KW>  JP> c.  Manually copy the update files from the original, downloaded ZIP
  >  JP> file (on one of the hard drives) to the OS/2 AV diskette.  (Assume
  >  JP> that the files still within the .ZIP archive are unlikely to have
  >  JP> been contaminated.)
KW> there are actually viruses that will insert themselves into compressed
  > archives, but they number in the ... um... 1 to 3 category i think...
Ugh!  I was afraid that might be the case :(
KW> you don't mention this, but your archive proram should probably be on
  > some protected floppy too...
Don't know how that could be accomplished with a downloaded file.  The
download is being done from the hard drive.  It could be directed to a
floppy, but the floppy would have to be unprotected for that process.
Sounds like a classic "Catch 22".
KW> or, i suppose that would be implicit by "not running anything from the
  > hard drive"...
Not exactly.  The operative word is "running".  The procedure "reads"
from the archive on the hard drive.
KW> of course if someone were to make a bsi that polled the floppy disk
  > instead of waiting for dos accesses to it then even this would be
  > suspect...
KW> but av companies seem to like to move away from clean floppy disks
  > entirely, even though there will always be some cases where they're
  > necessary, so i don't think we can expect such a program anytime soon...
KW> i'd look into doing it myself but i have this sneaking suspicion that ms
  > would get after me for using their bootsector code and os in a third
  > party product without a licence to do so...
There's always OpenDOS (formerly DR-DOS) :)
Jack P.
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