What do think about Norton Systemworks 200, anygood or does it just take up space?

[jkac123]

I have norton systemworks 2000.

I have not installed it yet, wanted to here some opinions.
I just dont want something running in the background that really is'nt doing much more then some other Windows ME programs may do.

Thanks,

jkac123

[eagle1]

For me, Norton does make good software but... they are also a resource hog.! It can really slow down your system. So be sure that if you install it, remove its apps from startup.!

[jkac123]

eagle,

thats my point. i learned a couple of years ago when I purchased this memory software(cant recall what it was)anyway it turned out that this program that was suppose to be improving my system was one of the reasons it was running slow!

it was a good lesson about software. The only reason I found out was I called tech support at the time and they had me check the startup section in (msconfig). It was then I learned that any software you load automatically loads itself to the startup.

Thanks for opinion!

[GroundZero3]

system works causes more problems than helps IMHO. don't have that **** running in the background. just a waste of memory and money i believe just my 2 cents

Jason

[Underclocked]

Take a look at directdeals.com and find their oem copy of SysWorks 2001 pro which includes GHOST. Ghost alone is worth the asking price.

[Ballastboss]

SystemWorks 2000 is not compatable with Windows ME,you'll need 2001.Do yourself a favor and don't setup system doctor to run in the back round. http://service1.symantec.com/SUPPORT/nsw.nsf/docid/2000060912504407

[This message has been edited by Ballastboss (edited 07-12-2001).]

[jkac123]

I got a free version of GHOST with my new HD,
That is a great movie , demi was good, just kidding http://www.sysopt.com/forum/smile.gif

I have not used it yet,dont know much about it! is it good?

[GroundZero3]

ghost is a great progam to work with just system works = junk

Jason

[daveleau]

Ghost is great, stay AWAY from CleanSweep. The rest is ok software, but it is really bloated. I like/ use Ontrack's Fix It Utilities. A nice suite that is not bloat.

Dave

[thekingofpain]

I dont install it---I just run the utilitys I need directly from the disk...

[S.D.Willie]

i use innoculate it for antivirus(luckily i had it b4 it changed)

i use regular windows tools for maintenance.
98,ME,2k

i have norton system works 2001 alot and i love it so much and use it alot!!!!!!


as a coaster for my heineken http://www.sysopt.com/forum/wink.gif

SD

just my opinion. didnt like the way it bogged down my system.

[GroundZero3]

LMAO S.D.Willie!!!

HAHAHA

Jason

[bhess]

I've used it in the past and seemed to have more problems than before or after. Now I run win2k and never have any problems. I'd take all the money that you would spend on all the software to make your system stable and buy win2k. my $.02

[Yar1182]

I like fix it utilities also. I use it mostly for the jet defag, reg defrag, and boot befrag. That boot defrag is awesome.

I got most of the other utilites unistalled. Line the crashguard whatever.

[smartxtai]

don't use it man, it causes more problems than you had before, i know for a fact because i use to have it. the ONLY thing i use from norton is norton antivirus. other than that, i dont' use anything else. i always use the windows defrag and disk check. never run the norton windoctor because it really really F_ CKS up your computer because of what it does to teh registry and everything. the norton diskdoctor is fine though, but everything else, beware. Oh also, the system doctor is a piece of SH_T. if just hogs your memory and cpu usage. hope what i said helps and convinced you to not do dumb mistakes i have made because of it.

[struggles]

I like using Ghost and Anti-virus and thats about it.

[nunyadam]

the main problem i had with it is every time i would load crash guard it would crash my system.
it is a resource hog . do not let it run at startup.

nunya

[ragtop]

I like the Norton AV software, and there's a couple utilities that you may find useful on occasion. I have a copy of System Works and agree that you shouldn't just install it and let it run. If I need to use one of the utilities, I install it, use it, then uninstall it.

[mudoggy]

I have 2001 as well.

I use NAV (anti virus) all the time.
I do not run the system monitor in the background.. massive resource hog. I mostly use it for the FAST defrag/optimize of the hard drive (why the heck can't windows do it that fast???), and the disk doctor, and a couple of others. The reg editor is nice too.

Otherwise, don't let any of the actual programs (monitors, 'doctors', etc) run in the background all of the time. Just use the utilities carefully, and you should be fine.

Oh yes.. be careful with CleanSweep.. back up whatever it asks you to delete (although that seems to be a contradiction of terms or purposes though).

[OuTpaTienT]

I have Norton 2001 (also had 2000) but the ONLY applications I install and use from it are Disk Doctor (faster and better than Windoze Scandisk) and Speed Disk (faster and better than Windoze Defrag, which btw was also made by Symantec).

[wing7788]

Good thing about the Norton Systemworks are:

1. Disc Doctor
2. Anti-Virus
3. Clean Sweep
4. Some Norton Utilities

[eagle1]

I'm with Outpatient there.!! Those are (aprat from Ghost) the only utilities I use from Norton.!!

At least I wasn't the only one that said Norton soft do bug down systems.!

