10 replies to this topic

[towboater05]

I am running Internet Explorer 6 in Windows 98 2nd edition and am using a wireless LAN connection at home. Every time I try to launch and connect, I get the "This Page Cannot Be Displayed Message." Any site i try to connect to, i get the same message. However, i can connect with AOL instant messenger and BearShare. I've tried the simple fixes like clearing cookies, temp files, and internet history. I've tried running the repair internet explorer option, nothing has helped. One thing I noticed, if I run the "ping 192........" program, and I pick my address or yahoo.com, it will ping them. When I launch Internet explorer, it says "Connecting to site 207......." The number it lists does NOT match my server. When I try and ping that number, it doesn't get a response. Also, I look in Tools, Internet Options, LAN settings, and it'll list my server's address, not the one IE6 tries to connect to. Sorry for the long winded post, any help would be greatly appreciated. ps. i am using another computer in the house to post this message, so i know it is not the internet, it's my computer

[shelf life]

try >unchecking< the boxes under internet options>connections>LAN settings> so the address box is greyed out. click ok, close and restart IE

[towboater05]

I tried as you said and I still get the same results. I looked online to see if I could find something that'd work. Some of the things i tried included using the IE repair option under the System Tools, deleted all cookies and temp internet files. One suggestion I haven't done is gone to Add/Remove IE. The posting says it won't actually delete it, but I wasn't sure. Like I said, I can still connect with Instant Messenger and Bear Share. Every time i launch IE, it says "connecting to 207.48......" and when I run the "ping 207.48...." it times out. But if I run "ping www.yahoo.com" or any other site, it connects. Any other ideas??

[Doug]

You very likely have a BHO Browser Helper Object that is maliciously redirecting your browser to an unasked for site. The site itself may be blocked from your machine if you have Spybot, or IE-Spyad, or MVPS Hosts file.

You can give this a try: ReSet your HomePage
in Control Panel - Internet Options - General Tab - type in the Home Page that you would like.
(I will suggest that for the time being you consider setting your Home Page to http://www.tomcoyote.com so that you can continue with your repair and investigation) You can change your Home Page back to your personal preference later.

Do you have FireFox or Opera installed.
If you don't have Firefox or Opera browser installed, do you have another machine that you could use to download the installation program for firefox or Opera, and then burn either installation program to CD to use to install on this current machine. Then you may get access to the Internet to proceed with further investigation and repair.

If you can access the Internet with either of those browsers, then Run and Post a HighJackThis Log over in the HJT Forum.

Follow these instructions, including the links in this "pinned Post":
http://forums.tomcoy...showtopic=58958

Of course, if you don't have a working browser on the machine you are asking about, please post back here with your updated situation.

Best Regards

[towboater05]

My home page actually is NOT changed by anything, it has www.msn.com listed in the General options tab. I ran the Hijack This program, the only BHO it showed was this: 02-BHO:(no name) - {02478D38-C3F9-4efb-9B51-7695ECA05670} - - C:\PROGRAM FILES\YAHOO\COMPANION\INSTALLS\CPN/YCOMP5_3_12_0.DLL One thing I noticed. When I run Ad-aware, it comes up with 9 critical objects and they all have something to do with HKEY and ALEXA and internet explorer is listed in the line, I think it said they were registry keys or values. Sorry, I don't have frequent access to this other computer. If none of this information helps, I'll try to get Firefox or Opera downloaded to post a Hijack This log. Thanks for staying at this

[Doug]

The recommendation posted by shelf life, is useful and accurate unless your internet access does require the use of a proxy or if you have intentionally decided on using a proxy.

If you have not decided to use a proxy or if your ISP is not requiring the use of a proxy then please do empty the check boxes from the LAN panel and click OK.
On my own machine, also running Win98, I allow the following item to be selected:
Automatically detect settings
(doesn't seem to make any difference on my machine, one way or the other)

Prior to that LAN panel, the CONNECTIONS panel offers you a list of possible Dial-up and Virtual Private Network settings, with buttons

Below you are offered the options:

Never dial a connection
Dial whenever a network connection is not present
Always dial my default connection

You should select by placing a dot in the circle in front of: Never dial a connection
Making this selection, allows the connection protocol to move on to your LAN connection for IE.

You know that you are getting internet connectivity, since your Yahoo and Bearshare do get connection.
So the following may be useless and senseless, however, you may benefit by using CAT5 to make a direct wired connection to your laptop. If you then get connection via IE, you can run and post a HJT for further investigation.

Some malwares function to break internet connectivity for IE.
If you have cause to believe, or simply want to investigate the possibility of malware run and post a HJT.
I am not a trained or trusted HJT advisor!!
Consult a Trusted HJT Advisor or post your HJT log in the HJT forum.

