Panda Titanium AV 2004

It takes a deranged marketing mind to use the words 'panda' and 'titanium' to describe a piece of anti-virus software. Fortunately, the software isn't as bad as its name implies.

Panda Titanium Anti-virus 2004 is a low-cost and fairly basic anti-virus program. However, it's easy to use and provides regular updates for protection, so it does provide a good basic level of security.

Installation is simple, and marred only by the fact that this 'home user' product forces you to enter a company name before installation. The program provides a split-screen display, with a series of buttons on the left-hand side of the screen allowing you to select various settings. Press one of these buttons and the relevant settings are displayed on the right-hand side of the screen.

You can tell the program to scan individual files, folders and disks, and to scan incoming emails and file downloads. It can also block dialler applications and there's an option to create a rescue disc so you can start up your PC in the event of a bad virus attack. The only major oversight is there's no option for scheduling scans to take place at specific times. The range of features is fairly limited compared to some of the other applications available, but that's reasonable given the low price. And if you want extra protection, there's a 'Panda Platinum' version available, which costs an extra £20 and provides additional online security features.

Contact: Panda Software 0906 609 2120
www.pandasoftware.co.uk

System requirements:

• 90MHz processor
• Windows 98 or later
• 128MB of Ram
• 30MB of free hard disk space