Avast(Free) dies during update. Major panic!!!!

[=SKY=]

Basically you don't need to run a virus scanner on this system, it's insecure anyway

Misinformation. False.

Thank you, Tech!

Now my opinion:
Thank you to the avast!-team for resolving the issue and please keep supporting Windows 2000.

Regards from Austria!
INGBEAN

+1

[optimist]

you would gain security. Basically you don't need to run a virus scanner on this system, it's insecure anyway

No OS is secure, but W2K is at least stable, clean UI, and light on resources compared to XP/Vista/W7  Moreover, it's small market share makes it less of a target (like the argument for Mac and Linux)

On the other hand, I bet Avast! has the lion's share of the W2K user base, just because so many other anti-malware companies have already dropped support for W2K.  I hope Avast is the last company to drop W2K.  Considering the similarity of W2K to XP under-the-hood, it's not a great burden to support both (MS dropping W2K updates is a marketing choice)

W2K ain't broke

[Lisandro]

It's small market share makes it less of a target (like the argument for Mac and Linux)

Not really. It's Windows anyway. A lot of malware are not designed for a particular version of Windows.

[avadas.de]

Hello,

It's small market share makes it less of a target (like the argument for Mac and Linux)

Not really. It's Windows anyway. A lot of malware are not designed for a particular version of Windows.

exactly. Some of the technologies are still the same than in todays Windows versions, therefore same vulnerabilities are often fixed for multiple OS versions. The difference is: Microsoft don't provide the fix through Windows Update to Windows 2000 anymore. That is why I and also specialists from this are consider Windows 2000 not secure. I don't think that XP, Vista or 7 are necessarily secure, but at least they receive patches.

By the way...since one of my statements above was touched by a little bit of sarcasm, it might have been misunderstood. Therefore I edited it an put it more clearly. I am apolpgizing for the original one, it was not meant like that.

[=SKY=]

...this is my private opinion, not the one of AVAST Software or my employer...

In this case you shouldn't write here as a "reseller".

Take you a private account.

For me: here is the end of discussion (with you), because I can't see a real basic to go on.
Bye...

[avadas.de]

Take you a private account.

Why? Does it make things more or less true then? Or do you feel better if you hear that opinion from anyone else?

For me: here is the end of discussion (with you), because I can't see a real basic to go on.

Me neither, because you still didn't came up with any technical argument.

[=SKY=]

Bye...

[INGBEAN]

If you take a look to their forum (http://forum.avadas.de/), then you will find requests from "W2k"-users and the most common answer is: "go to XP!"...

Maybe you should take a closer look...just like here we are just reminding users, that they running an operating system without any support and that in the meanwhile the price for XP is so cheap, that they might consider an upgrade. We try to solve their problems anyway. But I guess thats just another user being "unhappy" with my opinion and the little piece which might be true about it.

@avast.de:

As you already write: "you guess".
My opinion is that every user has it's own responsibility with the using of his PC. And Microsofts Support for Windows 2000 ended on 13.07.2010 (not since many years).

INGBEAN

[avadas.de]

Bye...

Expected something like that... Anyway...have a nice evening.

By the way...if I read statements of yours like here, I am not wondering anymore.
For everyone none-aware of German...bottom line of his statement was: "Win2k is an 'assumption' (I guess he meant some kind of 'lifestyle'). It is very stable and not overcolored, childish like WinXP. May it be supported forever."

You are right...Windows 2000 was a stable OS, in some points better than it's successor WinXP. I am sharing that opinion, but that doesn't change the fact, that it is not supported and less secure than supported ones.

My opinion is that every user has it's own responsibility with the using of his PC. And Microsofts Support for Windows 2000 ended on 13.07.2010 (not since many years)

Well its a full year now. Count the monthly patches by Microsoft affecting XP, compare it to modules which are also included in Windows 2000 and you get a good picture of what I mentioned earlier.

You are right...every user has it's own responsibility, but I think it doesn't hurt to mention to someone that his operating system is outdated and not supported anymore. I just tried to create some awareness for that. That's all. I don't say that it was bad from AVAST to fix the problem, which appeared a few days ago, but only that you can't expect it. AVAST might have supported Windows 2000 another time here, but believe me...sooner or later every company has to drop support for older technologies...that is nothing unusual. Let's go a little bit...when avast! 5 was released, AVAST dropped the support for Win9x for technical reasons. I remember that everyone who was complaining about it here, received the answer from the supporters around here, that their recommendation is to upgrade to Windows XP. That recommendation even came from some Windows 2000 users at that time and nobody argued with that, except those who were still using Win9x. The difference here is that I just mention it a little bit earlier. Maybe avast! 7 will still support Windows 2000, but maybe not. But that is not the most important thing about it...most important is the unsupported and insecure status of Windows 2000.

[LeeU]

I had just installed Avast on Ubuntu Linux and it died when I tried updating. (And I have un- and re-installed it). I am get the error message "An error has occurred in avast! engine: invalid argument." Any tech out there can help?

[avadas.de]

Hi Lee,

I had just installed Avast on Ubuntu Linux and it died when I tried updating. (And I have un- and re-installed it). I am get the error message "An error has occurred in avast! engine: invalid argument." Any tech out there can help?

thats an issue not related to this problem, check here: http://forum.avast.com/index.php?topic=57775.0

[LeeU]

Thanks, I'll check it out, although it would seem like I wouldn't have to make changes to my machine, but that the software would find a way to work around it.

[avadas.de]

Hi LeeU,

Thanks, I'll check it out, although it would seem like I wouldn't have to make changes to my machine, but that the software would find a way to work around it.

it is a little bit more complicated than that. It is not like a bug, which could be fixed by releasing a patch. See Zilog's explanation on that: http://forum.avast.com/index.php?topic=57775.msg560976#msg560976

[momaru]

Even though the cost of a newer system is generally less expensive today, some people may not find it cost effective to purchase something newer or may not have money to invest in a new system. There are people who only need to perform very basic tasks on the computer and running a older system with an older operating system may work for them. With older systems, it may be better to stay with the original operating system, than to install a newer OS that may be more resource intensive.

As for viruses on older insecure OS, the user will have to be a bit more diligent on what they do on the system. In general, anti-virus programs are not perfect, it really doesn't matter what OS is used, the end user still has to be careful of what they do on the system (internet, copy files, etc..)

This thread is starting to go off topic. I am also going off topic with my statements, so I will stop here.

[=SKY=]

@avast.de

Please be careful!
 
If you edit  #113 much more, you won't sleep this night! :'(

Funny!

Hey man, be cool - this is just a forum, not an university...