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[Bayardo]

I have a small routine for checking data in an Excel spreadsheet which Avast is not allowing. I have tried Avast's facility to run it
in a sandbox, or run normally, but in both instances the routine is killed by Avast.

Will it run from if I use it from a cmd prompt? Also, my memory of how to use Dos is now rather vague, it being many years since I did.
Am I right in thinking that entering "run csvcheck.exe" will do the job?


Slightly ot, I have tried a couple of times to post this from Firefox, but it keeps saying that I've been timed out.
Hopefully it will get thro ok from IE
Many thanks

Regards
Bayardo

[oldfogy]

Sorry it's not the answer you were probably looking for, but I am just about getting fed up with Avast, not only does it now have a mind of it's own, but even when you think you have disabled it for the allotted 10 minutes or 1 hour, it is still actually running hidden in the background.

So even when you have a file, crack, or keygen that you know is not a virus Avast will still not let you run it.
It used to have a "Ignore" file feature, but even that has now been done away with.
Also "Delete" a files is now the default setting instead of "Send to virus chest".

My personal opinion is that Avast has now gone the way that Norton did a few years ago and got to big and beyond itself, so I am now seriously considering a different free AV.

[kitz]

I think there is some way that you can add the task to an exceptions list, but like OF says Avast sometimes seems to have a mind of its own and overrides it and flags anything and everything.

I gave up on it quite a while ago because it kept flagging up programmes I'd coded which were not harmful.  Im currently using avira, but that seems to be heading the same way too now. 

Ive heard M$ Security Essentials is quite good and not as in your face.  However Ive not personally tried it yet so cant comment first hand.

[kitz]

Actually just found this for MSE which shows that it has several exclusion options.


More info http://www.zdnet.com/blog/bott/how-good-is-microsofts-free-antivirus-software/1067?pg=2

the independent AV-Comparatives group gave Microsoft OneCare (which shares the same engine and signatures as MSE) its highest (Advanced+) rating. Only 3 of the 16 products in the test earned that rating. Microsoft’s technology scored second in the accuracy ratings, behind AVIRA but ahead of AVG, Symantec, McAfee, and a dozen other products. And on the crucial measure of delivering the fewest false positives, Microsoft stood far ahead of the pack, delivering the fewest false positives of any program tested.

May perhaps be worth a shot?

[oldfogy]

Sorry for butting in and I hope you find a solution to your request.

Thanks Kitz, quite a few people are now saying how they like MSE, so it looks like they may have another convert 'or two'
If if will allow me to Ignore/Exclude a single file" then that will do me.

[Bayardo]

I haven't ditched Avast yet, but will be needing the dos routine in the next day or 2. I have a "work around" in that my wife uses
an old laptop of mine which is still on XP & the routine is compatible, but it's an inconvenience having to transfer the spreadsheets I am working on to it.

However, I still think I'll get rid of Avast and maybe give MSE another chance, but that MS Onecare is no doubt worth a look at.
One question - I have Windows Defender running, so is it not a good idea to rely on that alone and not have any other AV program?

[oldfogy]

Just a quick question, but did anyone come to a decision with regards to Avast Vs Microsoft security-essentials?
(Hopefully a favourable reply before I take the final step and get rid of Avast (as promised to myself for the last xyz months)


http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows/products/security-essentials/download

[kitz]

I think Im going to ditch Avira pretty soon..  its now pulling up some stupid things - such as the broadcom router access for additional stats which is its latest 'find'.

My PC (the modified Aldi one that we both bought about 4yrs ago) is now on its last legs and keeps bombing out on me (overheating despite a couple of mods on both the heatsink and graphics) so when I get my new system I'll be using Security Essentials.

[oldfogy]

I finally made the break from Avast to MSE just a couple of days ago and apart from it still showing one key Gen as being a false positive I have not really noticed any difference. But at least when you turn it off IT IS OFF and not still running in the background.
As for the interface (GUI), well there almost isn't one to talk of.

