Is the Comodo Firewall any good?

[bluesdave]

I read a rave review of the Comodo Firewall in PC Mag, and since it was free, decided to download it and try it out. I have been using the free version of Zone Alarm for several years, but it seems that every time I download a new version, the program is larger, and slower, and has fewer features than the last version I used (I realise that this is a marketing strategy to encourage you to buy the full version).

I have noticed that while Comodo asked me about 8 times whether I wanted Internet Explorer to access the Internet (yes, I selected the "remember" box), it allowed several programs to access the Internet unchallenged. Comodo also failed its own test suite that they suggest you download and try on your existing firewall before you install Comodo (it is supposed to prove that Comodo is better). I even pushed the security setting up to "very high", but four programs still made it through, unchallenged.

They say that they have a database of 10000 safe programs, and that Comodo will let those through, but they do not supply the user with a method of viewing that database, so I cannot verify whether my four programs are in it. I have sent the Comodo support people a series of questions, and hopefully will receive a reply in a few days, but I was wondering if any of the IT gurus in the Cellar had experience with Comodo, and can recommend it, or suggest that I ditch it?