Ease of Use:  

If you use the default settings, setup is a breeze. The default settings provide very good protection against viruses, Trojans, worms, malicious ActiveX controls and Java applets.

The SecurityCenter has several tabs besides the VirusScan tab. There is one for Personal Firewall+, Privacy Service and SpamKiller. These are other programs offered by McAfee.

Effectiveness:  

VirusScan boasts one of the best virus detection records. The software has received the VB100% award, the ICSA award and passed both level 1& 2 Checkmarks from West Coast Labs.

Updates:  

McAfee VirusScan 9.0 automatically downloads updated virus definitions from the Internet on a regular basis. Staying up to date will dramatically decrease any possibility that a virus will infect your computer. On Average, McAfee comes out with new virus definitions on a daily basis.

You will have to register and login to get updates making the process longer than it needs be.

Feature Set:  

McAfee VirusScan offers a rich list of features. You can set VirusScan to scan your computer at a preprogrammed scheduled time. The program also scans for spyware and adware.

You can't add several tasks to the Scheduled Scan. It would be great to be able to scan all files once a month and only program files weekly or any other tasks you would like to set up.

McAfee has an Antivirus Emergency Response Team that continually monitors the worldwide virus activities to provide you with the utmost safety. The always-on protection guards against viruses, spyware and other Internet threats that may enter your PC via e-mail, instant message attachments, Internet downloads, and web browsing.

One of the newest features is also one of our favorites. It's the QuickScan feature, which basically narrows virus scans to the most vulnerable and frequently attacked parts of your computer. This makes scanning much faster, although we still recommend doing a full scan periodically. Another great feature that can save you some time is SiteAdvisor. This system automatically gives you a visual signal in your browser telling you if the link you are about to click on will send you to a malware site. This can significantly decrease your infection rate, if used properly.

Ease of Installation:  

We didn't encounter any problems during the installation process. Recently, McAfee has simplified the setup process, making installation faster than it used to be. But don't get too excited, installation times will still vary depending on the computer.

Help/Support:  

McAfee has plenty of help options, including documentation, email and phone support. We were disappointed with their email response time - it took 5 days to respond and they didn't answer all of our questions, hence the low rating.

McAfee is a name brand product that does an excellent job at detecting and removing viruses. Their update process can be somewhat tedious and their support department needs to answer their emails in a more timely manner.