I think the AV I used on my other laptop was the FREE version of Avast ... not Avira ... I liked that pretty well but they do keep try to get you to upgrade to a pay version. It actually worked pretty darn well and even saved me from a few incoming virus bombs that would have really made life difficult. But I will check into Avira since abacab rated it so highly (I love the genesis album Abacab if that's where you are getting this! Heck, I love old Genesis).
 
One thing that always used to tempt me to upgrade my Avast AV to the paid version was they kept throwing prompts that said words to the effect of, "Avast sees 13 steps it can take to improve the performance and speed of your PC. Upgrade Now to enjoy this smoking feature!"
 
Then the next week it was "Avast sees 23 things it can do to improve the performance ... "
 
So it was an ongoing thing that kept escalating as the laptop deteriorated ... I was always tempted to upgrade just to understand what it was going to do in the registry to make things run faster. Long story short, I never did. Something about messing around in the registry give me the willies.
 
But I like the idea of having at least something on there for when I do have to go online. I wonder had anybody used and liked Windows Defender as their only line of defense?

scottcmusic
I think the AV I used on my other laptop was the FREE version of Avast ... not Avira ... I liked that pretty well but they do keep try to get you to upgrade. The think worked pretty darn well and even saved me from a few incoming virus bombs that would have really made life difficult. But I will check into Avira since abacab rated it so highly (I love the genesis album Abacab if that's where you are getting this! Heck, I love old Genesis).
 
One thing that always used to tempt me to upgrade my Avast AV to the paid version was they kept throwing prompts that said words to the effect of, "Avast sees 13 steps it can take to improve the performance and speed of your PC. Upgrade Now to enjoy this smoking feature!"
 
Then the next week it was "Avast sees 23 things it can do to improve the performance ... "
 
So it was an ongoing thing that kept escalating as the laptop deteriorated ... I was always tempted to upgrade just to understand what it was going to do in the registry to make things run faster. Long story short, I never did. Something about messing around in the registry give me the willies.
 
But I like the idea of having at least something on there for when I do have to go online. I wonder had anybody used and liked Windows Defender as their only line of defense?

I think if you are smart about what you click on and invite into your computer, you might be OK with Defender. 
 
I follow a few computer security forums and blogs, as well as some AV test sites.  The scores and reviews for Microsoft products have until recently been strictly bottom shelf as far as detection goes.  I used Avast for several years, and encouraged all my family and friends as well to use it.  But as you noted, it became increasingly bloated.  Then I noticed that their scores were slipping as well.  So I started looking around.  Ended up with Avira.
 
In most of the latest tests reports I have seen, the consistent top three are Avira, Bitdefender, and Kaspersky.
 
These three usually always score at or near 100% detection for known malware in the wild.  There are a few other that occasionally make top scores.
 
Of those three, only Avira and Bitdefender offer free versions.  In all fairness Avast seems to have improved lately, and they have acquired AVG as well.  I have been testing the latest Avast with a Windows XP install that I run in a virtual machine, and it seems to be nag free and lean these days.  Might be worth another look.
 
Another new security tool that I am very fond of is VoodooShield.  It is a whitelist based protection that only allows executables with known good status and signed code, etc. to run.  It is very light on resources, and in "Smart" mode, it only switches on when you open a web browser.  It's approach to security is that running unknown code while you are connected to the web is never a good idea, LOL! 
 
So I run the AV along with VoodooShield now.  I feel better with a lock on my computer!
Free for non-commercial home use.  https://voodooshield.com/

I will take a look ... sounds pretty good. I like when an AV can lay low while I'm offline ...

Thanks, appreciate the help.
 
Btw, Abacab was very much in the Phil Collins era of Genesis.
"Old" Genesis surely must be considered the Gabriel era, up to 1974/5

jpetersen
Thanks, appreciate the help.
 
Btw, Abacab was very much in the Phil Collins era of Genesis.
"Old" Genesis surely must be considered the Gabriel era, up to 1974/5

Yup, i followed Genesis from mid-70's until there were 3, & listened to a lot of the early stuff...
 
The handle I picked just jumped into my head a few years ago, when Cakewalk started the new single sign-on store that included the forum ID.  I was trying to buy a last minute deal and had to setup a new sign-on at the last minute.  I guess that I had recently watched "Genesis Live at Wembley Stadium" (1987), and on impulse that was the first name that popped into my head, LOL!
 
If given more time I could have chosen something more classic!  But I still think that Tony Banks chops in that track really rock!

abacab
Now there's a die hard for ya!!!

 
 

on a less serious note:
I always copy the various directories (program files, vst plugins...) and the various cakewalk content over to an external hard drive.  
 
That way, when i begin the laborious process of reinstalling everything, I have a road map of what the prior programs and plugins were and how they were organized.  
 
 

Then again I have way too many plugins.  This last upgrade cycle, I skipped entire companies of plugins.  Not many, but several.  
 

To Wipe Completely, or Partially?

I Wipe would wipe completely. You do not want to leave cling-ons 

jpetersen
Thanks, appreciate the help.
 
Btw, Abacab was very much in the Phil Collins era of Genesis.
"Old" Genesis surely must be considered the Gabriel era, up to 1974/5

Yes sir. Good call. I didn't mean to imply it was old ... well, it's old, just not old as it sits in their catalog. I just meant that is an album that I like very much ... but also that I love their earlier stuff best ... it was two thoughts that I just ran together. My favorite is right after Phil took over as lead singer .. (love peter too, but more his solo stuff) ... Seconds Out being the ultimate to me. I liked them best with Steve Hackett to be honest ... but Mike can wiggle the wires pretty damn well himself! But you gotta give it up for that Firth of Fifth solo on Seconds Out!
 
Sorry for diversion ... we now return you to your regularly scheduled wiping program: