Old Steam Poll posts split and 'archived'

[A5PECT]

mm just had a look at steam support and vac.

VAC won't be an issue with Rebirth. It only applies to multiplayer games, and even then it's run server-side. Since Rebirth doesn't have multiplayer, let alone servers, VAC won't affect it in any shape or form.

Not sure about the non-VAC-related program conflicts with Steam.

[AkrionXxarr]

So the claims about what makes Steam so bad are down to being entirely hypothetical now?

Apparently.

[Slashman]

So the claims about what makes Steam so bad are down to being entirely hypothetical now?

A lot of them have been of the hypothetical nature. Not that there haven't been people with genuine difficulties. People with no/limited internet access are in an unenviable position.

The most vehement ones, though, have been about what happens when Steam shuts off your game access, when they get bought out, when they change business strategies and become a totally evil organization or that they currently are a totally evil organization waiting in the shadows to pounce on the innocent gamers of the world etc. etc.

[fairywhipper]

here is something interesting from steam support:

Certain Anti-Virus applications such as AVG 7.5, Nod32 and Norton have been confirmed to cause instability with Steam and Source Engine games. This software must be fully uninstalled from your system until the Anti-Virus software developers can resolve these issues. If you are not comfortable with using alternative Anti-Virus protection, then we recommend contacting your Anti-Virus developer for more information.


so they recommend you to uninstall your antivirus.... i wonder why

its got nothing to do with the fact that it might be snooping or controling the flow of data does it? i leave it to experts to explain to me why i should get rid of my antivirus in order for steam to work online with no protection.... so imagine all those dodgy sites i might visit with no protection, really good idea.......

[EmperorJon]

Hahah, and just after people mentioned the paranoia...

A problem with some AV software? They want you to remove it?! OH NOES TEHY MUST BE H4CKZORZING YOU!

No.

Many, MANY programs cause problems with antivirus, and I will point out here that AVG has for me and many people I know always been pathetic, and Norton, well... the less I say the better. Let's just say me and at least 2 people I know have had previous experiences of Norton refusing to be uninstalled, claiming its own updates were malicious, and antivirus fights erupting between a more recent version and the 2 previous versions you thought you'd uninstalled but are really still lurking somehwere. I will never use Norton again, I think...

[Ebyl Vampyre]

I have the current AVG and haven't found any instabilities with Steam. It may affect some users with certain setups, but it definitely doesn't affect me.

Here is the key statement in that bit...

"If you are not comfortable with using alternative Anti-Virus protection, then we recommend contacting your Anti-Virus developer for more information."

They aren't recommending you run without protection, they're recommending you use another AV program if the one you have is causing problems. But then again, paranoid people will always read just about anything as being out to get them.

Edit - And btw, anyone who is online should have a hardware based firewall. If you ONLY rely on an AV program, or a software based firewall on your computer, then you deserve what you get.

[apricotslice]

Big brother is always watching and waiting and has been since 1984.

Didnt you know ? The world ended in 1984 and we are waiting for the paperwork to catch up !

Let's just say me and at least 2 people I know have had previous experiences of Norton refusing to be uninstalled, claiming its own updates were malicious, and antivirus fights erupting between a more recent version and the 2 previous versions you thought you'd uninstalled but are really still lurking somehwere. I will never use Norton again, I think...

Dont get me started on Norton. I consider it to BE a virus in itself. I wont have it on any computer, and I wont buy said computer if its pre-installed.

But....

here is something interesting from steam support:

Certain Anti-Virus applications such as AVG 7.5, Nod32 and Norton have been confirmed to cause instability with Steam and Source Engine games. This software must be fully uninstalled from your system until the Anti-Virus software developers can resolve these issues. If you are not comfortable with using alternative Anti-Virus protection, then we recommend contacting your Anti-Virus developer for more information.

NO. That is so not happening !

I dont use the 3 mentioned, but if it complained about the one I did use, it would be steam that got removed, not the anti-virus/firewall. I'm very happy with my firewall software, and nothing is going to ask me to remove it.

