All Internet security and firewall

The Bottom Line: ZoneAlarm Internet Security 2009 provides top-notch security protection that is light on system resources, allowing you to work unencumbered.

Specs: Complete package, 1 GHz Intel Pentium III, 1 GHz Intel Pentium III

The Bottom Line: Kaspersky Anti-Virus 2009 provides adequate protection, but the program itself could use some work in telling the user what's going on.

Specs: 1 user, Complete package, 800 MHz Intel Pentium (Microsoft Windows XP, Microsoft Windows Vista), 800 MHz Intel Pentium (Microsoft Windows XP, Microsoft Windows Vista)

The Bottom Line: Vipre combines antivirus and antispyware technology in a fast and light application that also includes a worthy set of security tools.

The Bottom Line: AVG Anti-Virus 8 is solid at finding and removing viruses and spyware as well as blocking Web threats, but could be lighter on system resources and provide more technical support options.

The Bottom Line: Haute Secure 2.0 blocks malicious content on the Web and is a worthy alternative to Linkscanner and Finjan SecureBrowsing.

The Bottom Line: AVG Internet Security 8.0 provides strong protection against malicious Web sites, but its full-system scans sometimes tax system resources and produce false positives.

Specs: Complete package, 1 GHz Intel Pentium, 2 GHz Intel Pentium, 8, 1 GHz Intel Pentium, 2 GHz Intel Pentium

The Bottom Line: A near-perfect all-in-one solution for brand new PCs, Norton 360 v2 may be hard to install and run on legacy machines. However, don't count on Symantec's time-consuming and expensive technical support for help.

Specs: 3 PC in one household, Complete package, Microsoft Windows Vista / XP, 300 MHz, 2.0, CD-ROM, 300 MHz, Windows, Internet Explorer 6.0 or later

The Bottom Line: While Symantec's protection is solid, the overall user experience within Norton Internet Security 2008 could be much, much better. Not all the features work together, and the program could use fewer system resources. We can also do without the addition of paid services within the technical support section.

Specs: 3 users, Complete package, Microsoft Windows Vista Business, Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate, Microsoft Windows Vista Home Basic, Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium, Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition SP2, Microsoft Windows XP Professional SP2, Microsoft Windows XP Media Center Edition SP2, 300 MHz or higher, 300 MHz, CD-ROM, 300 MHz or higher, 300 MHz, Windows

The Bottom Line: McAfee Internet Security 2008 trounces Norton Internet Security 2008, offering a better designed product with more security tools.

Specs: 3 users, Complete package, Microsoft Windows XP SP1, 500 MHz, SVGA monitor, Internet connection, 500 MHz, Windows, Mozilla Firefox 1.5 or later, Internet Explorer 6.0 or later