Browsers that can't browse, but other programs can.

G

Guest

The problem involves not being able to connect to the internet most of the
time when using a browser, and when I am able to connect, it is only fleeting
in that after one or two links the browser either continues to indicate it is
waiting for the site, or I get the pop-up box informing me the page contains
no data, or I receive the “page cannot be displayed†alert.

Part of what has made this more frustrating is that other programs on the
computer having the problem which must connect to the internet have no
problem doing so and downloading the required files. These are Norton AV
2005, Spybot, Ad-Aware, MS AntiSpyware, and Zone Alarm. All programs which
must connect directly are able to connect and download whatever is required.

The browsers I use are MS Internet Explorer, Netscape 7.2, and the latest
versions of FireFox and Mozilla. All have the same problem.

When I attempt to check for the MS updates with MS IE, IE will hang at the
page that states it is checking, but it never goes beyond that page. Today,
although the other programs listed above accessed the internet and updated
their definitions and any other necessary files, my attempt to check MS
updates again resulted in the “Page cannot be displayed†page.

The other browsers end up simply “waiting†for the site per the status bar
(lower left hand side) and there they will stay.

I am using MS XP SP2 Home on the computer that is having the problem. This
particular computer is a Gateway 2K with an Intel PIII 500 MHz with 640 MB
RAM. The computer having the problem is part of a home Ethernet and wireless
network using Netgear components and dial-up access to the internet through
the free access to MichNet provided by my employer. There are three other
computers hooked by Ethernet to the home network, none of which have this
problem. One of the computers, an old Gateway 2K with an Intel PII, with Win
98SE as the OS, I use to dial-up and act as the gateway for the home network.
It only has the minimum programs needed to do its sole job. The second of
the three wired computers is also a Gateway 2K with an Intel P4 with Win 2K
as the OS. The third wired computer is another Gateway 2K with an Intel PIII
with Win 98 as the OS, and while it can have access to the internet I do not
use it for that purpose.

If you wonder, by now, why I am providing so much information, I am a big
believer in giving as much information as possible so those from whom I am
seeking help so they have as much information as I do and I may not know what
is important anyway, so I try to give it all to help someone to figure out a
solution.

This problem did not exist until this past April as I was able to browse
with any of the browsers named above and to update XP prior to that time. I
am not sure what occurred at that time, but I have a suspicion it may have
been a certain MS patch which I have since uninstalled and, unfortunately,
also forgotten the identification number.

I have tried the following:

1. Virus scan.

2. Spyware scan using all three programs listed above.

3. Searched the MS Knowledge Base.

4. Searched the Web.

5. Asked various persons at work who are more knowledgeable about
computers, operating systems, and programs.

This problem was occurring prior to me upgrading the OS with XP SP2, which I
just did recently, hoping the upgrade might result in it over-writing or
fixing whatever was causing the lack of being able to connect to the internet
with any browser.

I have recently found information regarding the winsock.dll, winsock32.dll,
and the two “wsock†files. I did what MS advised as far as the only place
they should be is in the dllcache folder, in addition to the only ones needed
are the two “winsock†files.

Bottom line, I have had various hopeful possible solutions but always have
ended up at the same place, browsers that will not browse, but other programs
not dependent on using a browser connecting fine and downloading what had to
be downloaded.

I have played with each browsers settings and still no improvement.

I have sat with my laptop, which has XP Pro, next to the computer with the
browser surfing problem and compared the various settings and the services
running to make sure there were no significant settings that differed or
services not running on the computer with the problem, and found all to be
pretty much the same.

I have tried the various user accounts on the computer and none of them
allow the browsers to browse. I even created a new administrator account and
for a short while thought I had a work around. The MS update got as far as
checking to ensure the computer had a valid copy of XP installed (which it
does) but once past that page it then displayed the “page cannot be
displayed†notice. It would also seem this behavior with MS update would not
explain the inability of the other browsers from browsing.