And as for it being the anti-virus companies problem, BS !

[strude]

steam works for many people, looking at link, you get breakdown of data of rigs etc which indicate marketing potential. sooner or later they will offer games best suited to your preferences and equipment based on history etc, this also profiles your economic potential. direct niche marketing.

You mean I'll get ads I might actually be interested in, rather than Russian brides and how to get a bigger ****? Oh the horror! Where else on the internet will I find pics of scantly clad ladies without being bombarded by unrelated ads?

[Laden Swallow]

I decided to go away and look at anti-virus software via google, and the anti-virus software being complained about (in the form of AVG) is over 5 years old (source) which google dates 28 February 2007); based on the dates of websites that google finds when searching for AVG 7.5.

If the anti-virus companies haven't themselves managed to resolve the issues in 5 years (given that I think they tend to come out with at least one new version per year), and the growing popularity of steam in that time frame, then I'm not sure I would want to keep using anti-virus software from that company... what if they don't want you to be able to use <insert popular program name here> alongside their product.

PS: Amongst my security software I use AVG 2012 without any problems with steam, and team fortress 2 has been played on this computer albeit with the previous version of AVG installed at that time.

PPS: Lol strude.

[perkint]

So the claims about what makes Steam so bad are down to being entirely hypothetical now?

No. Most of the people are not saying Steam is bad. This has been repeated over and over again. They are saying they have concerns over it because it has had problems in the past And it may have again (no sane person is going to be able to predict the future, surely?). They may be rare, they may never happen. Any problems that do arise may even be less severe than alternative solutions. But some people are saying they would rather have another choice. This thread was not started about "is Steam evil" (although it repeatedly degenerates into arguments around that). It was simply about whether there were enough people who want another choice. Please don't take it back to that again

Certain Anti-Virus applications such as AVG 7.5, Nod32 and Norton have been confirmed to cause instability with Steam and Source Engine games. This software must be fully uninstalled from your system

How old is that? AVG v7.5 is over 4 years old! And as for Norton, I agree with some of the other posts about that... But, anti virus often interferes with other things because it tries to keep an eye on pretty much everything that's going on. But any issues with Steam are likely to be highlighted fairly quickly and looked at (hopefully resolved!) just as quickly.

@Ebyl Vampyre do you really mean the "you deserve what you get" comment?? A pet hate of mine - that sort of comment usually reflects an attitude I object to! Most people don't really mean it either - do you really mean by being possibly computer illiterate and sold Norton by a PC World salesman that you deserve your PC infecting and the possible financial losses?

Sorry - didn't really mean this as a rant at you, but I hate the use of that phrase!

Tim

[Edited] for correct age of AVG v7.5 (not AVG v7.2 as I originally looked up)

[Mightysword]

so they recommend you to uninstall your antivirus.... i wonder why

Soo.... we're moving from hypothetical scenario into conspiracy theory now aren't we. Well at least it keeps thing interesting I guess


Before I start, to let you see how "absolute" you should trust your anti-virus software, I insist you read this article . Really, if you want to type a really big LOL, there is no better chance. Brand new too, just happened last month actually


Issues like that are nothing news especially you're type of run a lot of different type of programs like I do, your anti-virus bound to conflict or throw a fit with one program sooner or later. I used to use McFree from my ISP, it works well enough but then they ditch it for Norton. I tried for 1 weeks and quickly remove it because ... holy crap I never see something that bad before. I mean ... it works great, but the price your system paying is way too much. Not much of protection when I keep have to disable it so my program don't get choke. So I tried Avira Guard, which is a lot more light weight. It works fine ... but it keeps returns false positive on my Japanese programs (which I have a lot), sometime even out right blocking it no matter how many times I told it to add the programs to its exception list. So I fed up said "screw this, no more anti-virus". I have several measures in place to protect myself but I have been running with no Anti-Virus for 3-4 years now, and I have never caught a virus.

