system
1
The software updater keeps popping up, even though I never use it and have tried repeatedly to turn it off. It’s annoying, and I don’t want it deciding for me what I want to update. How do I get rid of the silly thing? 
Pondus
2
controlpanel > ad/remove programs >avast > uninstall > change option…remove the module you dont want
system
3
In my humble opinion Secunia PSI is a better tool to make sure your system has the latest security patches.
http://secunia.com/vulnerability_scanning/personal/
it’s very easy to setup some software to be ignored in the software updater …
but imho, considering 2/3 of the software covered by Avast!'s Software Updater is crucial for system security then ignoring such warning blindly would lead sooner or later to troubles
system
5
Your humble opinion on secunia is wrong.The latest version is very buggy and does not find ALL updates.
In fact there does seem to be a chronic shortage of free updating programs.
system
6
I never mentioned the latest version, with that I agree. FWIW, I use PSI 2.