internet connections

[Inner Stickler]

I have a dell laptop that says it's connected to my campus's network but nothing will load in any of my browsers. I've tried restarting, pinging, disabling and re-enabling and nothing works. The computer tells me everything is working fine but nothing loads. It's Vista. Any suggestions or useful websites?

[JimOfAllTrades]

Are you connecting wirelessly or wired? If wirelessly, were you given any wireless encryption information by your IT people?

And did you get *any* instructions for connecting to the network from your IT department? Perhaps there is a one time setup process you need to follow (a special website by IP address for example) before you can access the network. And even if they don’t require anything special, they should still have some specific instructions for connecting to their network with Vista, and some troubleshooting tips.

When you hover your mouse over the network icon the system tray, does it say your access is Lcoal and Internet, or just Local? If it’s just local, that usually means a problem with the gateway or DNS addresses. Again, the IT department should be able to tell you exactly how your DNS should set (probably to obtain an address automatically using DHCP).

Have you right-clicked on the network icon in the system tray and selected the “Network and Sharing Center” option? That should show a graphic showing your computer, the connection to the local network, and the connection to the internet. If red “X”s appear, you can click on those to run some troubleshooting for the link where the X appears. That may tell you something.

[susan]

I don't know how it would look in Vista, but my Linux machine sometimes does this and I have to go into the list orf networks, uninstall the one I want to connect to, let the computer find it with a refresh of available networks, and then enable it.

[Inner Stickler]

Originally Posted by RJKUgly

Are you connecting wirelessly or wired? If wirelessly, were you given any wireless encryption information by your IT people?

It doesn't matter if I use the wireless or an ethernet cord, neither connects. I have a username and password that have worked fine for the last year and a half.

And did you get *any* instructions for connecting to the network from your IT department? Perhaps there is a one time setup process you need to follow (a special website by IP address for example) before you can access the network. And even if they don’t require anything special, they should still have some specific instructions for connecting to their network with Vista, and some troubleshooting tips.

I have up-to-date anti-virus software. All of the instructions I can find on the school's website are things I've already done. They're all basic things like making sure to put your username and password in the right boxes. I sent the tech help desk an email, (which is working fine) but as it's Sunday, I don't expect an answer til tomorrow. I know the kind of one time thing you're talking about. But when I connected the first day, it automatically directed me to the page it wanted. This time I just can't open any pages.

When you hover your mouse over the network icon the system tray, does it say your access is Lcoal and Internet, or just Local? If it’s just local, that usually means a problem with the gateway or DNS addresses. Again, the IT department should be able to tell you exactly how your DNS should set (probably to obtain an address automatically using DHCP).

It says local and internet. I don't think it's a problem with DNS. This problem has stumped my go-to computer friend and his dad. They tell me that its not a problem with DNS. To my untrained eye, it appears that everything is working except when I try to load a webpage and then it says it can't.

Have you right-clicked on the network icon in the system tray and selected the “Network and Sharing Center” option? That should show a graphic showing your computer, the connection to the local network, and the connection to the internet. If red “X”s appear, you can click on those to run some troubleshooting for the link where the X appears. That may tell you something.

There are no red Xes, although at one point, the line from my computer icon to the middle icon was broken into several little lines. Clicking on Diagnose the Problem and Repair Connection just pop up boxes saying that everything is hunky-dory or not a problem on my end. But it clearly is because no one else is having difficulty getting online and it's all the same network.

susan, I've tried that multiple times. I've tried turning off the wifi switch and turning it back on, I've tried disabling the wireless and re-enabling it, I've tried disabling the LAN and re-enabling it. Nothing has yielded results.

I'm sorry if I sound cranky. I appreciate any and all help. My computer worked fine last night. I went to bed and this morning it wasn't. I have no idea what I did that made it so irascible. This problem has me confused and frustrated, two states which really irritate me.

[aldiboronti]

Have you checked to see whether it's trying to connect through an unavailable proxy? Try changing the connection settings to Direct Connection, ie no proxy.

[JimOfAllTrades]

Man, that does sound frustrating. Nothing quite so maddening as a box that works one minute and not the next.

It sounds like there is nothing wrong with your network or internet setup, yet you can’t connect. This is a long shot, and you may have checked it already, but is it possible that somehow your firewall settings have been changed and it is now blocking the Internet Explorer executable or the HTTP ptotocol?

It might be worth turning the firewall off for a minute and see if that makes a difference.

[Inner Stickler]

*This is the part where I admit to a bit of improper computer care*

My laptop came with McAfee on it. I downloaded AVG and promptly ignored McAfee. Apparently it came with a 15 month subscription and when that was up demanded that I renew. I ignored all its red exclamation points for a while until it felt so ignored that it decided to not let me browse the net. Or, I assume that's the case, as I've just removed McAfee entirely and restarted the computer and it appears to be working now. Thank you for the suggestions and I'll just go sit in the corner and be red-faced for a bit.

[KneadToKnow]

You really gotta love software that if you don't play by its rules takes your ball and goes home, don't you?