All browsers time out on most sites

Triangleman

New Member
My OS is Vista Home Premium.
My ISP is Verizon and I connect thru an Actiontech wireless modem/router.

The majority of sites I try to visit with any browser time out. No error message. Just a blank page and a swirling load icon that animates indefinitely.

I have no problem pinging any address on DOS prompt though and most non-browser progs that use the net function perfectly; curiously, I can't sign onto MSN messenger but I can sign on to AIM and Yahoo messenger.

SOME sites I have no trouble accessing: Google, CNN, Youtube, YTMND (homepage only), Yahoo (homepage only), and fortunately, this forum. There seems to be no rhyme nor reason why a select few pages are favored.

This issue happens on both IE and Firefox.

I have an additional XP machine that runs on the same ISP and modem via a USB wireless adapter. It does not share this problem so hence, the issue is isolated to this Vista machine.

I have been on the phone with tech support from both my ISP and Hewlett Packard for hours. Both reps exhausted all their troubleshooting options and both promised I would be contacted by "an advanced technician" within the next 24 hours. The Verizon rep insisted there was nothing wrong with the line (which was hard to believe at first because this issue coincided with an outage in my area as their recording reported to me). The HP rep suggested performing a Full System Recovery that will wipe out the contents of my HD in the process :(

I have tried:
*Rebooting the PC
*Recycling the power of the modem
*Uninstalling/Reinstalling the network card via Device Manager
*System Restore to an earlier date
*Rebooting the OS in Safe Mode with Network ability (same thing happens in safe mode)
*shutting down all firewalls
*Uninstalling Norton Antivirus

I already posted this problem at the TechArena forum and after 20+ views, I was referred to here. This problem seems to have rendered veteran techies stumped.
What's going on here?
 

My Computer

Dont have an answer, just feeling sympathetic. :(

But if your XP machine, works over the same line, that is going to give the ISP evidence that it is not their fault. I hate those problems where all the parts work fine, just dont get along together. And I seem to have more of them on Vista than anything lately.

Did you try entering the IP address that you can successfully ping rather than the domain name that fails in the browser address field? Not sure what it would check, but its easy.
 

My Computer

I ran into this once on an E machine. Come to find out the preloaded Mcafee Internet security software was blocking all programs from using the internet connection. Uninstall Mcafee and rebooted and it all worked.

Like you, I was able to get i.p./dns servers/gateway and all from my ISP.

Raj
 

My Computer

My Computers

System One System Two

  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Workstation
    Manufacturer/Model
    doofenshmirtz evil incorporated
    CPU
    Ryzen 9 5950X
    Motherboard
    Asus ROG Crosshair VIII Formula
    Memory
    Corsair Vengeance RGB PRO Black 64GB (4x16GB) 3600MHz AMD Ryzen Tuned DDR4
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS AMD Radeon RX 6900 XT 16GB ROG Strix LC OC
    Sound Card
    Creative
    Monitor(s) Displays
    3 x27" Dell U2724D & 1 x 34" Dell U3415W
    Hard Drives
    Samsung 980 Pro 1TB M.2 2280 PCI-e 4.0 x4 NVMe Solid State
    Drive
    PSU
    1500W ThermalTake Toughpower
    Case
    ThermalTake Level 10 GT
    Cooling
    Enermax Liqtech 240
    Keyboard
    Surface Ergonomic.
    Mouse
    Logitech Performance MX
    Internet Speed
    350 Mb/s
    Other Info
    WinTV NovaTD
    HP CP1515n Color Laser
    Sony BD-5300S-0B Blu-ray Writer
    Microsoft LifeCam Cinema
    APC 750i Smart UPS
  • Operating System
    windows 10
    Manufacturer/Model
    Surface Pro 3
    CPU
    1.9GHz Intel Core i5-4300U (dual-core, 3MB cache, up to 2.9GHz with Turbo Boost)
    Memory
    4GB
    Graphics card(s)
    Intel HD Graphics 4400
    Monitor(s) Displays
    12" Multi Touch
    Screen Resolution
    2160 x 144
    Hard Drives
    128GB
    Mouse
    Logitech
    Keyboard
    yes
    Internet Speed
    350 Mb/s
Thanks for the advice and sympathy but I think i found the culprit.

I swapped the wireless modem/router with an old broadband modem and I can surf normally with it. So the defect is either the wireless modem or the way my machine interacts with it. Only practical way to be sure is to have my ISP replace the modem.
 

My Computer

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