[Saussure]

I've got Windows XP Home with SP2, and I've got the free version of Lavasoft Ad-Aware 2007 (haven't updated to 2008 because I've read that it's still rather buggy). I'm not too happy with Ad-Aware 2007. It no longer scans Mozilla Firefox (from version 3 onwards, I think), and neither does 2008, as I've read. I also think it's a somewhat unsteady program. I've got Windows Defender on my Vista laptop and I like it, and I was wondering whether it's worth kicking Ad-Aware off my desktop and replacing it with Windows Defender. Is this a good idea, or should I stick with Ad-Aware 2007?

[Soham]

Hi,
according to me.....Windows Defender will provide you much more safety & protection then Ad-Aware againsts Online threats,Hijackers,Vandalism,un-authenticated entries etc etc......"Wishing you a happy-computing environment."

[rattlesnake18]

I think both programs are ok. Spyware programs can be funny at times when one program will miss something and another will pick something up. I say stick with Windows Defender. I would also recommend you try Spybot S&D if you need another free spyware program for your machine.

[CapriAnupam]

Spybot is relatively older technology now, but still maybe added to the list. Some other good free antispywares are there... like SuperAntispyware, Spyware Doctor Starter Edition, MalwareBytes Antimalware. All these are good.

[aka Brett]

Windows defenders tends to slow an xp machine a little,
spybot and xp go good together.
No resources used unless teatimer is checked
adaware was good but now it turns services on in free version but you dont have realtime protection so i dont install it anymore
why do i want it running if i am not getting real time protection

[Hughv]

Defender is real-time and free, so what's not to like?
I also use Spybot with Tea Timer, and the "immunize" feature seems to be a good idea.

[Saussure]

Thanks for all your answers - looks like Windows Defender is a good program. I wasn't sure if it would run smoothly on Windows XP Home - especially on a 5-year-old desktop; on the other hand, my desktop has no problems meeting the minimal system requirements for the installation and running of Windows Defender. Another thing which really annoys me about Ad-Aware 2007 is that it sometimes generates popups in the system tray when I download the latest definition file, advertising its latest products and upgrades. I've read comments by other users who are also annoyed by this feature. The fact that Windows Defender is free AND offers real time protection is very nice indeed Besides Ad-Aware 2007 I've also got Norton AntiVirus 2003 (er, yes, I'm going to install NAV 2008 one of these days, I only get the latest virus definition files but no other updates since the software is rather...elderly...), so I hope those two don't rush at each other's throats.

[Saussure]

Just installed Windows Defender and downloaded the latest definition file and ran a quick scan. Quick time scan MUCH faster than Ad-Aware's quick scan. Ad-Aware's quick scan is about 9 or 10 minutes, while Windows Defender took about 5 minutes. Then, size comparison: nearly 30 MB for Ad-Aware...and only about 5 MB for Windows Defender. Before, Ad-Aware used to be a slim fast program with hardly any hitches. Now it's buggy bloatware. I'll keep it just the same, seeing that two different anti-spyware programs might catch different things sometimes.