One last thing, when MS IE does display the “page cannot be displayedâ€
notice at its usual point, which is before even displaying the screen
informing me that it is checking for a valid version of XP, the “page cannot
be displayed†notice, over a period of time, will be displayed 3-4 times
within the same open IE window along with scroll bars for each notice. At
the bottom of the notice it also states “Cannot find server or DNS errorâ€.
However, I am able to ping the local computers on our home network plus ping
Web sites. I also ran some of the net tools Windows has to check various
things, and the results appears to be fine, though most of the output report
does not mean much to me.

One of the possible solutions could be to re-install XP Home after
re-formatting the hard drive, but I am holding that thought until I believe
there is no other possible solution since it will involve a rather long
process and could cause problems with NAV 05 3-user license in an inevitable
SNAFU resulting in losing the third of the 3 licenses which I am holding for
another of the computers.

Is there any common program, file, etc. that all browsers use? Or a common
setting other than within the browsers themselves? Any suggestions?

I first have to thank you for reading to the end of this message. But
hopefully someone will know what the problem is and will be able to help me
with this very frustrating problem.

Thanks
 
R

Robert Aldwinckle

....
Is there any common program, file, etc. that all browsers use?


They all make connections to TCP/IP sites at port 80.

Can you connect to secure sites, e.g. using protocol https
which typically connects to sites at port 443?

I suspect you have a spyware hijacker which has attempted to take over
such connections and use them (evidently unsuccessfully) surreptitiously.
It would not be interested in other connections which would explain why
you have no trouble using them. It might have difficulty taking over secure
connections which would explain why you might be able to use https
if that is the case.


HTH

Robert Aldwinckle
---

The problem involves not being able to connect to the internet most of the
time when using a browser, and when I am able to connect, it is only fleeting
in that after one or two links the browser either continues to indicate it is
waiting for the site, or I get the pop-up box informing me the page contains
no data, or I receive the “page cannot be displayed†alert.

Part of what has made this more frustrating is that other programs on the
computer having the problem which must connect to the internet have no
problem doing so and downloading the required files.
....
 
S

sleonl

Mike said:
The problem involves not being able to connect to the internet most of the
time when using a browser, and when I am able to connect, it is only fleeting
in that after one or two links the browser either continues to indicate it is
waiting for the site, or I get the pop-up box informing me the page contains
no data, or I receive the "page cannot be displayed" alert.

Part of what has made this more frustrating is that other programs on the
computer having the problem which must connect to the internet have no
problem doing so and downloading the required files. These are Norton AV
2005, Spybot, Ad-Aware, MS AntiSpyware, and Zone Alarm. All programs which
must connect directly are able to connect and download whatever is required.

The browsers I use are MS Internet Explorer, Netscape 7.2, and the latest
versions of FireFox and Mozilla. All have the same problem.

When I attempt to check for the MS updates with MS IE, IE will hang at the
page that states it is checking, but it never goes beyond that page. Today,
although the other programs listed above accessed the internet and updated
their definitions and any other necessary files, my attempt to check MS
updates again resulted in the "Page cannot be displayed" page.

The other browsers end up simply "waiting" for the site per the status bar
(lower left hand side) and there they will stay.

I am using MS XP SP2 Home on the computer that is having the problem. This
particular computer is a Gateway 2K with an Intel PIII 500 MHz with 640 MB
RAM. The computer having the problem is part of a home Ethernet and wireless
network using Netgear components and dial-up access to the internet through
the free access to MichNet provided by my employer. There are three other
computers hooked by Ethernet to the home network, none of which have this
problem. One of the computers, an old Gateway 2K with an Intel PII, with Win
98SE as the OS, I use to dial-up and act as the gateway for the home network.
It only has the minimum programs needed to do its sole job. The second of
the three wired computers is also a Gateway 2K with an Intel P4 with Win 2K
as the OS. The third wired computer is another Gateway 2K with an Intel PIII
with Win 98 as the OS, and while it can have access to the internet I do not
use it for that purpose.

If you wonder, by now, why I am providing so much information, I am a big
believer in giving as much information as possible so those from whom I am
seeking help so they have as much information as I do and I may not know what
is important anyway, so I try to give it all to help someone to figure out a
solution.

