Windows 7: Tips for NOT using an antivirus?

I have a couple of things to say to this preposterous topic ... ARGGGGH! Don't ever connect to the Internet, put your machine in a box and get rid of all traces of it.

There are a certain number of people who drive without liability insurance. Of those, a certain percentage are excellent drivers. Of those, a certain number cause accidents. Of those accidents, a certain number involve fatalities. Of those, a certain number are persons other than the uninsured driver.

Freedom is a responsibility.

<snip> Some people's freedom affect the rest of us ... they don't understand, or ignore "responsibility" for their actions.

I don't/can't take this topic as serious!

oh, noes!
the big bad internet is gonna get ya!

For the record, I do run antivirus software on my work computer and on my home computer. In the past 2-3 years, I don't recall a single instance where either virus software actually caught or identified anything. And I do run the occasionally malware,spyware scan with a couple of different apps and besides the typical cookie stuff and what not...absolutely nothing turns up here either.

So, in some respects, I guess that goes to show that the typically places that I surf and the typical things that I do aren't in a high risk category. I don't pirate software...so no warez, cracks, keygen sites or the like for me. I'm not really into the p2p apps and the torrents either, so safe on those fronts. And if for some reason I "had" to visit some website with questionable content, there is always a virtual machine installed at my house running some flavor of Linux which is going to pretty much float by without an incident.

So, while I don't usually advise most people to forego their antivirus applications, I think in the right persons hands, it might really not be the end of the world. Like in my case, many years without a single incident...but 100% of the time I have a background app running and checking to ensure that I am safe. Without that app using up cpu cycles and the like, I would end up with the same result that I am in today...clean as a whistle.

Of course, I will not get rid of my AV apps because I do remotely connect into a VPN to my office and I cannot take a chance that something might work it's way onto my work network.

1. How's that?
2. life's more fun that way (sometimes)
3. and may i ask why?

-edit- -but seriously-
your reaction puzzles me. what does me not wearing a safety sock have to do with you? or anyone else for that matter? (pardon the pun) it's not logical that the "health" of my machine would concern, anyone beyond well .. myself. i don't spend all day downloading from nefarious sites. there's no real need for me to have the A/V running when for the past, WHO knows how long, haven't had a single detection... at least, that I can think of..

I thought it, a valid question, to ask the only brains on this world (that would be you nice folks) who's opinions are actually insightful to me. (no luck getting tech support on 4chan)

The network is the computer.

indeed (i think)
but... counter not to argument. everyone else (im guessing) within the 7-10 sites i frequent, im willing to bet, have A/V's, Firewalls, and possibly gun turrets guarding them. even if i was to be index 1, the chances of contaminating (the 7 sites) are very limited, if not impossible.

i think were going to far with this one. just a thought.

you dont need a faster machine.. hell Nod32 even runs on a 512mb PC + 2.0ghz celeron on a windows 7 pc lol! ;D

a lot depends on what data you have to lose.

if you can cope with the fact that one day you will turn your computer on in the morning, only to get a nasty surprise and find all your data has been hosed, then maybe you don't need av - a quick format, reinstall and hey-ho, back to normal. but if you've got extra partitions full of software, music, pictures, documents and the like, be prepared to lose them too.

in six months' time, you may really regret your decision.

and there's other internet users to consider too - you could also be infecting others...