC which of course is just fucking chromium with all sorts of shit baked into it They randomly decide to block websites without any notice (it's a pain in the ass trying to access a network device by IP and have it just refuse to work until I found out it was avast (after like 2 hours)) They nag the everloving shit out of you like other 'fake' antiviruses did ("You have XXX amount of unsecured passwords!!!@!@#!!" or "Your credit card information could be leaked!") It's just absolute fucking trash now.

You got shit because not having an antivirus is fucking idiotic. Nobody here is saying to not have an antivirus. Most of us are just using the one that comes with windows.

Bitdefender is pretty much the best free one IMO - the only ever hassle it gives is a yearly popup when their new commercial version gets released. No other nagging or god forbid adverts like Avast does...

Well for one, they removed quick scan and replaced with a memory scan type thing and that one doesn't pick on all viruses and the last time I tried installing to do a quick check of my pc, well basically i couldn't run it, it was running in the background but it was a completely frozen state I couldn't even uninstall it properly I have no idea what they are doing, 2016 avast was perfection.

They'll also charge you double the price of you don't cancel the subscription and manually rebuy it

Mhhhm, double the price of the free edition?

Whoops didn't read the free part, my fault.

What if we just use MSE? I don't like using shitty AVs when I literally don't download shit off the internet. Also I use sandboxie for browsing.