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People are forever asking us ‘What’s new about Windows 7 Professional?’  Here’s a few of our favourite Windows 7 Professional features!

Windows 7 Professional is easier to use, more reliable, more secure and faster than Windows XP.  Windows XP is nearly a decade old, with limited support for new hardware and software.  On the other hand, Windows 7 Professional has been specifically designed to meet the growing demands of modern technology users with more sophisticated networking, mobility, entertainment, data protection, and compatibility features.  And with Windows XP Mode, you get the compatibility of Windows XP in Windows 7 Professional! Be aware though, to use XP Mode you need the right processor!

Below are a variety of formulas that people often use to create passwords which are easy to guess and therefore easy to hack!

• Sequences – Try not to use sequences of letters or numbers as they are very easy to guess.  E.g, ’123456789′ or ‘abcdefg’ or ‘ddddddd’
• Look-alike – It is always good to use look-alike symbols instead of letters, e.g. ‘a’ is ‘@’.  However, we only recommend doing this when you combine them with a variation of letter cases.  No professional account hacker will be fooled by ‘i’ as ’1′.
• Personal Details – Don’t use your personal or family member details as your password.  E.g, name, date of birth, address, username/login name.  Hackers will try this information first.
• Dictionary – Hackers are now using some top quality software that can guess passwords from dictionary’s in all type’s of languages, even if the word is spelt backwards, misspelt and includes substitutions.
• Variation – We recommend that you have a few passwords instead of using just one for everything.  If one system is hacked into, and you use the same password for everything you may as well consider every account that you have on the Internet as hacked.
• Storage – many people are beginning to use online storage.  We would heavily discourage this.  If your online storage is hacked into you may have personal documents saved.  Consequently they will all be accessed by the criminal.

Finally, don’t forget to check the strength of your password with the Microsoft Password Checker!

We’ve now come to the end of our Antivirus Comparison Series.  To finish everything off we’re going to give each software a rating and a rank….

Software	Rating	Rank
		6
		7
		3
		4
		2
		5
		1

From all our investigations over the past few weeks we can conclude in our opinion AVG Internet Security is the best software around!  We were really pleased and excited to see that Avira and Kaspersky have so much potential and are on the verge of being world class products.  Norton 360 and McAfee, for us, were the biggest let downs.  The quality of product and service just isn’t as good as you expect.  In many cases you’re better off going for a smaller brand or AVG!  All software used in the comparisons were the best available home software from the brand at the time of writing.

I think the interesting and most important thing to take from the investigation is that the two biggest household names are rated as last.  Consequently this whole survey really asks this question…’do the big name brands always provide  the best service and product?’

Want to find out more?  Check out the original comparison articles:

• Norton 360 vs AVG Internet Security
• McAfee Total Protection vs AVG Internet Security
• Trend Micro Internet Security Pro vs AVG Internet Security
• Avira Premium Security Suite vs AVG Internet Security
• avast! Professional Edition vs AVG Internet Security
• Kaspersky Internet Security vs AVG Internet Security

Over the past month we have been comparing antivirus software.  Below is a table which summaries our findings!  We’ve put all the results into percentages to make everything fair!

	Alternative Software %	AVG % in Comparison
	64%	86%
	63%	88%
	75%	94%
	69%	88%
	77%	82%
	67%	90%

As you can see from the table, AVG is by far the superior antivirus software when compared to the others.  Throughout the entire comparison process we were very impressed with the potential of some of the lesser known software like Avira and Kaspersky.  In a few years time they could really be battling with the rest!  Look out for our ratings table in coming weeks!

Google is developing an operating system (OS) for personal computers, in a direct challenge to market leader Microsoft and its Windows system.

Google Chrome OS will be aimed initially at small, low-cost netbooks, but will eventually be used on PC’s as well.

Google said netbooks with Chrome OS could be on sale by middle 2010.

“Speed, simplicity and security are the key aspects of Google Chrome OS,” the firm said in its official blog.

The operating system, which will run on an open source license, was a “natural extension” of its Chrome browser, the firm said.

The news comes just months before Microsoft launches the latest version of its operating system, called Windows 7.

To continue reading this article on the BBC click here

Watch this space!!

As you can see from the pie chart above Facebook chat is more popular with our readers than MSN.  Is this a sign that MSN is on its last legs and will soon be unused by many?

Don’t forget to vote on this months poll…’How many computers are in your house/office?’

Today we’re comparing Trend Micro Internet Security Pro and the Award Winning AVG Internet Security!  Many of you wouldn’t have heard of Trend Micro.  They’re one of the less known Anti-Virus Software providers.  For more information on Trend Micro visit their website!  The comparison will involve an overview of the features each package has and then at the end we’ll tell you which we think is better through our rating system. Our ratings are worked out by the amount of ticks the product has. Further points are awarded for faster download, simpler/better installation and cheaper price.