This problem did not exist until this past April as I was able to browse
with any of the browsers named above and to update XP prior to that time. I
am not sure what occurred at that time, but I have a suspicion it may have
been a certain MS patch which I have since uninstalled and, unfortunately,
also forgotten the identification number.

I have tried the following:

1. Virus scan.

2. Spyware scan using all three programs listed above.

3. Searched the MS Knowledge Base.

4. Searched the Web.

5. Asked various persons at work who are more knowledgeable about
computers, operating systems, and programs.

This problem was occurring prior to me upgrading the OS with XP SP2, which I
just did recently, hoping the upgrade might result in it over-writing or
fixing whatever was causing the lack of being able to connect to the internet
with any browser.

I have recently found information regarding the winsock.dll, winsock32.dll,
and the two "wsock" files. I did what MS advised as far as the only place
they should be is in the dllcache folder, in addition to the only ones needed
are the two "winsock" files.

Bottom line, I have had various hopeful possible solutions but always have
ended up at the same place, browsers that will not browse, but other programs
not dependent on using a browser connecting fine and downloading what had to
be downloaded.

I have played with each browsers settings and still no improvement.

I have sat with my laptop, which has XP Pro, next to the computer with the
browser surfing problem and compared the various settings and the services
running to make sure there were no significant settings that differed or
services not running on the computer with the problem, and found all to be
pretty much the same.

I have tried the various user accounts on the computer and none of them
allow the browsers to browse. I even created a new administrator account and
for a short while thought I had a work around. The MS update got as far as
checking to ensure the computer had a valid copy of XP installed (which it
does) but once past that page it then displayed the "page cannot be
displayed" notice. It would also seem this behavior with MS update would not
explain the inability of the other browsers from browsing.

One last thing, when MS IE does display the "page cannot be displayed"
notice at its usual point, which is before even displaying the screen
informing me that it is checking for a valid version of XP, the "page cannot
be displayed" notice, over a period of time, will be displayed 3-4 times
within the same open IE window along with scroll bars for each notice. At
the bottom of the notice it also states "Cannot find server or DNS error".
However, I am able to ping the local computers on our home network plus ping
Web sites. I also ran some of the net tools Windows has to check various
things, and the results appears to be fine, though most of the output report
does not mean much to me.

One of the possible solutions could be to re-install XP Home after
re-formatting the hard drive, but I am holding that thought until I believe
there is no other possible solution since it will involve a rather long
process and could cause problems with NAV 05 3-user license in an inevitable
SNAFU resulting in losing the third of the 3 licenses which I am holding for
another of the computers.

Is there any common program, file, etc. that all browsers use? Or a common
setting other than within the browsers themselves? Any suggestions?

I first have to thank you for reading to the end of this message. But
hopefully someone will know what the problem is and will be able to help me
with this very frustrating problem.

Thanks
 
S

sleonl

Mike said:
The problem involves not being able to connect to the internet most of the
time when using a browser, and when I am able to connect, it is only fleeting
in that after one or two links the browser either continues to indicate it is
waiting for the site, or I get the pop-up box informing me the page contains
no data, or I receive the "page cannot be displayed" alert.

Part of what has made this more frustrating is that other programs on the
computer having the problem which must connect to the internet have no
problem doing so and downloading the required files. These are Norton AV
2005, Spybot, Ad-Aware, MS AntiSpyware, and Zone Alarm. All programs which
must connect directly are able to connect and download whatever is required.

The browsers I use are MS Internet Explorer, Netscape 7.2, and the latest
versions of FireFox and Mozilla. All have the same problem.

When I attempt to check for the MS updates with MS IE, IE will hang at the
page that states it is checking, but it never goes beyond that page. Today,
although the other programs listed above accessed the internet and updated
their definitions and any other necessary files, my attempt to check MS
updates again resulted in the "Page cannot be displayed" page.

The other browsers end up simply "waiting" for the site per the status bar
(lower left hand side) and there they will stay.

