Hey, don't get me wrong. I have been using ZA on my PC's in one version or another since they first came out years ago. But lately they have been trying to add everything security related into their applications. I can sort of understand that they are running a business and want to continue to make money, that’s fine. Personally I think they should offer their tools as modules for those who do not wish to have everything packaged into one suite. As a matter of fact I use to run the Pro version on my personal PC's but they continued to add things that I was not interested in so I started using the free version just to avoid the "Bloat". It was annoying to me that in order to have better control over my Firewall I would also need to install their Antivirus or anti spy ware. What if I already had one of those?  

Being a programmer I have a tendency to try to create software that is not "Bloated" and I normally try to develop software that is module based and has switches to accommodate user preferences. I also shy away from using what may be referred as "Bloat Ware". As a matter of fact there is only one program on my pc that takes a long time to start because of all the additional functionality I have added to it and that is Outlook. This is due to the fact that it serves as an excellent PIM (Personal Information Manager) and I like my PIM to remain connected to all relevant information. ZA on the other hand is a security tool used to keep unwanted visitors out of my PC. I would like to be able to choose what other security tools I use (this is how Add-Ins work for outlook, I choose when and what I want to use).

But I Digress...

Since ZA assumed all users will want to have them filter junk mail and added this feature to Outlook without adding a switch to their interface we will need to manually remove and disconnect the functionality from Outlook. To do so:

• Select "Tools" from the Outlook menu bar
• Select "Options..." from the drop down menu
• Select the tab that is titled "Other"
• Now click on the button labeled "Advanced Options..."
• Towards the bottom of that dialog you will see a button labeled "COM Add-Ins" click on that
• Highlight the line that says "Buddy Bar" or something with Zone Alarm (be sure nothing else is highlighted! It doesn't matter if they are checked or not just highlighted)
• Now click the button labeled "Remove"
• Exit out using the "OK" selections until your back in Outlook
• Now you will need to manually delete the 3 Zone Alarm folders that have been added to your Outlook folder structure. ( check the contents for anything important first)

 So now you should be back to the interface you were used to in Outlook and relatively secure knowing you have a decent firewall in use.

A note to any software designers reading this: Let this be a reminder of how important it is to allow the user to have access to your features so they may use what they want and turn the rest off. After all we should be designing software that makes the user more efficient and comfortable