[lynchmob]

Install what you like.You can disable any of the programs in msconfig or the NSW options.I use Speedisk,Cleansweep,Diskdoctor.They just sit on the hdd until I'm ready to use them.They take up no resources except the resouces needed when whatever particular app is running.My system starts up with 90+% resources with the NSW apps installed.
As for CrashGuard:unless you have a copy of SystemWorks a few versions old,you wont find it on there.Norton quit putting it on the cd because of "negative user feedback"
lynch

[JvErYk]

ok ive had this prog for a long time and i think it is very useful the only thng u need to do really is disable the doctor from the startup and the rest are worth running because of things like little trojans that can be hidden in so many ways norton would pik up on it 95% of the time as long as u have updated it, without it i would probs have bout 101 trojans running on startup ;-) but it is worth it if u have 128 SDRAM or more

[thekingofpain]

***Lemme add this again if you missed it before***
you dont have to install ALL of it to use it, you can easily run the utilitys individually from the disk...

[jkac123]

King of pain,

I like that Idea of using it from the disk.

I cant see having all this stuff running in the background, which brings up a good question, is there anything that should ever be running in the background besides antivirus?

[OuTpaTienT]

Well, actually anti-virus shouldn't even be running in the background. If you must, then just run it when you need it, like to scan new files you've downloaded or what-not.

If you do a CTRL+ALT+DEL and the running apps are Explorer and Systray then you're at the bare minimum.

[JohnC]

What do I think of System Works?
Well... I used to really like Norton Utilities - I've used them since the DOS days. However, the latest incarnation of the computer "toolbox" is a bloated system hog with lots of almost useless garbage.

SystemWorks 2001 is okay if you:

a) Remove all the components from your start-up and run the main applications manually.

b) Never run the Speed-Disk application! on a Win98Se machine! It corrupts Kernel32! Also, it's slower than the Windows Defragger. I use DiskKeeper instead.

c) Never load the System Doctor! It'll kill the fastest machine on the block!

The only things I've found of value is the WinDoctor and NAV. Windoctor is basically a registry and shortcut scanner. I use that regularly. NAV is run manually. I have a NAV shortcut on my desktop so I can drag downloads on to it. I also run a manual update (once a month) and a manual scan weekly. I sometimes use CleanSweep. I manually check the items to remove because in it's automatic mode it killed my Win2k PC once by removing an important .DLL file!

The other stuff is worth about 12-cents.

[JohnC]

I forgot! Norton Disk Doctor is okay too. The DOS version (included) is great for mapping out bad blocks on a disk. Basically this util hasn't changed since 1994 - Same interface, etc. Only now it supports FAT32.

[Scorpio69]

Great programs if you can make them behave. I agree that nothing (except maybe NAV) should run on startup.

Speed Disk is my favorite. If you are really anal, you can actually configure it to put the most frequently accessed files on the fastest area of your disk the slowest towards the end. I like to keep my (fixed size) swapfile right at the beginning of the drive, so it runs slightly faster, and is never fragmented.

Win Doctor is a little risky - I think it may occasionally do damage. On other people's machines I usually save it for a last resort. On mine, I use it often.

Definitely avoid Disk Doctor, Crash Guard, and Cleansweep (unless you know your stuff). I have learned many painful lessons from letting Cleansweep delete everything it wanted to.

I have heard from more than one source that scandisk and defrag are watered down versions licensed from Symantec.

[shadow]

If it says Norton, keep it outta startup and better yet avoid it entirely.

I love the advice about running it from a disk....if you must use it, do that.

[doodelsak]

I read this post with great interest indeed!Lots of good idea's and info for sure!How do i disable all the programs from starting up.Or how can i just use the AV? id like to try just that and no t the rest of the works.thanks

[Crimson_Waylander]

I ditched all of Symantec's offerings some time ago when I found alternatives. I never was much of a fan for Symantec's supposed uber protection. It sounded more like those trumped up products designed to maximize profit in a market, that always ended up being more of a placebo than anything else. I just like Symantec enough to be able to say "Norton Crashguard ironically causes more crashes that it claims to guard against!" Anyways, in its place, I use InoculateIt (amen, thank god I got it before the company decided to change it into something resembling the Norton product), Ad-Aware, Trojan Remover, Diskeeper (wish there was a slimmer alternative, but for now it does the job i need to do.), and a hardware firewall. Oh yeah, none of them run at startup. I run everything "manually" with a self made script. What alternatives do you guys use, if anything?

[Gutter Ball]

I use SOME of the Systemworks package. I find that NAV is the best AV out there. Speed Disk, Disk Doctor, Clean Sweep and WinDoctor have not given me any problems. Crashguard is junk and Norton Optimization doesn't seem to do anything. Wipeinfo is an AWESOME utility. I've been using Norton Utilities since Win 3.1 and wouldn't use anything else. Just like all software, some like and some don't...best thing to do is try it for yourself. I run the programs right off my HD on my desktop and off the CD on my server.

[Gutter Ball]

D'oh! How could I forget the best program! GHOST!!! http://www.sysopt.com/forum/smile.gif When I set up systems, I always make a hidden partition for ghost images. That program saved me sooooooo much restore time!