Browser troublemaking Security Guidelines

Stagnant for years, the Web browser is seeing a new wave of excitement crest as major versions of Microsoft Internet Explorer and Mozilla Firefox have been released recently. While early browsers were limited to the display of Web pages, modern browsers are more properly thought of as frameworks for viewing and interacting with a variety of sites, including Web-based applications such as email and rich media such as video not just traditional HTML (Hypertext Markup Language) pages. Users are excited about the features and functionality that the new browsers offer, but these updates open the door to a different set of software issues and problems. Over the next few pages, we’ll show you how to fix common kinds of browser errors, as well as how to determine if the problem is really with your Web browser in the first place. We’ll focus on troubleshooting the latest versions of the most popular browsers for Microsoft Windows XP Internet Explorer 7 and Mozilla Firefox 2 two free programs that control over 90% of market share by most estimates. While we won’t explicitly consider other operating systems, Firefox has versions available for other operating systems, so some of the information presented herein may be applicable to those versions. As well, some of the general tips may be applicable to other browsers, such as Opera and Safari. Product Information Since your browser is a piece of software, you can easily obtain the version number to aid you in your troubleshooting.

To determine your browser version, follow these steps:

1. Click on the Help menu and select About Firefox . .(for Firefox) or About Internet Explorer (for IE 7).

2. In the window that appears, look for the version number immediately under the product name. Earlier versions may have slightly different selections in the Help menu; if so, look for an About option or an option that appears like it. If you don’t see anything like these, you likely don’t have a current version of your browser. Working Status Your browser depends on a stable, unimpeded connection to the Internet. If your browser does not appear to function, it may be your online connection rather than your browser that is actually at fault. If you have current versions of both Firefox and IE installed on your PC and why not, since they’re both free? when one browser isn’t working, start the other one and see if you can reach the Web. If you can’t reach the site you’re trying to reach, then try to reach another big site that will likely be up examples include www.google.com, www.yahoo .com, and www.microsoft.com. If you can reach any site through another browser, you can eliminate the possibility that your Internet connection is malfunctioning. Also, check the network connection icon in the System Tray (the area next to your computer’s clock) to make sure that the network connection is up. Another way to verify your Internet connection is through this simple test: Click the Windows Start button on your Desktop. Select Run . . . In the Run window’s “Open” text box, enter the word command, and then click OK. In the Command window that appears, enter the command ping www.google.com and then press ENTER. (If you get a security check from your firewall, give permission for the connection.)

You should get several lines of text, including a number of lines that say something along the lines of “Reply from 209.73.186.238: bytes=32 time=34ms TTL=51.” (The numbers in the response will vary.) If the number after “time” is relatively low for instance,under 100 for most modern connections the problem is not your Internet connection. If you get a response like “Ping request could not find host www.google .com. Please check the name and try again,” try entering the command ping www.yahoo.com. If you get an error with that one as well, then you likely have a bad Internet connection. If you get a set of responses that include “Request timed out” and something like “Reply from 209.73.186.238: bytes=32 time=34ms TTL=51” and/or you have a number after “time=” that’s over 200, then this means that your Internet connection may be up, but it may be slow. If this happens with only one site, it indicates a problem with the Web site you’re trying to reach. If you get that kind of result with multiple sites, then the problem is probably with your Internet connection or your Internet service provider not with your browser. To troubleshoot an Internet connection, see “What To Do When . . . You Can’t Go Online”. Problems & Solutions