The very first known computer virus was known as THE CREEPER. It was fairly benign, little more than a practical joke, really. It didn’t steal your personal information, it didn’t crash your hard drive, it was just kind of annoying to have to deal with.
THE CREEPER would simply take hold of your computer for a moment to display the message “I’M THE CREEPER, CATCH ME IF YOU CAN!” and that would be that. It could pop up out of nowhere, though, and it would be a pain to contend with.
So not long after, we got the very first anti virus software ever created, THE REAPER. It was designed simply to kill the CREEPER virus, and that would be that. There was speculation at the time that the maker of the REAPER antivirus was also the maker of the CREEPER virus. One theory has it that he created the antivirus in remorse for having created the CREEPER, not really understanding that a virus would spread so fast.
Another theory has it that he spread THE CREEPER to drum up some consumer demand for the sale of THE REAPER.
We may never know for sure, but the simple fact that users would consider that goes to show that there’s a lot of money to be made in the world of antivirus software. Even if you don’t charge for the software itself, you’re still getting revenue from the banner ads on your site.
And wherever there’s money to be made, you’ll get a lot of people who don’t really know or care how to do what they’re doing well, they’re just out for a quick buck. So let’s be clear; there are a lot of crummy free antivirus programs out there. Programs where you really do get your every dollar’s worth.
And then there are a few that are simply excellent, free antivirus programs that can easily compete alongside many of the pay-to-use antivirus programs.
If you just need one, now, that works, just go with Avira AntiVir. It’s truly an excellent little program, and it doesn’t cost a dime.
With AntiVir, you get constant updates, at least one every day, and these updates don’t force you to reinstall or reboot your computer or anything, they just simply update, and that’s that. It’s simple, easy to use, and kills nearly one hundred percent of all viruses.
If nothing else, it will at least hold you over and keep your computer safe if you want to shop around for something a little more powerful.
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