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Hey there.

Well after having changed 'net providers to BT, and for 5 or so weeks everything was running smoothly, my connection suddenly began to time out. It is completely random. I sometimes will boot up my PC and it won't even connect to Google, yet sometimes it will run fine for 5 hours or so before refusing to connect - either way I have to restart my PC... And that sometimes doesn't fix it.

If what I download will help in any way, I just use Style XP for themes - which I like to change every so often. I download them from Deviantart and Customize.org, don't know if that will help...

The other peculiar thing is that my brother uses the same router to get his wireless connection - yet he doesn't experience any problems at all, perhaps it is something to do with the system files?

Hope someone can sort this out for me, as it is becoming a real pain in the backside and I don't want to be forced to reformat my PC.

Thanks,

Jon.

reformat would be dumb anyway.

we need your system specs, os+verson, a descripion of all hardware between
the modem and your system.

is your system up-to-date with microsoft?

have you A/V tools, firewall?

Operating System

XP Home Edition (5.1, build 2600)

Device

Chip Type: Radeon 9250/9200 Series
DAC Type: Internal DAC (400MHZ)
Approx. Total Memory: 120GB
Processor: Intel(R) Pentium(R) 4 CPU 2.00GHz (2 CPUs)
System Memory: 510MB RAM

Between my comp. and the modem there is only a wireless phone and its hub - though I don't see how it can cause any problems.

My firewall is disabled, as I have to disable Norton to access the 'net for some reason - I'm thinking of uninstalling Norton anyway, it's rubbish.

Reformatting isn't going to fix a server problem and that's usually what causes a 'time out.' Or it may be a line problem, also untouched by reformat. You should not disable to security programs to try and access the internet. If they are configured correctly, they will protect you, not prevent or break an internet connection.

You need to contact the ISP, explain the problem, see if your setting are correct for the new ISP and explain about the time outs and broken connections you're having.

Another possibility is that the phone may be on the same frequency and should be moved. Also talk to phone company, tell them you are getting disconnected from some of your calls (dropped calls) and let them check the integrity of the line. If there is a problem, it can cause a dropped connection. Best not to mention the problem is computer related as most phone companies will not check lines out for that, but will for 'dropped calls

Norton is gone anyway now. Have Kaspersky, a whole lot better.

Norton has caused many problems with my computeres using the net, sharing the net and even connecting by LAN, to make things worse, after installing different a/v programs, I was amazed that ANY other program was detecting viruses that norton WASNT.

Many 'devoted' Norton users have left it in the past couple of years, as the conflicts continue to mount.

try this: go to StartUp --> Run --> type "COMMAND" --> a window will be open, type there "ipconfig /flushdns" without the quotes.
Also you can disable, then re-enable your network connection(Control Panel- Network Connections- Local Area Connection) and after that, right-click on the same network connection, click "repair"
If you don't have any results, maybe you can be infected with malware and it blocks some sites and slows the speed. You should try to clean your PC by studying THIS tutorial. Just fallow all the instructions, don't skip any steps.

Well, this is interesting, I created a new profile to log in with and the 'net is working fine - no problems at all (so far anyway). I'll let you guys know in a couple of days how everything turns out... Cheers for the help though, I'll bare it in mind if worse comes to worse.