Cannot download

Hi,

I have spent days on my desktop trying to sort out this issue and don't know what to do next. I have XP Pro and Firefox and I whilst I am able to download a pdf and surf when I try to download Thunderbird, or Adobe Reader or similar the downloads box comes up with "starting" and that is all it ever does. It will sit there hours and do nothing. I tried MS Internet Explorer and it did the same. I can access my ADSL Modem router Dynalink RTA1025W front page but clicking on any tab fails to work. I have re-set router and no change.

It seems that the ethernet port is not working but it must be in order for me to be able to surf.

System is XP Pro, Service Pack 3, Athlon Processor 1.4Ghz, 1G DDR Ram.

I am very

 

Are you saying that you cannot disconnect the router, and set up directly?
Are you not the administrator?

 

Hi Yes I am the administrator. I just mentioned the router as it shows the problem I am having is common to downloading as well as accessing the router tabs. I can link to the router using an IP address, it opens but then seems to freeze when I try to open any of the tabs.