Very odd problem that no one can understand

[Vampyreholic]

I have Windows XP Home on my computer.

It seems the problems started about a week ago, when I couldn't sign into Yahoo.com, or my Google Mail account.  To start with, we figured that some sort of maintenance work was going on (as does quite a lot on these sites) so nothing more was thought of it.

Then a couple of days ago, my McAfee Security Center started playing up.  It wouldn't do any updates.  I would connect to the internet, McAfee would search for updates, and then tell me that none was available, which I found very strange as it had updated every day since I'd had it (I also had the previous version of McAfee which also updated on a daily basis).

So off I went onto www.mcafeehelp.com and spoke to one of their 'technicians' in a live one-to-one interactive chat, who told me to un-installed and then re-install McAfee onto my computer.  This is when things really started to get bad.

I did this, but McAfee still wouldn't do updates, it wouldn't let me login in to tell it I had previously registered the product and it wouldn't let me re-register.  I kept getting a blank screen.  I tried leaving it, up to 2 hours at one point but nothing happened at all.  And then, McAfee told me a trojan had been detected on my computer.  I told McAfee to sort it out, but it decided to ignore me and allowed it through anyway.

I had to format my computer.  I went to install my AOL installation stuff.  On the disk I have, it has one installer, which installs and configures my Netgear Wireless Router, sets it up for a Wireless Connection, and installs the AOL software.  During the router configuration, it has a process of lights.  There are 5 of them that flash yellow in turn, and then go green when that particular process is complete.  This went fine until it got to the very last light, which went red instead of green, and told me that no internet connection was available.  However, my AOL software was already set up and installed in my computer and I was getting online with it no problem whatsoever.

I also recieved a problem installing AOL yesterday as I formatted my computer again because I was downloading Avast, but it wouldn't open.  Re-formatting fixed that problem, so I assumed the Windows installation had missed a file or 2.  Yesterday, AOL kept telling me that I had cancelled my installation, but I hadn't touched a thing.  There wasn't even an option to cancel at that point.

Unfortunately, whenever I try to download Windows patches sent to me via BigFix, it cannot connect to the internet, I still can't access Yahoo or Google Mail.  Internet Explorer is adamant that there is no internet connection available on my computer, yet I can still get online using my AOL software.

I've tried everything I can think of to fix this problem, but nothing seems to be working.  I've even tried setting up an internet connection manually, but to no avail.

Any help would be greatfully appreciated.

Thanks

[street1 (RIP)]

I am not familiar with AOL software,thank goodness.

Have you tried removing all instances of AOL
then setting up your connection manually?

If you run FireFox,What happens?

http://www.firefox2007.de/us/

[Vampyreholic]

AOL has bee completely removed from the computer on more than one occassion, but to no avail.  I'm not thick when it comes to computers but this is confusing the *censored* outta me.  Firefox makes no difference whatsoever.  In fact, as far as the computer is concerned there is no connection there for firefox to connect to

[GX1_Man]

 Internet Explorer is adamant that there is no internet connection available on my computer, yet I can still get online using my AOL software.

AOL has bee completely removed from the computer on more than one occassion, but to no avail.

I'm confused what the current status is. It can be difficult to remove all traces of the AOL virus.

Are there any firewall, or other complicating factors involved?

[Neil]

Have you tried ringing up your ISP? And consider the possibility your router is faulty. I couldn't find these being discussed anywhere.

[patio]

Also it's a well kept secret that you can run that connection , even DSL without even loading all that AOL garbage on that machine...

[Vampyreholic]

The status is this... I CAN get online using my AOL connection.  I CANNOT get Internet Explorer to go to any web pages.  I CANNOT get into my Google Mail account.  I even tried through Outlook Express, and when I checked the connection, there was nothing there, even though there is my AOL dialler in the Internet Properties.  I've contacted AOL, who are just as baffled as I am on this.  But they tell me that my router is fine and live, and as long as I can get online using my AOL software, then they don't understand what the problem is.

Yes it is perfectly easy to get online through AOL, without having to have the AOL software installed.  However, that is very difficult when my computer won't accept there is a connection there.

I have come to the conclusion that the AOL disk I have has somehow become corrupt, and I have asked AOL to resend me a disk, but I have yet to recieve it.

[Vampyreholic]

I should probably also mention that I have just picked my PC up from  PC World, where it had it's annual health check and the only thing they did was remove multiple spyware from the machine, which ironically, the AOL spyware software didn't even pick up was there.

[Neil]

You send your computer to PC World for health checks? Oh dear.

[GX1_Man]

AOL software is NEVER enough for total computer protection.

[Vampyreholic]

Yes I sent my PC to PC World for a health check.  It didn't cost me anything as we have insurance on the PC.

But fortunately, I have FINALLY figured out the problem.  It's not the PC at all.  It's the stupid excuse for a modem I have, known as a router.  I connected my mother's modem to my computer today and guess what?  Yup.. I can do all the things I couldn't do yesterday.

Sometimes, I really hate technology.. with a burning passion

[GX1_Man]

Just for grins, read this also, for your own protection:

http://www.computerhope.com/cgi-bin/yabb/YaBB.cgi?num=1149948530