Norman Virus Control Chapel Hill NC

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Originally published at Internet.com

Norman Virus Control (NVC) is the result of a merger between Norman Data Defense Systems and Novastor, the developers of ThunderBYTE AntiVirus (TBAV). While TBAV will no longer be available for download (all development on the product has ceased in favor of NVC), Norman Virus Control is a solid virus scanner in its own right and even bests TBAV in most areas (with the notable exception of price).

Like TBAV, Norman Virus Control is an excellent scanner for catching and removing any viruses that may be crawling around your hard drive. NVC comes in Windows 3.x, Windows 95/98, and Windows NT versions and sports an attractive graphical interface. The scanner unobtrusively works in the background with its real-time monitoring capabilities, but it is slightly slower than VirusScan and Norton AntiVirus.

NVC Features and Drawbacks

Features in the current release of NVC include advanced security options, the ability to scan compressed files, Smart Behavior Blocker (a real-time scanning module run from the system traybar), Cat's Claw (a real-time process designed specifically for protecting your system from macro viruses), alarm sounds, and detection for platform-specific viruses. As is the case with most virus scanners, Norman Virus Control offers frequent updates for downloading. These updates contain new virus definition files and are freely available from the NVC Web site for registered users of the product.

The biggest setback for Norman Virus Control is its price. At nearly $80, NVC is more than double the cost of its predecessor ThunderBYTE AntiVirus ($29). The current titans of the industry, VirusScan and Norton AntiVirus, are also far less expensive than NVC at $50 and $40 respectively. Finally with several free alternatives like InoculateIT Personal Edition now available, the rather expensive price tag of Norman Virus Control is even more difficult to justify.

Overall

Current TBAV users can upgrade to NVC free of charge and will have their support contracts honored by Norman Data Defense. Norman also promises dramatically reduced renewal rates for TBAV customers whose contracts have run out. All in all, NVC is a no-brainer for those currently using TBAV, unless that is you want to save a bit of money by selecting a less expensive scanner. Norman Virus Control makes less sense for those already using another scanner or researching the purchase of a new scanner.