Hi, Mark. Let me start by saying I am not a certified Microsoft tech or
anything, but I do have a lot of experience, and have experienced the ills
you describe more than a few times.
Assuming you are not running potentially problematic software like the
Internet Explorer 7 Beta or any other beta software (if you are, all bets are
off), this could be due to a LOT of things, e.g., adware, malware, viruses,
oddities within your router setup, hardware problems, conflicting software,
etc. But then, you probably know all that. It could be a router or cable
modem box issue, but I kind of doubt it; just doesn't sound like it from your
brief description.
I don't know of any DOS command that is a magic pill for these woes, so if
it were me, I'd start by doing an antivirus scan, running Ad-Aware, Spybot,
and related utilities. I'd also run a well-respected registry checker/cleaner
to ensure your registry is in good shape. (Be sure to back it up before you
or any utility changes your registry!)
Assuming all that checks out OK, what I'd do next is reset all your Internet
Explorer settings to "default". This will ensure nothing in IE is actually
messing you(r system) up. Here is how to do this in IE6.x (this looks like it
will take a lot longer than it actually does) I should note that the
instructions below came to me from Comcast when I was having a differerent
problem:
To reset Internet Explorer 6.0 to the default settings using a Windows
Operating System:
1. Go to Tools
2. Select Internet Options
3. On the General tab make sure that your Home Page Address is
http://www.comcast.net
4. Click Delete Files
5. Check Delete All Offline Content
6. Click OK
7. Click Delete Cookies
8. Click OK
9. Click on the Settings button
10. Make sure that the cache is set to 25 MB or less
11. Make sure that Every Visit to Page is selected
12. Click OK
13. Click on the Security tab. There are four zones listed here: Internet,
Local Intranet, Trusted Sites, and Restricted Sites. Click on Internet and
then on Default Level
14. Repeat the process in Step 13 for the Local Intranet, Trusted Sites, and
Restricted Sites zones
15. Click on the Privacy tab
16. Click the Default button
17. Click on the Connections tab
18. Click the LAN Settings button
19. Make sure that nothing is checked
20. Click OK
21. Click on the Programs tab
22. Click the Reset Web Settings button
23. Uncheck Also Reset My Homepage
24. Click Yes
25. Click OK
26. Click on the Advanced tab
27. Click Restore Defaults
28. Click Apply
29. Click OK
After doing all this (running the checkers and scanners, doing the IE reset,
etc), reboot. I am pretty conservative about this type of stuff, so I would
do a Shut Down, as I tend to believe it cleans up a lot more than a simple
Restart does when you are having problems, but I am not sure that is
technically the case. Just seems like it to me. See if things improve any. If
not, I'm sure you will get a lot of additional good advice here.
Good luck!