I am using MS XP SP2 Home on the computer that is having the problem. This
particular computer is a Gateway 2K with an Intel PIII 500 MHz with 640 MB
RAM. The computer having the problem is part of a home Ethernet and wireless
network using Netgear components and dial-up access to the internet through
the free access to MichNet provided by my employer. There are three other
computers hooked by Ethernet to the home network, none of which have this
problem. One of the computers, an old Gateway 2K with an Intel PII, with Win
98SE as the OS, I use to dial-up and act as the gateway for the home network.
It only has the minimum programs needed to do its sole job. The second of
the three wired computers is also a Gateway 2K with an Intel P4 with Win 2K
as the OS. The third wired computer is another Gateway 2K with an Intel PIII
with Win 98 as the OS, and while it can have access to the internet I do not
use it for that purpose.

If you wonder, by now, why I am providing so much information, I am a big
believer in giving as much information as possible so those from whom I am
seeking help so they have as much information as I do and I may not know what
is important anyway, so I try to give it all to help someone to figure out a
solution.

This problem did not exist until this past April as I was able to browse
with any of the browsers named above and to update XP prior to that time. I
am not sure what occurred at that time, but I have a suspicion it may have
been a certain MS patch which I have since uninstalled and, unfortunately,
also forgotten the identification number.

I have tried the following:

1. Virus scan.

2. Spyware scan using all three programs listed above.

3. Searched the MS Knowledge Base.

4. Searched the Web.

5. Asked various persons at work who are more knowledgeable about
computers, operating systems, and programs.

This problem was occurring prior to me upgrading the OS with XP SP2, which I
just did recently, hoping the upgrade might result in it over-writing or
fixing whatever was causing the lack of being able to connect to the internet
with any browser.

I have recently found information regarding the winsock.dll, winsock32.dll,
and the two "wsock" files. I did what MS advised as far as the only place
they should be is in the dllcache folder, in addition to the only ones needed
are the two "winsock" files.

Bottom line, I have had various hopeful possible solutions but always have
ended up at the same place, browsers that will not browse, but other programs
not dependent on using a browser connecting fine and downloading what had to
be downloaded.

I have played with each browsers settings and still no improvement.

I have sat with my laptop, which has XP Pro, next to the computer with the
browser surfing problem and compared the various settings and the services
running to make sure there were no significant settings that differed or
services not running on the computer with the problem, and found all to be
pretty much the same.

I have tried the various user accounts on the computer and none of them
allow the browsers to browse. I even created a new administrator account and
for a short while thought I had a work around. The MS update got as far as
checking to ensure the computer had a valid copy of XP installed (which it
does) but once past that page it then displayed the "page cannot be
displayed" notice. It would also seem this behavior with MS update would not
explain the inability of the other browsers from browsing.

One last thing, when MS IE does display the "page cannot be displayed"
notice at its usual point, which is before even displaying the screen
informing me that it is checking for a valid version of XP, the "page cannot
be displayed" notice, over a period of time, will be displayed 3-4 times
within the same open IE window along with scroll bars for each notice. At
the bottom of the notice it also states "Cannot find server or DNS error".
However, I am able to ping the local computers on our home network plus ping
Web sites. I also ran some of the net tools Windows has to check various
things, and the results appears to be fine, though most of the output report
does not mean much to me.

One of the possible solutions could be to re-install XP Home after
re-formatting the hard drive, but I am holding that thought until I believe
there is no other possible solution since it will involve a rather long
process and could cause problems with NAV 05 3-user license in an inevitable
SNAFU resulting in losing the third of the 3 licenses which I am holding for
another of the computers.

Is there any common program, file, etc. that all browsers use? Or a common
setting other than within the browsers themselves? Any suggestions?

I first have to thank you for reading to the end of this message. But
hopefully someone will know what the problem is and will be able to help me
with this very frustrating problem.

Thanks



I've had similar experiences and found the problem to be the Zone Alarm
settings. Open Zone Alarm and point to "Program Control" on the left
side of the screen. Then click on the "Programs" tab at the top of the
screen. Then play with the "Access" and "Server" settings for the
program/s that are giving you trouble. Also, you may check your
settings on your routers' firewall. Sorry I cannot give more
specifics. Just some options to look at. Good luck.
 

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