Need some laptop advice

[dislal]

I managed to get each of my kids their own laptop for christmas for a really good price I just need some advice on what to use for anti virus. I know this is probably a stupid question, but would I have to buy 3 anti virus things or can I use one on all 3 computers (you can tell I really need help)

Another thing I would like to know about is something to limit what the kids can access on the computer since we have wireless internet.

TIA

This is on the budget boards, because I really need this to be budget priced! Thanks

 

[angierae]

I believe both Vista and Windows 7 has built in parental controls you can set up. I haven't had to do it, but I know it's possible.

As for antivirus, a few programs out there will let you use it on multiple computers. We get our internet through Comcast, and they have a deal with Norton where we get it free on some number of computers (we're using it on 3, I don't know what the max is) so that might be worth looking into, too.

Other than that, there are some free ones out there but the one I've used in the past (AVG) has not been able to stop my 15 year old from getting a virus every freaking MONTH so we finally broke down and put Norton on it. (Her dad (my ex) had put AVG on it when he took her to buy it (with her money) and we'd been fixing virus after virus and finally I'd had enough.)

 

[dawson5]

I have three boys, all teenagers and have used AVG since early 2000's. Early on we had some issues, Trend Micro PC-cillin did decent but when it came time to renew we looked around more. Seriously, when I thought we have had a virus, we haven't. I have had some spy-ware issues and program conflicts but no viruses. The oldest is taking a computer programming class, AVG regularly flags his projects as a trojan, but other than that, I get clean scans.

I think key is to make sure it is set up correctly. I have AVG set to update daily and run a full scan daily. Also a good thing to run something for spyware (spybot search and destroy I've used in the past with good results).

Others on here have had great luck with Avast and Microsoft Security Essentials, both are free. I believe Avast is pretty well regarded by most PC mag blogs. I know AVG was and probably still is. I've put both on here, they both have done their jobs. I just prefer AVG, it works for us.

 

[pixiewings71]

In the past we used both Norton & McAfee, both were terrible, we got multiple viruses while using both! It was recommended by both DBF's and my IT supervisors at work that we use a free product called AVG. We have the AVG on our desktop and on DD14's laptop (her laptop was a hand me down from her Gpa). We've used AVG for years on the desktop with no problems.
When we bought the netbook and the new laptop we bought Kapersky from Best Buy, they installed it for us as well, which was nice. We've had no problems with the Kapersky but once the subscription runs out we will go with AVG.

 

[gacompguy]

I've been using Microsoft Security Essentials since it was released. The footprint of the software is so small you can't really tell it is running. My employer offers free antivirus software to employees from one of the major vendors; I usually recommend that people use Microsoft Security Essentials on their home PC's.

If you're looking for a way to filter your Internet service to keep your kids off inappropriate site, I would definitely recommend OpenDNS... which is completely free unless you want to pay $9.95 for the Family Pack.

 

[hambirg]

I second Microsoft Security Essentials. We picked up a nasty virus with AVG (even though we had used it for years with no problems.) My computer guy recommended MSE and I really like it so far.

I suggest installing Malwarebytes too.

 

[richmond282]

I've been using Microsoft Security Essentials since it was released. The footprint of the software is so small you can't really tell it is running. My employer offers free antivirus software to employees from one of the major vendors; I usually recommend that people use Microsoft Security Essentials on their home PC's.

If you're looking for a way to filter your Internet service to keep your kids off inappropriate site, I would definitely recommend OpenDNS... which is completely free unless you want to pay $9.95 for the Family Pack.

I second Microsoft Security Essentials. We picked up a nasty virus with AVG (even though we had used it for years with no problems.) My computer guy recommended MSE and I really like it so far.

I suggest installing Malwarebytes too.

I also use Microsoft Security Essentials. It's Free too!

 

[PrincessBelle09]

For antivirus, I will always recommend Symantec. I get mine through my school currently, so I do not know how much it retails for and what the policy is regarding multiple licenses. My dad is an IT consultant and has dealt with really terrible virus issues when clients have used other products.

As for parental controls, I don't know that any of the current products work well. In the past, they have been ridiculously easy to break by intelligent kids. I've never personally dealt with them because my dad always had various firewalls at the server level on our home network. I've been hearing ads for something called "Safe Eyes" that I believe allows you to monitor your kid's usage rather than block specific types of sites, which I would imagine would be better anyway.