Norton 360 Review

A while ago I got an offer from MomCentral.com to review a new product, Norton 360 Version 2.0, in exchange for receiving a copy. The program is mainly about keeping computers secure, but what attracted me most was the promise that it would make my computer run more quickly.

My computer runs on Vista. Vista has good security, but its features make it slow and cumbersome.

Because I was the first one to reply to MomCentral's offer Norton sent me a yoga mat as a gift along with the software. I knew that obsessively checking my email would eventually pay off.

I was a bit apprehensive about installing Norton 360, because when I recently had to install a printer, I spent hours on the phone with the printer support people. Even though the printer came with an installation disk for Vista, the manufacturer didn't seem to know a lot about it.

So I wasn't surprised when, after running the Norton 360 CD, I got a message asking me to download installation updates. Then a window opened asking me to please wait while my setup files are updated. I waited, and waited, and waited. I followed the instructions for help, and despite it being a Sunday afternoon, I found support by chat with a Norton representative named Nirmal. After Nirmal confirmed who I was and heard my problem, she offered to take over my computer remotely. Living where I do has made me somewhat suspicious of people from overseas who want access to all of my data, but I overcame my apprehension, followed her instructions, and watched, in between hanging some laundry, while Nirmal did her thing and the cursor moved around by itself. It took about two hours for her to install the program and uninstall the old anti-virus software.

Ever since then Norton 360 Version 2.0 does its thing (unlike my printer, which continues to require repeat phone calls to the manufacturer's support line). My computer definitely runs much faster, thanks to the PC tuneup feature. Also, Norton automatically backs up all of my files and pictures at their online site. You can set it to back up your files on external drives, but I don't do well with hardware (did I mention the printer?) It doesn't back up the files at a set time, like just after I turned on my computer after a three-day Yom Tov. Instead it waits until the computer isn't busy. How come no one ever thought of that before?

Norton 360 also saves logins for different sites; I have several gmail accounts and Norton lets me switch between them without trouble. Most of the time I hardly notice Norton 360; unlike Vista, it doesn't need to ask my permission all the time.

Norton 360 is also supposed to make banking and shopping online more secure.

I haven't used all of the features yet, but so far Norton 360 is easy and convenient. Even with Vista.