Average Rating: Rate this article:

Utilities for Microsoft's Windows 7 OS By Jay Dougherty October 28, 2009 7:22AM If you don't like the idea of paying for antivirus software, or if you're running Windows 7 without antivirus software, you should probably give Microsoft's own Security Essentials package a try. It's free to registered users of Windows 7 -- and earlier versions of Windows -- and it generally gets high marks in the areas that matter most.   Related Topics Microsoft Windows 7 Windows Vista Operating Systems Enterprise Software Latest News Peer-to-Peer Software Ban Sought Los Alamos Computer Security Weak Security Firm Fortinet Plans IPO U.K. Police Make Trojan Virus Arrests Smartphones: New Security Risks Windows 7 is out, and that means a massive search for "Windows 7 compatible" software is on. While Microsoft 's new operating system has received widespread praise for its efforts to remain compatible with the majority of existing applications, incompatibilities do exist, especially in the areas of system security and system maintenance. Will the tools you've relied upon for years for your Windows XP or Vista systems have trouble under Windows 7? Read on for some answers. Q: I understand that the antivirus software I currently use on Windows XP may not be compatible with Windows 7. Can you recommend some antivirus software that works with Windows 7? A: During Windows 7's lengthy pre-release phase, only a handful of antivirus applications were compatible with the operating system. That has changed, though, with the final release of the operating system. Currently, most of the major antivirus makers have either updated their existing products or released new versions of their security software to address Windows 7 compatibility. Depending upon the security software you currently use, you may have to pay an upgrade fee to get the version that's been certified to work properly with Windows 7. If you don't like the idea of paying for antivirus software, however, or if you're running Windows 7 without antivirus software, you should probably give Microsoft's own Security Essentials (http://www.microsoft.com/Security_Essentials) package a try. It's free to registered users of Windows 7 -- and earlier versions of Windows -- and it generally gets high marks in the areas that matter most to computer users. Its detection rate is good, its footprint is small, and it doesn't annoy you with false alerts as much as many other packages do. In short, it's probably all that most people will need. Q: I have used Partition Magic for years with Windows XP. Is this compatible with Windows 7? A: No. Partition Magic, for those who don't know, is a program that allows you to create and resize partitions on a hard drive. It's a very handy tool if, for example, you want to create a separate partition to hold all of your data files so that they're not mixed up with operating system and application files. The good news, though, is that there's a free program that's just as easy to use as Partition Magic, and it's free for home use. Partition Wizard (http://www.partitionwizard.com) supports both the 32-bit and the 64-bit versions of Windows 7 and makes resizing partitions as Partition Magic did. To complete most resizing operations, you'll need to allow the program to reboot your computer, but other than that, it's pretty much hassle-free. (continued...) 1  |  2  |  3  |  Next Page >   © 2009 Deutsche Presse-Agentur (dpa) under contract with MarketWatch. All rights reserved.   Advertisement  Computing 1.   Barnes & Noble Nook Is Delayed 2.   Flat PC Shipments Hurt Dell's Stock 3.   Ballmer Says Windows 7 Sales Good 4.   New Pogoplug 'Cloud' Gets Social 5.   Chrome OS Team Aims for Speed

Product Information and Resources for Technology You Can Use To Boost Your Business CRM Systems   Experience CRM—and Business—Success today with Salesforce.com. Contact Centers   Run Your Entire Contact Center in the Cloud with LiveOps Enterprise Hardware   Go Green with IBM Blade Center    Enterprise I.T.    Rackspace: It makes a difference when you focus on support.   Go Green with IBM Blade Center   APC introduces server room in a box solutions!   Tell us what you think. Take a survey.   Find out how much you can save with the SQL Server value tool.   See how AT&T can help protect your network. Enterprise Software   Read the Top 10 Reasons to Upgrade to Windows Server 2008 R2. Microsoft/Windows   Rackspace: It makes a difference when you focus on support   Read the Top 10 Reasons to Upgrade to Windows Server 2008 R2. Network Security   See how AT&T can help protect your network.

Network Security Spotlight

House Lawmakers Push Ban on Peer-to-Peer Software Stung by an embarrassing electronic leak revealing ethics investigations into dozens of lawmakers, Congress moved to prohibit federal employees from using the file-sharing software blamed for the disclosure.   GAO: Los Alamos Computer Security Has Weaknesses Security weaknesses uncovered in Los Alamos National Laboratory's computer network increase the risk of a classified-information breach, says the Government Accountability Office.   Computer Security Firm Fortinet Plans IPO This Week Fortinet plans to go public in an initial public offering, giving investors a chance to tap a network security provider with sales that are expected to grow. The IPO could be valued at $137.5 million or more.

Enterprise Hardware Spotlight

Flat Shipments Hurt Dell Despite Increased Earnings Dell's earnings are up and expectations are solid, but the company's stock still took a hit after analysts signaled the company isn't playing a key role in the PC market recovery.   New Pogoplug 'Personal Cloud' Does Social Networking Cloud Engines has released its newest version of the Pogoplug, a small "multimedia sharing device" that connects hard drives to the Internet and allows a user to access the files remotely.   Apple Tablet Rumored Delayed as Publisher Gears Up There have been so many rumors of an Apple tablet that it has taken on legendary status. But now the legend is being revised with reports of a delay and that a major publisher is getting ready.

Enterprise Technology Spotlight

Flat Shipments Hurt Dell Despite Increased Earnings Dell's earnings are up and expectations are solid, but the company's stock still took a hit after analysts signaled the company isn't playing a key role in the PC market recovery.   Smartphones: A Bigger Target for Security Threats Smartphones are increasingly prevalent and adept at handling more tasks, including trading stocks, paying bills, and buying stuff online. That makes them attractive to thieves and hackers.   FBI Says Hackers Targeting Law Firms, PR Companies Hackers are targeting law firms and public relations companies with a sophisticated e-mail scheme that breaks into their computer networks to steal sensitive data, often linked to large corporate clients.

Navigation Enterprise Security Today Home/Top News | Network Security | Viruses & Worms | Spam & Hackers | Security Products | Mobile Security | Windows Security | EST Press Releases NewsFactor Network Enterprise I.T. Sites NewsFactor Technology News | Enterprise Security Today | CRM Daily NewsFactor Business and Innovation Sites Sci-Tech Today | NewsFactor Business Report NewsFactor Services FreeNewsFeed | Free Newsletters | Free Whitepapers | About NewsFactor Network | How To Contact Us | Article Reprints | Careers @ NewsFactor | Services for PR Pros | Top Tech Wire | How To Advertise Privacy Policy | Terms of Service © Copyright 2000-2009 NewsFactor Network. All rights reserved. Article rating technology by Blogowogo.