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Business Services Industry

High Maintenance

Entrepreneur, Feb, 2001 by Jane Gouthro

Symantec's System Works is a virtual handyman for your PC.

Think you're in control of your computer? Think again. When it comes down to it, you don't know your computer as well as you think you do. But Norton System Works from Symantec (www.symantec.com) does.

The latest version, System Works 2001, retains all the handy features you've come to know and expect from Norton, including Utilities, Anti Virus and Clean Sweep. But the $59.95 (street) application also adds some nifty new tools: It's now a multiplatform application, supporting Windows 95, 98, Me, NT and 2000. And it adds a one-button check-up feature that allows you to identify and repair problems with a single mouse click.

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When you launch the program, the first System Works screen features the One Button Checkup in the main window and a list of links on the left-hand side. These links take you to the different features mentioned above.

The One Button Checkup integrates the key features of System Works into a single scan-and-repair process. One click will scan your Windows registry, find missing application files, check whether your virus protection is up to date, measure the amount of free space available, check the level of disk fragmentation, diagnose hard-drive problems and more. Once the scan is completed, you can elect to repair the problems with another click. In previous editions, some scans were grouped, but in most cases, you'd have had to run each check separately. Be warned, however: The checkup will take some time on a computer that hasn't been checked recently- or one that has a lot of problems. It found 72 errors on the PC I tested it on, and it took nearly two hours to run its course and repair them. Of course, the fewer errors it finds, the quicker the process.

You also can choose to run the different scans individually, using the menu options available on the left-hand side of the screen. Norton Utilities features tools designed to optimize the performance of your computer, find and fix problems, perform system maintenance, and maintain your registry. Because the application walks you through each step and explains what each tool does, even novice users will be able to understand it.

The left-hand menu also features links to Norton AntiVirus, which will scan for viruses, repair damaged files and update your virus protection; Norton CleanSweep, which cleans your hard drive of files you no longer need; and Symantec Web Partners, a series of helpful Web-based resources for PC maintenance.

There's not much System Works can't do. The improvement in my PC's performance after running the program wasn't huge, but it was definitely noticeable. And it's a great place to start when you've got a sluggish PC and you're not sure why.

Business Services Industry

High Maintenance

Entrepreneur, Feb, 2001 by Jane Gouthro

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