problems loading page

[gqcowboy]

I'm stumped. I can't figure out why my internet; either Internet explorer or Mozilla, is having trouble loading pages. The load times are extremely long. Before the pages would just shoot up on the screen. Now if I hope any browser, it seems like it's searching for something delaying the startup 10 or 15 seconds.

My default web browser is Mozilla. The message i am constantly seeing "problem loading page" "server time out. Sometimes half of the page will load and the rest will be spotted with "temporary...." where images would usually be.

I don't know what to do and I tried searching google. I see there are other people having the same problems, but there wasn't any solution posted.

Perhaps you any of you guys could help me.

 

[aceman817]

Please post more specifics on the software and type of Internet connection that you have. Did this problem start recently? My initial guess would be that it has something to do with a firewall that you have.

 

[gqcowboy]

yes it did start recently. I have high speed cable 5mb getting about 4700kbps download.
WinXP 2002 edition pro (not verified)
service pack 2 installed
I have a direct connection to the modem; no router. I am using windows firewall only because I never bothered with it (but it hasn't caused any problems before). I also have norton anti-virus (again, hasn't caused any problems before).

About one month ago I installed Mozilla because I couldn't verify my windows to download the newest internet explorer. For the most part it has been running fine; however since last week I have noticed a longer load time just to get to the homepage, which is google.com. Now it's taking considerably longer to just bring up the page.

When you double click the shortcut you will get a white page for about 11 seconds (I timed it) before anything happens. Now when I open explorer it's shorter, but one month ago it would load in less than 1 second.

The longer load times have lead to every page I try to access leading to - "server not found" If I click the refresh button it might (45%) come up, sometimes I'll have to hit the refresh button more than once. If you need any other information please ask. I'll do my best to provide the most accurate information about the situation.

I have tried clearing the temporary files/history from both and repairing my internet connection through windows. Since the problem persists.

 

[aceman817]

If you want to determine if the problem you're experiencing is related to equipment/service as opposed to software, try booting with a Linux CD such as Ubuntu. It's pretty easy to make and use. Go to http://www.ubuntu.com/ and download the standard desktop ISO. Use a program like Nero to burn the CD and then boot your computer from it. When the OS finishes loading, click the blue globe at the top to open Firefox. You shouldn't have to configure any network settings as you use cable. If you can get online and surf fast, you have a problem with your OS. I'm not sure where you got your OS from, but you will want to verify it. You may also wish to check from viruses/adware/spyware if you haven't already done so. There are good posts on this forum already on how to do that. Good luck!