I am the type of user that believes that in terms of security as well as operational quality, it seems to be a good idea to re-install certain programs fairly frequently on your computer.
In terms of speed (and also sometimes in terms of security) I regularly re-install browsers, Directx, etc. From time-to-time I re-install the operating system and updates.
In terms of mostly security, I like to re-install anti-virus and a little bit less frequently, my firewall. For anyone with experience in that particular area, you will probably learn that the latest web release version rarely is close to being the latest version. I am guessing that part of the reason for that is in protecting the software itself from rifling by hackers. In other words, if there is a portion that ultimately has to be downloaded later on, there is a bit of software formula that can be manipulated in small ways each time it is installed on a user’s system, keeping it a bit more mysterious and unpredictable to someone seeking malice with the final program agent. But… That’s the software distributor’s secret, and only they would know.
I use dial-up, and unfortunately it would seem as if the update which is always (?) necessary for a new installation of Comodo Firewall appears to be as large as the initial program installation itself. It can take several download attempts at times to get it right using the onboard updater.
Is it possible to make available a less out-of-date version of Comodo Firewall on the website for download, or would that be simply, in terms of security… foolish?
I certainly have no complaints about the actual working software as is.
Hmmm… Interesting post. The Comodo firewall is reasonably a smallish download and shouldn’t take too long even on dial-up. You might ask others in the form if they would be willing to send you a CD of the software. Alternatively, goto your local internet cafe or library and download the file on their broadband connection and save the file to a CD or memory stick.
Since installing the current version (available on the website http://www.personalfirewall.comodo.com/download_firewall.html), which is 2.4.18.184, I have not experienced an update. The last time I did was thru Beta testing (other users did migrating from 2.3.8.61). FWs are not like AVs, that require definition updates (at least, Comodo’s isn’t), so other than version upgrades, there really isn’t any traffic.
So far, Comodo has been good about getting the latest release on the website as soon as it’s publicly available. If it’s a major upgrade (such as from 2.3 to 2.4), I personally prefer to uninstall and install fresh, rather than try to upgrade. For a number of users during that transition, this was helpful as well (in part due to server difficulties, though, I think).
Ah yes… The initial download is not too bad. I’m not certain if you understand that I am talking about what seems to be the additional requirement for an update to THAT after you have downloaded the latest website version. It always seems to be necessary. I was suggesting that I can understand the reasons for that as software design security… But for me, the additional update often seems to take a very long time (therefore I suspect it to be a large one) and has been frequently problematic. So if you understand this, you would understand why going to an internet cafe with broadband would not be solving this problem. It is the seemingly standard upgrade to latest on-line version which seems be necessary (or at least suggested as a darn good idea) after the installation of the first download which takes me… “forever”. Excuse the drama word Mr. Einstein.
Thanks again… I am not so disturbed by this, all in all, I favor Comodo so well by now that even a little grief on this end is tolerable. It kicks butt next to Zone Alarm, in my opinion. (:LOV)
I can’t say that I have experienced that, H K Kitty. Any time I’ve downloaded and installed a new version, that’s been it; no additional big updates. Not sure exactly what it is that you’re experiencing, but it sounds like it’s commonplace for you…
Ah thanks soya , I have saw this before … It this just a beta test version? well ok i read it over a lil bit , so this is the future version just not out yet on the main download page?
Exactly. Almost a guarantee that one of us mods will update that thread as soon as we receive any news of the next alpha or beta dates. We are volunteer users, so what you see is what we see. Just a matter of who sees it first 8)
