Program can't connect to Internet

[rw120555]

I'm not optimistic anyone can answer but I figure it is worth a shot.

I have a program, Stata 8, that can connect directly to the Internet. It does so to get updates, download auxiliary files, etc. On one computer on my network, this works fine; on the other computer, the connection always times out. Oddly enough, Stata 7 was also on this computer, and it had no problem whatsoever making a connection.

I understand that this can happen when a proxy server is needed to access the Internet, i.e. you have to tell your program to use the same proxy server that, say, MSIE is using. But, there is no proxy server involved here.

I'm thinking something must be blocking Stata 8's access to the internet, but I can't figure out what it might be. I have disabled Norton Antivirus, and that does no good.

Now, I'm fully aware that I may be the only person here using Stata 8! But perhaps this issue shows up sometimes with other programs that directly access the internet. If so, any clues as to what to look for would be appreciated.

System is WinXP. An IBM X30 Laptop is the problem machine. A Dell optiplex is the machine that works fine. I've tried connecting the laptop to the internet in 3 different ways (ethernet cable, wireless, and dial-up) and the problem is the same each time. MSIE and my email have no problem accessing the internet.

Thanks for any help. RW

 

[rw120555]

I forgot that the people who know the answer to this type of question take the weekend off. Now that you are back, any tips or suggestions?

 

[titanmiller]

Firewall? For a about 4 months half of my programs that require an internet connection couldnt connect, it turned out that ZoneAlarm had some of its processes running in the background that blocked access.

 

[rw120555]

Originally posted by: titanmiller
Firewall? For a about 4 months half of my programs that require an internet connection couldnt connect, it turned out that ZoneAlarm had some of its processes running in the background that blocked access.

Thanks. I have a Netgear RP614 router. No additional software firewall. Also, I tried a dialup connection, and got the same problem. I'm thinking something is either blocking the connection or there is some sort of configuration problem that prevents a connection, but I can't figure out what it would be. Maybe i need to kill as many startup processes as possible to try to see if that makes any difference.