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Open Source or free Anti Virus software for the MAC

mentalist3d
Grafter
Posts: 371
Registered: ‎20-08-2009

Open Source or free Anti Virus software for the MAC

Does anyone know of any good anti virus software that is free or released as Open Source for the MAC running 10.4?
9 REPLIES 9
artificer
Grafter
Posts: 1,850
Registered: ‎11-08-2007

Re: Open Source or free Anti Virus software for the MAC

as far as i know, like linux, macs don't suffer from viruses.  you do have to watch out for rootkits, but so long as you don't log in as root and then go surfing, you are ok.  linux has clamav for those conscientious linux users who interchange files with windows users; they're so kind. 
dvorak
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Registered: ‎11-01-2008

Re: Open Source or free Anti Virus software for the MAC

You can get http://www.clamxav.com/ which is the mac version of clamav, but as artificer says it's not really necessary as there aren't any viruses that you just download like windows.
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mentalist3d
Grafter
Posts: 371
Registered: ‎20-08-2009

Re: Open Source or free Anti Virus software for the MAC

I have heard of ClamAv is available for the Mac as well but with it being command driven, it put me of because I am still learning the MAC, I might have another look. I feel I'm safe from viruses but I feel I should get some software just so I don't pass anything on to a Windows user.
Just to go off-topic, I noticed you are one of the linux experts around here and was hoping you can give me some advice. My mother is running a laptop with Windows XP on 256Mb of RAM, so just booting up is running her laptop at full capacity, so she can only run 1 program at a time and it is really slow. I'm trying to convince her to replace the laptop, upgrade or change her OS. I have almost got her convinced to change her OS and I was considering linux. Would linux run faster on her laptop as she doesn't want to change the laptop shes using?
mentalist3d
Grafter
Posts: 371
Registered: ‎20-08-2009

Re: Open Source or free Anti Virus software for the MAC

@AideeWoo: I see it is based on ClamAv but with a user interface, I'll give it a try, thanks Wink
artificer
Grafter
Posts: 1,850
Registered: ‎11-08-2007

Re: Open Source or free Anti Virus software for the MAC

256mb ram is a bit on the mean side for modern oses.  for a long time pclinuxos was quite comfortable, if somewhat slow with that amount, but even a boost to 512mb brought reports of marked improvement.
depending upon how old the laptop is, the simplest upgrade is usually ram and crucial sells it so cheaply now it's worth looking at that option.  otherwise, have a look around the second hand/freecycle market to see what's on offer.  even a new machine with a decent spec is affordable now.
if you can persuade your mother to switch oses, it will pay dividends in the long run, especially if you undertake to do the heavy lifting for her, like installing and tweaking.  i 'upgraded' my neighbour's old dell (800 mhz 192mb ram, windows me (meh)) to pclinuxos 2007 and a lump of ram to bring it up to 256 and he's happy because all he does is a little surfing, some email, a few documents and mucking about with open office spreadsheet.  what he likes most about it is that it doesn't fall over when he has more than one app open.
speaking of open apps, even with a small amount of ram, i once lost interest after opening 50 and it still hadn't fallen over.  later other adventurers had over 100 apps open with no performance penalty.  it's all down to how linux handles ram.  an app not being used is not assigned ram - simples.  if you then wish to use it, you may see some hd activity and it's back in business.
best to get a bunch of livecds of various flavours, let your mother boot each one and use it live for a while to see which, if any, she likes best and be sure to tell her that they will run a lot faster when installed.  you might also consider running dual boot with windows for those apps she is fond of and later consider running windows in an emulator within linux.
Steve
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Registered: ‎13-07-2009

Re: Open Source or free Anti Virus software for the MAC

Quote from: mentalist3d
Just to go off-topic, I noticed you are one of the linux experts around here and was hoping you can give me some advice. My mother is running a laptop with Windows XP on 256Mb of RAM, so just booting up is running her laptop at full capacity, so she can only run 1 program at a time and it is really slow. I'm trying to convince her to replace the laptop, upgrade or change her OS. I have almost got her convinced to change her OS and I was considering linux. Would linux run faster on her laptop as she doesn't want to change the laptop shes using?
Not sure if this has been made for laptops but you could try Helena LXDE, Its an uptodate distro and the systems requirements are
   
      * x86 processor
    * 256 MB of system memory (RAM)
    * 3 GB of disk space for installation
    * Graphics card capable of 800x600 resolution
    * CD-ROM drive or USB port
If life gives you lemons, make lemonade.
shutter
Community Veteran
Posts: 22,206
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Registered: ‎06-11-2007

Re: Open Source or free Anti Virus software for the MAC

You could go on the Crucial website and do a scan to see how much more RAM she can put on...
http://www.crucial.com/uk/systemscanner/?click=true
mentalist3d
Grafter
Posts: 371
Registered: ‎20-08-2009

Re: Open Source or free Anti Virus software for the MAC

Thanks everyone for the feedback and advice, and sorry for my late reply, I only get to pop in here occasionally nowadays because when I do it sucks up my time from other stuff so I have to limit myself lol
@artificer: She only uses the laptop for browsing and the occasional document, so I think I'll download a couple and let her test them out. She is a bit of a stickler that once she has got something set-up the way she likes or is used to working with, it is difficult to get her to change, but I'll see how she gets on.
@shutter: cheers for the link, never seen that site before so I'll give the software a try Smiley
mentalist3d
Grafter
Posts: 371
Registered: ‎20-08-2009

Re: Open Source or free Anti Virus software for the MAC

@steve; thanks for the info, I had a quick look at their website: http://www.linuxmint.com/blog/?p=1339 this looks promising as well, cheers Wink