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Microsoft Security Essentials Released; Rivals Mock It

Posted by kdawson on from the free-but-is-it-worth-it dept.

Bimal writes "After a short three-month beta program, Microsoft is officially releasing Microsoft Security Essentials, its free, real-time consumer anti-malware solution for fighting viruses, spyware, rootkits, and Trojans. MSE is available for Windows XP 32-bit, Windows Vista/7 32-bit, and Windows Vista/7 64-bit. 'Ars puts MSE through its paces and finds an unobtrusive app with a clean interface that protected us in the dark corners of the Internet.' The software received positive notes when in beta, including a nod from the independent testing group AV-Test." But reader CWmike notes that Symantec is trash-talking Microsoft's free offering. Jens Meggers, Symantec's vice president of engineering, dismissed MSE as a "poor product" that will "never be up to snuff." Meggers added, "Microsoft has a really bad track record in security." The GM of Trend Micro's consumer division sniffed, "It's better to use something than to use nothing, but you get what you pay for."

2 of 465 comments (clear)

  1. Re:that's never mattered by freedom_india · · Score: 1, Flamebait

    Actually, backroom deals may have cemented the positions, but excellence in quality also mattered a lot.
    Please tell me MS Office is a bad, ball buster like Lotus Office or even Wordperfect.
    Please.
    SQL Server,especially after 2000 didn't come through freebies and shoddy deals. Enterprise Architects don't like them.
    SQL Server stands today higher in penetration BECAUSE it has actually improved the years.

    Windows XP is still the beloved of IT so much that they uninstall Vista instantly.
    It may have taken Microsoft backroom deals to come to the top, but it takes excellence to stay there.
    Just ask any IT admin which systems he would prefer to administer: 4,000 seats of Windows XP or 4,000 seats of Ubuntu.

    --
    "Doing what i can, with what i have." ~ Burt Gummer
  2. Microsoft = Crap by curmudgeon99 · · Score: 0, Flamebait
    Please explain to me what kind of idiot still forks over greenbacks for anything from Redmond? These must be the same people who have not watched a decade of malware attacks against various MS operating systems. I made the decision way back in 2001 to never pay a dime for any product from Microsoft. For several years I would not even accept as a gift any product by Microsoft. Every single aspect of their ecosystem is flawed:
    • Windows Vista--enough said. Bloated crap.
    • .NET--getting its clock cleaned by Java.
    • Windows Security--an oxymoron.