Norton Systemworks 2004 (AntiVirus, Utilities, Cleansweep, GoBack, Password Manager) 

Apart from this NSW 2002 was very good and so I bought 2004. I uninstalled the old version and installed the newer one (on Windows XP). I noticed the interface was exactly the same as my two year old version. You are prompted to activate the product and then Liveupdate updates your software.

NSW consists of a few programs which are a mixed bunch. Starting with the Norton Antivirus (NAV), I noticed how this new product used up more system resources. There was noticeable slowdown on my system (the virus scanner runs in the background). Scanning also took longer than before but overall the virus scanner seemed to do a great job as before. NAV is supposed to protect you from adware/spyware but this new feature is inadequate, so unfortunately you'll need separate software to do that job. The other great little program you get with NSW is called Cleansweep. It takes seconds to run and deletes all unwanted internet clutter, temporary files etc

Apart from NAV and Cleansweep, the remainder are so-so and so you may want to consider before purchase. The Utilities are okay and include Windoctor which scans your system for windows related problems, Speed Disk optimiser (windows can do this), Wipeinfo which lets you permanently delete files from your hardrive, Onebutton scan that briefly scans your registry and other general concern areas.

Goback is similar to Windows System restore and also takes up too much system resources, so its pretty useless. Password Manager is new and comesvery handy; your passwords are securely kept on your computer and Norton can automatically fill in website log-in info, credit card info, addresses etc for you after the prompt-- very handy if you shop around the net since it saves you finding all those different cards and CVV numbers.

Now the biggest problem. I noticed switching users on XP, that NSW had NOT installed properly. It would not load properly on other user profiles, only on the main Admin account. I noted the error and confirmed on the Symantec site it was an installation issue. They give me a whole list of instructions to do and in my case these procedures required at least 20 restarts. I had spent around 15 hours trying to resolve this problem with no avail. The only comfort i get of not having wasted £40 was the Antivirus seemed to work in the background on other user profiles and stopped viruses, but no other part of Norton Systemwork would 'work'. I have looked around the net and surprise surprise, this issue is not uncommon and NSW 2004 actually has some serious installation issues.

Overall, from my experience of upgrading I find 2004 offers little in addition to 2002. In fact apart from Password Manager I really cannot see much to substantiate an upgrade. Add to this the major installation issues Symantec don't seem to have resolved. Many people including myself have lost trust in Symantec in what used to be a very reliable company. Maybe XP caught them off guard so I'll await the next version. Not recommended.

I did notice significant decrease in speed on my machine but after running the "One Button Checkup" and "Speedisk" everything speeded up. I have now been using the software for two weeks and I am delighted. It is stable, and has had no negative effect on my system.

Password Manager is a delight to use and makes it easy to log on to websites. Antivirus and the Windows utilities provide peace of mind that the system is being monitored against most threats.

Buy it - you will like it.
I have the peace

Go Back plays with your PCs boot up. Norton don't go to a lot of trouble to warn you about this and I recently managed to screw up my pcs startup by innocently installing Linux without uninstalling go back first.

Bad mistake, and with hindsight, I don't know why I ever bothered to install go back. Having thought long and hard, I can't actually think how it might ever help successfully recover anything.