Hello Ubuntu friends!
I am coming on LQ forum to try and find solutions but today, this is simply to give good news.
A neighbor rang for help because she was stuck when trying to update an anti-virus software.
So I have first solved the problem caused by Norton (which has no uninstall prog) which was strongly interfering with another anti-virus.
Then, I have proposed to show what another marvel could do.
First I have inserted Puppy Linux 4.0 and launched it, connected to internet and have insisted strongly on the fact no anti-virus software was necessary.
Knowing I might have some trouble with GRUB and Puppy was only in English, I have switched to Ubuntu 8.04 and performed an installation in French language, showed how it was updating alone, how it was full of marvelous free softwares.
My neighbor has been very impressed.
XP is now running twice faster than before and Ubuntu is running smoothly and perfectly.
I was presented 3 bottles of Champagne for my help!
Now, I hope that my neighbor first will relinquish this stupid anti-virus and second, will talk to friends about this new marvel she has on her laptop for future install parties!
With friends, we are planning an install party in the village hoping to free more computers and increase the French Linux community.
Yours friendly
Marc

That must be new. Back when I used Norton, it did allow you to uninstall it. It first made you jumt through some hoops though. This was so you could prove that you were the admin of the PC and not some rogue malware.
Anyway, glad you and your friend are enjoying linux. Welcome to the cool side of computing!

Hello Tommcd
I think the laptop was purchased in 2005, a Packard Bell, and I even downloaded Ccleaner to try to kill the beast, but even with Ccleaner it was impossible to locate it (and destroy!!) among all softwares.
If the topic can help other windoze hostages, this is the killer
ftp://ftp.symantec.com/misc/consumer/Rnav2003.exe
I was less lucky than the first time when looking for the name of the .exe, they seem to have an .exe for each version! Crazy!

Being so well accustomed to be a sudoer, when I was working on the xp mess, I did not think a second that I might be stopped by an admnistrator password.
This is why (and many other reasons) windoze is so unsafe :-)

Yesterday, I visited again my neighbor to show who she could use Ubuntu, have configured the printer without cd (she was already looking for the cd :-D ),wifi and comparing the speed of each system, she has admited that Ubuntu was running better than windoze.
I got news from a penguin friend who has freed two more computers!!