Yes, I confess! I am using and have used Windows Live OneCare since its Beta days. Granted it may not be at the top of the list for anti-virus, firewall and back-up software, but let me share when, and for whom, it may be a good choice.
Many of my clients are senior citizens or like someone living right here in this house with me. These people have absolutely no interest in the hows and whys of computer functions or the steps necessary to keep things running smoothly. When a problem pops up, they have one word to fix things and that word is ‘Connie.’
These users want to write emails, receive emails and jokes, get out on the Net, and look around much like going to the mall and sometimes to research something of interest. The tower portion of their computer is like a shoebox, a place to store pictures and other items of interest. When they refer to the computer it is the screen, keyboard, and a mouse or trackball. One of the most difficult things for me is to get folks to update software, run scans, clean out folders, and back up now and then.
Windows Live OneCare has gone a long way in solving this dilemma for me. I set it up to perform certain functions at certain times and the user has to do very little to keep things tuned up and virus free. They are not power users and as far as I know they don’t go to Web sites that make them exceptionally vulnerable to ‘bad things.’ Rarely do they have very much personal or financial information stored on their hard drives.
Yes, there are better anti-virus programs. There are better firewalls and yes, better backup solutions. For my computers I use some of these, particularly for my backups. If I install them on the computers of some of my clients they will never be used and thereby leave them unprotected and with a very cluttered hard drive. Windows Live OneCare keeps these users safe and secure without them having to get frustrated trying to learn and remember to use, more robust software. It’s not perfect, but it is a solution for many users.
[tags]windows, live, onecare, antivirus, firewall, backup, phishing[/tags]