PC experts - recommend software to keep PC safe

[xenophobe]

I used the free crap too but when I discovered panda and scanned it found spyware that a freeware CO had placed so I dont do free no more...I guess the best thing to do is scan with as many as you can because im sure even the best misses certian spyware.... Panda for me though

You have to watch out.... a lot of commercial $$$ software scanners and registry cleaners will repeatedly find stuff, false positives or stuff that it even creates to look like it's doing something positive... sometimes even if you run it a second time after it finishes....

I won't buy commercial software scanners and virus programs just for this reason alone.

Sometimes you gotta wonder if those guys that charge money actually make malicious software to stay in business, where the guys who makes stuff for free usually make a more solid product using much more optimized code.


EDIT:

I just checked my CleanUp! log... in 24 runs, it's deleted 184250 files and freed up 23.8gigs.

[toejam]

One product I didn't mention, Microsoft Defender, is supposed to be pretty solid as well and will either detect rootkit software, or will have it incorporated into it at a later point...

I use Defender, also. So far, so good.