Possible Causes
Our Network King really needs to come and write something up, but he's off saving someone from Conficker (or trying to). Inability to connect to a web page can come from a variety of issues. the majority of those issues are, sadly, user induced.
The most common reasons for "no surf" are:
1.a. modem or router is not plugged in. Either to the computer, to each other, or to a power source; sometimes it is plugged in, but not correctly. Fix: Check Cables.
1.b. everything is plugged in but the power is not on. Seriously! Honest, we really have gotten calls where people try to surf on a computer that is not powered on or the computer is on but the modem/router is/are not. Fix: Power on.
2. Damaged ("dead") hardware. Something happened to cause the modem, router, or port to stop working. This is usually from power surges or lightning strikes (get a Lightning-rated surge protector! - one that also has plug-ins for phone line and cable, to protect modems), though it can be from small children (no balls in the house!) or big ones (no soda/coffee on the keyboard!!). Fix: Replace the damaged item and take steps to protect the replacement.
3.a. Everything is plugged in and on and the browser responds but does not display a page. This is usually caused by incorrect settings. Most Internet Service Providers (ISP) will provide the modem and a disk to install it with. Now the modem itself doesn't really need 'installation', but it does need to be set-up - that's what the disk does: configure the computer and modem settings so they can "talk" to each other and to the ISP. Fix: Manually configure settings.
3.b. Everything seems to be configured properly, but still no surf. Could just be a glitch, sometimes the modem/router/computer received a programming update that required restart and did not restart so the update is incomplete. This can sometimes cause 'no surf.' Check the owner's guide for the modem/router for directions on how to restart (may be an actual manual, may be on the disk,some need to be downloaded from the manufacturers website). Fix: Reset/Restart modem/router so it can "self-configure"
4. Browser launches and opens a page but it's the wrong page! or Browser opens, but it has opened about (insert random number here) times! Malware DDoS (Determined Denial of Service) is the likely culprit, though both symptoms are more indicative of browser hijack attempts. Either way: you have malware (virus, trojan, etc) that is keeping you from happy surfing. Fix: kill the malware.
5. You (and the repair guy) have done everything you can to make sure the problem is NOT on your end, but you still can't surf. It's rare, but sometimes it really IS the ISP's fault. Call the ISP and hope they're one of the good ones that will admit when there's a problem (if you have AOL just call us). I had issues with a recent install of AOL that adjusted my internet settings and caused a conflict with Internet Explorer 7 (IE7) allowing me online, but not to surf. I could open my AOL email, but I could not access any pages that were not on AOL's server. AOL persisted for 4 months in stating that it was my fault (user error/malware/etc) until I called our Network King who had it fixed in about 20 minutes. In all fairness to me, it was a pretty obscure setting - he spent most of that 20 minutes just getting to it. AOL issued a full apology (along with a refund). More recently my DSL dropped out and I spent over an hour trying to get it back up before finally calling the carrier. Surprise of surprises as they admitted there was an outage in my area. I still use AOL, but they are not known for their customer service (which has gone downhill since they went free). (I now have standing status with AOL; they know that if I call it's not just a Top 5 issue and they send me straight to a Senior Tech...at least they're improving ;) ).
Site Links
Return to Home Page
Computer Acting Weird?
The Difference Between a Hard Disk and a Floppy Disk
Recommended Products Updated
Other Issues
Terms and Payment Options
