I have been working on a computer running windows 98(second edition I belive). It is a compaq with a compaq ethernet adapter. The computer was working and so was the internet. The computer was given to this person and so therefore it was moved. The DSL modem LAN light lights up. There is a good conection from the phone jack to the modem and from the modem to the ethernet adapter. When I open IE it says detecting proxys then tries to load the homepage. That is when an error comes up. It says unable to load page. All security settings are set to low. AVG is the anti-virus software. No other software besides that for the operating system and the ethernet card. Have cleared the caches. Tried to release and renew all IP address but nothing happened. I am out of ideas if anyone knows of any possible solutions please do let me know.:-k

Hello, and Welcome to techhelpforum.

Are you sure the "new" phone line service is running at "high-speed"?

Yes I am. It was a new line that was ran from the main junction box to a new jack installed to the wall with a new RJ11 cable to the Comtrends DSL modem and a new RJ45 cable between the computer and modem. I switched that CAT5e cable with a brand new CAT6 cable that I just bought less then 8hrs prior. It is something in the operating system. I hooked my laptop up to the modem to diagnose wether it was a modem issue or if it was in fact a computer problem and my laptop ran just fine on the modem. It is something in the computer. I keep getting a page not found error and at the bottom it is saying DNS error. Any ideas??

It's been a long time since I worked an Win98 networking issue, but IIRC, this sounds like a winsock problem. Assuming a firewall is not blocking access, check out these links:

Earthlink KB
Win98 DNS Error - note they have the "last resort" option listed first! ????

Keep us posted.

I spoke with the ISP and they say they think its the ethernet adapter. I will read the sites you gave me and will keep ya's posted. Thanks for the help guys.

Well, it is possible, but you already said you had a good connection from the NIC to the modem - how did you determine that? Are there any errors in Device Manager?

I will note that it is my experience the "It's the Ethernet adapter" is a common "cop-out" solution often given by inexperienced or lazy tech support people. Having said that, replacing the NIC often works because to replace the card, the following also happens:

1. A new MAC address is seen on the network - this forces a reissue of the IP address, usually a new/different IP.

2. New drivers are installed.

3. Cold reboot (power down and power cord unplugged) is accomplished.

4. You have to disconnect the cable, pull the card, reinsert the new card, reconnect the cable - all of which will clean dirty contacts and/or secure loose connections.

5. Often, the user replaces the network cable with the new one that comes with the NIC.

Any of the above often fixes the problem. Still NICs are cheap so replacing is easy to try.

The device manager didn't give any errors and the modem detected the NIC(lan light was lit). I know the ISP's tech support uses the its not our problem its yours because I have called them when there servers crashed on them and they didn't want to admit it(I dislike them). I am gona use the changeing the NIC card as a last result. Don't want to force my client to spend money on that dinasour. I know NIC's are cheap, I can order a cheap generic one for $10 and the more expensive intell that I would use is about $25. I will read over the sites you gave me and see what I can come up with and I will post back with the solution that worked.

Just an update. I am taking the computer from the client. She is gona finance a laptop and make monthly payments. I am gona try and refirbish it and keep it for myself(minus the dinasour that is Windows 98, probably go with Vista). Thanks for the help guys!!

probably go with Vista

If that hardware is from the W98 era, it would probably be a mistake to try and run Vista on it. Vista is a modern OS designed to run on current technology hardware - which means it needs a CPU with lots of horsepower, lots of RAM, serious graphics, wide buses on the motherboard, and fast drives. I recommend going with XP, or better yet, use it to learn Linux.

Will that (proprietary, old) machine support Vista. Probably not.

Whoops, didn't see Digerati's post before I hit the "submit" button.