Clever use of the networking facilities in the Microsoft Windows family allows remote installation onto most PCs. Some of this might require one initial visit to the machine, but once in place the software can be kept up to date with a few mouse clicks. Support for scanning within compressed files is now standard on all of the packages we reviewed. This was previously a good hiding place for a virus, especially those downloaded from rogue Internet sites or bulletin boards. All the manual scanners had the option to expand ZIP and ARJ files to check the files within them for infection, although disinfection of the file couldn't be carried out within the compressed file by any of the packages.
False alarms are now a rarity.
The anti-virus researcher has now refined his art to a point where reliable detection of a large number of viruses can be carried out without crying wolf. This is often as disruptive as a virus outbreak, since you're chasing a virus that isn't really there. All the packages included files with DOC, DOT and XLS in their specification for 'program files'. This will catch macro viruses when a standard scan is carried out. Few people will configure an anti-virus package to scan all files all the time, since this can have a vital performance impact.