same here, lw. though you should be able to configure zonealarm to check for product updates manually. overview|preferences|check for updates tick 'manually'. and for antivirus/antispam updates, goto advanced options|updates and untick the automatic updates.
6.5 checked for av updates on the hour, and i usually detect if there's disk activity prior to an update. so i know to hold off on swinging for a coupla seconds. i've been running 7 betas for about a month, and they update at :38 (must have been something:38 when i installed it), though someone on the za forums said it was every two hours (i'm rarely sitting at my pc at home for two hours straight, so i can't confirm that). but it's the same, i can usually sense when an update (search) is about to kick off, so i rarely find myself trying to swing in the middle of one. though it has happened several times.