Ok, the PC boots up a little quicker because it does not have to wait for avast to update each time and no more annoying pop-up adverts which only started with avast v7, but apart from that nothing else to comment on.

Just one important point to note is with regards to 'MS Auto Updates'
When MSE is installed it automatically changed my update setting to always check for updates and to download and install them, so before I realised what had happened it had updated everything including IE, this latest edition of IE was terrible so I had to re-ghost back then try again, but this time deactivated the auto-update before it had time to update and install.
Although this might have just been a temporary hitch and until I try the new IE again it's possibly not fair to curse it too much.

*********************

My last Medion, as you say about 4 years ago has still had very little use as I eventually re-built my previous (first) Medion and mainly continued to use that, but then just over a year ago I brought a ASUS K72F laptop and now I just can't remember the last time I turned on either of the desktop computers, even to the point of now very seriously thinking of getting rid of the other 2 computers and also my collection of about 1,000 DVDs complete with covers and cases as I also brought a WD Media player which is hooked direct from the 4TB NAS Box unit through the router and now wired direct to the TV, so disc's are now old hat, any reasonable offers will be considered, but buyer will have to collect.

[kitz]

Thanks for the additional info..  its my  intention to install it on the new PC..  if I dont like it then Im not sure what i'll go for as both Avast.. and now Avira are increasingly annoying me with their false positives on certain types of apps that it doesnt like, yet are harmless as far as Im concerned.

------

I'd be lost without a PC..  Im currently using an ipad, but its severely limiting what I can and cant do despite me having a keyboard. Granted a laptop is much more of an inbetweenie as at least its easier to insert links and C&P and install proper applications..  but for me a desktop is an essential to be able to do anything constructive... and I REALLY miss dual monitors if Im working on something.

[oldfogy]

Dual monitors?
I have dual monitors!

I can also still Rip, Run, Format, Convert and Burn my movie downloads to DVDs.
Also any kind of graphics work is not a problem.

Just about the only draw back is the limited built-in size of the HDD, hence a NAS Box, which I had already brought prior to buying the laptop and as that comes through a wireless router access is still no problem either.
OK, I don't have a S-Video socket, but I do have a HDMI socket along with oodles of built-in USB ports and a SD card reader.

TBH I can't think of anything I now can't do on the laptop which I would need a full size desktop PC for, OK it is a 17.3" screen and also has a full size keyboard, so I suppose that makes things a lot easier than with some laptops.

I know I don't do any really intensive work such as programming, but when you consider all of the above you may now understand why for me desktop PC's are now a redundant thing of the past.
But I suppose as for most people the draw back is that they are not easily (or can't be) customised as with desktops.

'Obviously slightly in favour of my laptop, as if you hadn't guessed'

*************

Just going back to Avast for a second.
If anyone does use Avast and wants to remove it, then don't forget to download the Avast un-installer from the Avast website.
"Basically" download the un-installer tool to the desktop, re-boot into safe mode, then run the un-installer, then re-boot the PC to complete and bring you back ready to install MSE or whichever program you are going to use.

Although with MSE still one draw-back is not being able to select a file when it gets flagged and instruct MSE to ignore it in the future and mark it as safe.
I can't remember if it was Norton or AVG that had that facility.

Although I believe Norton products have come back with a more sensible running and processor usage, which was why I and a lot of people went away from from Norton to begin with, plus the fact we have upgraded our old PC's which were probably only barely able to run Norton to begin with, so maybe, just maybe, Norton might be worth another look at.

I have to say I am slightly prejudiced in Norton's favour as apart from the slowness thing, I always found Norton to be a excellent program.
"Norton Sytem Tools" I think that was the last version I used.

[oldfogy]

Sorry for the back-to-back.

I just discovered MSE does have the facility to manually allow and remember a flagged up option.

I just had a warning with a file (false positive), so selected the allow option, re-booted the PC then tried again but this time it did not give me the warning, then with checking the option in the interface the file was listed as to b allowed.
At least unlike Avast, MSE remembers the choice, so eventually it will get to know which files are to be allowed etc.