Well, I’m browsing again. Apparently the problem was a mix of McAfee anti-virus software & AOL software not getting along.
The solutions offered by HP:
Uninstall AOL and install the latest verion (I was using 5.0 w/o problems and I’m now using 6.0)
De-activate the anti-virus software (bad idea, IMHO)
disable Active X controls in the IE browser
I chose #3 so I could at least get online to find a solution.
Is what I’ve done a bad thing?
I don’t know, but I have a problem with Active X too, so I’m bumping your thread in hopes that someone will come along with the answer.
Active-X is Microsoft’s proprietary system for interactive media. They designed it, basically, to try and steal the thunder from Java.
Active-X, like most Microsoft products, is woefully lacking in the security department. Active-X can be manipulated by hackers to do devious things. Java is written with very strict rules about what a program can and cannot do on your machine. Active-X has no such rules. Microsoft took the lazy way out, and, instead of making rules, they require that programmers digitally “sign” their programs to assure that they are safe. These signatures can be, and have been, spoofed.
My advice to anyone serious about the security of their computers is to either not use Internet Explorer (the best plan), or, at the very least, disable Active-X controls in the Security section of IE preferences.
What are my options? Netscape is now owned by AOL. A couple of my websites (including my bank) do not support Netscape. By de-activating ActiveX, what effect will it have on my browsing? I have already gotten a couple of “web page may not load properly” warnings. Those pages DO load properly, though.
My short answer would be switch to Netscape and don’t do business with anyone too lazy to code for everyone (it’s not that hard to do).
If you stay with IE and de-activate Active-X, you definitely will miss some interactive features on some pages. I believe in IE 5.5, you can turn off Active-X but still put your bank in your “trusted sites” and everything will work for your banking. Check in Tools/Internet Options/Security/Advanced (I think).