It is entirely true that antivirus alone is not enough to protect you these days. That said, the free ones can be just as good (if not better) than the paid ones. However, no antivirus is perfect, and there are always cases where one detects a virus another doesn’t. It’s the nature of the game.
The best AntiVirus I’ve encountered is Sophos. It’s not free, but the company is quick to respond to threats, and they seem to stay on top of the game more than the other players.
In addition to antivirus, NoScript and AdBlock for Firefox will drastically increase your safety. You also need a firewall, as the article mentions, and it helps to use OpenDNS. Don’t forget about spyware removers.
The days of “I run Norton’s and I don’t do any shopping online, so I am safe” are long over, but I still hear people saying that quite often.