So really, anti-virus is about the most intrusive type of program one can have on the computer, most of the time we just think it's a necessary type of intrusion. (yeah, so whoever loved quoting so much, give me a quote on that please ). It's bounded to have some conflict, small to big, to downright shenanigan like that article. It's common, really.

One conspiracy down, what next?


Edit: it's good to see there is a unanimous distaste for Norton here. There has always been a (really really) tiny part of me wonder if it was my system since it's hard to believe such a famous piece of software to be "that" bad. Hey, look like we can agree on something in this topic after all

[Cycrow]

here is something interesting from steam support:

Certain Anti-Virus applications such as AVG 7.5, Nod32 and Norton have been confirmed to cause instability with Steam and Source Engine games. This software must be fully uninstalled from your system until the Anti-Virus software developers can resolve these issues. If you are not comfortable with using alternative Anti-Virus protection, then we recommend contacting your Anti-Virus developer for more information.


so they recommend you to uninstall your antivirus.... i wonder why

its got nothing to do with the fact that it might be snooping or controling the flow of data does it? i leave it to experts to explain to me why i should get rid of my antivirus in order for steam to work online with no protection.... so imagine all those dodgy sites i might visit with no protection, really good idea.......

i've been using nod32 and steam for ages, never had a problem, and never had to uninstall nod

[fairywhipper]

think you guys are been a bit defensive, look at this way, the extract was current, if the help and support team havent adjusted it in their help guide for updates, how can i trust them to help me if i have a problem?

i was in that section looking at something called "data execution pevention" dep. what is that btw? (what does it do, does it have bearing).

theory aside, if it collects data then transfer it to somewhere else, i always suspect, and steam is also memory resident and seeks control of certain functions, like why does it exert control over my windows shutdown?

im going to do a new clean installation of my OS soon, and i am wondering if i should shoot steam completly and dont bother to reinstall it and write off those dvd i brought that required it. i know tc will be reinstalled, along with several other games. but for me, i dont think steam will be on my system for much longer.... oh yea, i dont need antivirus for it because my gaming rig will go back to been isolated from internet... i just take off the usb cable to my mobile phone... save money! and bandwidth !

[Mightysword]

like why does it exert control over my windows shutdown?

Wait ... what?

[apricotslice]

steam is also memory resident and seeks control of certain functions, like why does it exert control over my windows shutdown?

wtf ?

Please explain.

[Slashman]

steam is also memory resident and seeks control of certain functions, like why does it exert control over my windows shutdown?

wtf ?

Please explain.

I'd like an explanation too. I have no idea what he's talking about...

[Gavrushka]

I must say, when I shut down Windows (Vista 64) Steam does sometimes pop up and slow the shutdown operation- I think it is nothing more intrusive than 'Steam screenshot manager' if I remember rightly.

I didn't know about Steam's quest to conquer and consume the O.S. though ... Perhaps this is how the fall of man starts?

[apricotslice]

Perhaps this is how the fall of man starts?

Maybe thats how all the AI senarios where the machines take over the earth started..... with Steam.

After all, its was the permanent uplink from the robots to the update server that allowed the robot revolution in "I, Robot".




Edit : Maybe in 10 years time, only those of us who dont have steam on our computers will be free enough to form the resistence.

[Oldman]

...Edit : Maybe in 10 years time, only those of us who dont have steam on our computers will be free enough to form the resistence.

Long live the Revolution!

It's those two large green pods that's suddenly appeared in me greenhouse, I'm worried about. They materialized just after this topic was started, one has just disappeared...and the wife's acting kinda strange

Oldman

[Mightysword]

steam is also memory resident and seeks control of certain functions, like why does it exert control over my windows shutdown?

wtf ?

Please explain.

I'd like an explanation too. I have no idea what he's talking about...

You know ... I think I can make a pretty good guess what he meant ... but I'll hold back until he confirm it. I'll be clutching my side if my guess is correct though