Hi,
I thought I should provide an update on my situation (the original post)...
It turned out that the switch from Norton 360 to Microsoft Security Essentials was only a temporary fix, resulting from the activity related to the change, not the change itself, if you know what I mean. Full credit to NI technical support for their persistence, the actual problem was determined to be this:
I had configured my computer (laptop) to be my primary connection to the internet, via wi-fi, because I was in a remote building, needing a wi-fi connection, and my desktop did not have a wireless capability. Then, I shared this internet connectionwith my desktop. It was the internet connection sharing that was causing the problem, not the choice of security software. NI would not reveal the exact nature of the problem, but indicated that possibly it had to do with the way Project Explorer uses TCP ports to transfer information with MAX. NI support submitted a fix request for future versions. NI recommendation was 'don't do that', i.e. share your internet connection like that.
Anyway, it turned out to be a very manageable problem, and it still recurs from time-to-time. I am still sharing the internet connection, and I am still using Security Essentials. When the problem re-appears, I turn off the firewall, then restart, check that the problem has gone away, then turn the firewall back on. Occasionally I may have to repeat the procedure, but it always works. I was given a port number, and un'blocked in my security software, but this also was not a permanent fix.
If the problem is particularly persistent, or if I am particularly impatient, then I simply work outside the Project Explorer for a bit. Not recomended, I realize, but it is only for a short period of time, and I am usually just working on one or two VIs anyway. I really only need Project Explorer to build executables.
So, the important point (in my case) is this. It is Project Explorer that is causing the problem, not the security software, and it appears to be specifically related to the use of a port and how that interacts with internet connection sharing.
Hope this helps,
RonC
