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Another Computer Thread - What should I install after reformatting my HD?

MafMaf Registered User regular
edited February 2010 in Help / Advice Forum
I would just like to add one more computer thread to the H/A forum with my question.

I am going to wipe my hard drive clean after about 5 years of loyal service. My computer has been running a bit slowly, and I think it caught a nasty bug recently because I cannot for the life of me get it to boot up to the desktop (or restore to a previous state using Norton GoBack). So, I've decided that it is about time to wipe it and start anew.

My question is: what sort of software (preferably downloadable and free) should I install to protect myself from viruses and optimize my performance? As for the OS, I will be reinstalling Windows XP and I use Firefox for browsing. I saw that Sandboxie program from another thread which looks pretty cool, and I'm looking for other suggestions.

Maf on

Posts

  • Peter PrinciplePeter Principle Registered User regular
    edited February 2010
    Zone Alarm firewall and Avast! anti-virus.

    Peter Principle on
    "A man is likely to mind his own business when it is worth minding. When it is not, he takes his mind off his own meaningless affairs by minding other people's business." - Eric Hoffer, _The True Believer_
  • russetrusset Registered User new member
    edited February 2010
    I use AVGfree for firewall/virus scanner. Seems to work pretty well

    Link here

    russet on
  • Helpless RockHelpless Rock Registered User regular
    edited February 2010
    Microsoft Security Essentials is what I use now after ditching both AVG and Avast!. It's barely there and works quickly when it needs too. Lot of high praise for it too.

    As for other programs, I find this to be just about the greatest thing to use after a reinstall.
    http://ninite.com/ Clink what you want. It's installed.

    Helpless Rock on
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  • flatlinegraphicsflatlinegraphics Registered User regular
    edited February 2010
    http://ninite.com/

    select what you want, creates a single installer, installs everything in one shot.

    flatlinegraphics on
  • CrashtardCrashtard Registered User regular
    edited February 2010
    Helpless Rock wrote: »
    Microsoft Security Essentials is what I use now after ditching both AVG and Avast!. It's barely there and works quickly when it needs too. Lot of high praise for it too.


    I also ditched AVG & Avast in favor of MSE, and for pretty much the same reasons.

    Crashtard on
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  • ronyaronya Arrrrrf. the ivory tower's basementRegistered User regular
    edited February 2010
    7zip to deal with rar and zip files.

    Some media player, if you play media. Plus a codec pack, if necessary.

    Remember to snag your favorite Firefox extensions (adblock, tabmixplus, image zoom, etc.). Flash, too.

    Some PDF reader.

    If you're just rolling a fresh XP install, remember to pry out Windows Messenger. Consider installing any of the three official Microsoft-signed themes for XP, which all look less Fisher-Price than Luna.

    Misc: Paint.NET if you edit images. uTorrent if you torrent. Notepad++ if you edit text files. Appropriate Instant Messenger programs (WLM/etc.). Some music media manager if you have music (iTunes/etc.). Some photo media manager if you have photos (Picasa/etc.). Office programs (MSOffice or OO.org or whatever floats your boat).

    ronya on
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