Feature
Download Time	Very Long	Fast
Installation	Installation is of average length and is simple.  However, it doesn’t take you through any setup.	Takes an average length of time.  Quite extensive and helps you set up the basic features of the software.
Anti-Virus
Anti-Spyware
Anti-Spam
Blocks unauthorized programs
Web Shield
Toolbar
Authenticates wireless hotspots and Wi-Fi Networks
Child Protection (inc time, length and content)
Personal Information Protection (Encryption)
Link Scanner
Snapshot of security features
Clean up PC for faster performance
Anti-Malware
Anti-Phishing
Anti-Rootkit
Identity Protection(Advanced)
Firewall
Available to buy from Brandstar
RRP (3 PC’s for 1 year)	£54.95	£58.71
Overall Rating	14 out of 21	19 out of 21

Overall I haven’t been that impressed with Trend Micro Internet Security Pro.  It has a long way to go before it will compete with the liks of AVG.  It may be cheaper but you have to buy the 3 PC package which is pretty pointless if you only have 1 PC.  The features that the software offers aren’t as capable and advanced as that of AVG Internet Security.  Trend Micro is however easy to use and have a very user friendly layout!  However, to fight for a place in the top 3 they’ll need to bring something unique and some quality to the table neither of which they provide now.  So my advice, if you’re stuck between the two go for AVG!

Today we’re comparing Avira’s Premium Security Suite and the Award Winning AVG Internet Security.  Avira again are relatively unknown to the typical user but I think in a few years time it will be fighting AVG, Norton and McAfee for the most popular software providers.  For more about Avira check out their website!  The comparison will involve an overview of the features each package has and then at the end we’ll tell you which we think is better through our rating system. Our ratings are worked out by the amount of ticks the product has. Further points are awarded for faster download, simpler/better installation and cheaper price.

Feature
Download Time	Very Fast	Fast
Installation	Installation was long.  You setup a couple of the basic features but most features you need for a decent performance are still left to be configured. Also, very frustratingly it isn’t compatible with complementary anti-virus software such as, Windows Firewall.  However, it does allow you to continue the installation process.  A warning just appears to say they aren’t compatible.	Takes an average length of time.  Quite extensive and helps you set up the basic features of the software.
Anti-Virus
Anti-Adware
Anti-Spyware
Anti-Phishing
Anti-Rootkit
Web-Shield/Guard (Protection whilst surfing the Internet)
Anti-Bot
Email-Scanner
Backup System
Anti-Spam
Firewall
GameMode
Parental Control
Easy to remove Viruses
Task Scheduler
Identity Protection
Link Scanner
IM Scanner
Available to buy from Brandstar?
RRP	£26.95 (1 year)	£39.14 (1 Year)
Overall Rating	17 out of 22	18 out of 22

Overall I have been very impressed with Avira’s Premium Security Suite!  It’s really given AVG Internet Security a run for its money!  As you can see, Avira’s feature’s aren’t quite as extensive as AVG’s, this is represented by the lower price.  For Avira to really compete with the likes of AVG they will need to increase its compatibility and bring in features such as Identity Protection.  Avira’s userface could also do with a ‘facelift’ to make it easier to user and generally nicer to look at.

To conclude, watch out for Avira in the next few years…it’s bound to be big!

Today we’re doing our fourth Anti-Virus software comparison.  Today we’re looking at Award Winning AVG Internet Security and avast! Professional Edition.  Now a lot of you will be sitting there thinking, ‘I’ve never heard of avast!’.  avast! are another ‘smaller’ Anti-Virus software company which is snapping at the heals of the ‘Big Three’, AVG, Norton and McAfee.  For more about avast! check out their website! The comparison will involve an overview of the features each package has and then at the end we’ll tell you which we think is better through our rating system. Our ratings are worked out by the amount of ticks the product has. Further points are awarded for faster download, simpler/better installation and cheaper price.

Feature
Download Time	Very Fast	Fast
Installation	Simple and of average length.  However, unlike AVG you still have a lot of configuration to do.	Takes an average length of time.  Quite extensive and helps you set up the basic features of the software.
Anti-Spyware
Anti-Rootkit
Anti-Virus
Task Scheduler
Automatic Updater
P2P and Instant Messenger Shield
Web Shield
Virus Chest (Known as Vault on AVG)
Network Shield/Identity Protection
Anti-Spam
Firewall
Anti-Malware
Available to buy from Brandstar?
RRP	£24.95 (1 year)	£39.14 (1 year)
Overall Rating	11 out of 16	14 out of 16

Overall AVG Internet Security is the better software by far, however, it is almost £15 more.  I would say that spending that extra £15 is worth it, especially if you look at the tools/features that you get with AVG compared to avast!  I would say avast! has loads of potential but it the product needs to be far more extensive to warrant a purchase.  After all, some of the features they’re missing out on are pretty basic, necessities for any Anti-Virus software.  avast! has a really cool interface (see picture), however it isn’t that easy to find you way around.