You've probably reviewed these settings and came to the same conclusion that I am recommending.
But it never hurts to check.

Best Regards

Note: The BHO that you identified is Legitimate if you have Yahoo Companion installed on your machine.
That same BHO has in particular cases been found to be used by malware masquarading as Yahoo Companion. This is highly unlikely, but you can certainly Uninstall Yahoo Companion to remove this BHO to see if doing so corrects your problem. You can later download and reinstall Yahoo Companion if you wish to have it.
Many users, including myself, find Yahoo Companion to be a waste of time. I uninstall it regularly.

I recognize that my advice above is relatively elementary, and I imagine that you've already investigated these options. But again, it doesn't hurt to check.

Edited by dough, 04 March 2006 - 07:48 PM.

[towboater05]

I updated Ad-aware and Spybot, but neither detected any kind of virus. I'm actually using my PC right now, I burned a copy of IE off the other computer and installed it onto this one...heard that might not be a good idea though. I guess now, the other computer is having the same problems as mine. Now mine works for about 10 minutes, then reverts back to the same problems (I'm using my 10 minute window to write this now, I posted a Hijack This log in the other forum). It really does seem like its a virus, but I'm not sure how to find it. The other forum says its swamped with problems, could be 5 days before i hear anything, you have any other ideas in the meantime? I appreciate the effort so far... By the way, I agree w/ trying the simple solutions first, no point in getting too in detail if its something easy. I did try those suggestions by shelf life, didn't change anything though.

Edited by towboater05, 05 March 2006 - 02:15 PM.

[Doug]

Hi Towboater05,

I have a great deal of respect for the TomCoyote Forums and feel privileged to be able to learn and sometimes help here. Therefore I generally think twice before recommending tools and resources that are not embedded in the TomCoyote site.

In your case, I'd like you to have the benefit of a "system wide" overview of your machine, so that you can gain a sense of how each part of your machine may be contributing to the problem you are now experiencing.

You can gain such an "overview" by running the PCPitstop Full Test at:
http://www.pcpitstop.com

You would be required to register at PCPitstop to use the Test, and allow an ActiveX component to be downloaded for the correct application of the scans. I am also a Member over at PCPitstop and have many times benefitted from use of the Full Tests and have referred probably hundreds of users to the Test with beneficial result of being able to identify problems that were not evident via other methods of question and answer.

In the Results of your PCPitstop Full Test, you will find a method for providing a link to your results that you can post in your thread here. The "link" is called the TechExpress and can be found in the summary box at the top of any page of your Test Results.

Please consider Running a PCPitstop Full Test and Posting your TechExpress here for the purpose of gathering additional information about your computer's current functioning. Members here may be able to provide additional recommendations based on that additional comprehensive information.

Running a PCPitstop Full Test does not interfere with your HJT posting here in the TomCoyote Forums, nor would the PCPitstop Test Results be used to "second guess" any recommendations that you receive independantly from a Trusted HJT Advisor here at TomCoyote.

If after consideration, you decide to Run a PCPitstop Full Test, please Post the TechExpress link into your next reply in this current topic of yours here at TomCoyote.
I cannot "guarantee" that Running and Posting a PCPitstop Full Test will provide information to solve your problem. Doing so may not even contribute any additional information at all.
But again, it is worth pursuing the additional information, even if only to rule out avenues of investigation that need not be followed.

Best Regards,
Doug

[towboater05]

Ok, well going back to what I mentioned in my last posting, I might have made a big mistake. I have some knowledge of computers and can pick up on things quick, but forgot to taake into consideration that I put a version of Internet Explorer from a Windows 2000 PC onto my Windows 98 PC. I'm not sure if that did it, but it messed my computer up good. When I went to restart it, right before the desktop loads, I could hear a little click from the PC and it'd load with terrible resolultion and the icons and toolbar were huge. I was able to get to the control panel and get the size back to normal. Most things work, but the icons on my desktop look like lower quality now. Surprisingly, IE now works, but I can't imagine that'll be for too long, it's not like I ever really fixed the original problem. Am I digging myself further into a hole?

[Doug]

Since you are now back on the internet, you can download the correct IE for Win98 directly from Microsoft here:
http://www.microsoft...&DisplayLang=en

After you download and save the installation (don't install it yet) you can learn about uninstalling Internet Explorer here, to get a clean start again:
http://support.micro...;293907&sd=tech

Now go ahead and start the installation of the version of IE that you downloaded as mentioned above.

Note: (about copying a program from Win2K to Win98)
Copying a program that has been installed on another machine is never a good idea.
Applications, like IE are supposed to be installed from the Applications Installation program.
When installing, the installation package searches your machine and operating system to make sure it sets up the application appropriately for your machine and system.

[towboater05]

Sorry, have been real busy, will try and follow these steps sometime today. Again, thanks for working with this so far...