IE 7 (and now Safari) problem!

Hi guys, i'm new to the website and very computer illiterate so bear with me lol.

About a week ago my IE was playing-up. It worked perfectly, except whenever I attempted to go onto Facebook the IE browser would freeze and my laptop would notably whir as if it was dealing with some massive program. I thought it was a virus or something but my AVG (Free Edition) Virus scanner found nothing.

A few days ago my IE 7 browser stopped working completely. Every time I try to use it it comes up with "Internet Explorer cannot display the webpage ". It can't be my internet connection cos a) Network Diagnostics found nothing wrong and b) i could use Safari and Mozilla. I tried to do a System Restore but annoyingly there weren't any earlier dates to restore to (even though I'd done a System Restore the previous day and there were earlier dates!) I've tried to switch off my Windows Firewall and nothing happened. I've constantly got a Norton firewall working but every time I try to access it it doesn't work (and its out-of-date, even though it's still supposedly Firewalling my laptop).

I've also tried to reinstall IE 7 over my current one. No luck. I also tried to install IE 8 but the problem still persists. Some recent developments have me even more confused. I resorted to using Safari which was working fine until earlier today I went onto it it says "Safari can't connect to the server ". Now i can't use Safari.

I'm currently using Mozilla right now, so obviously my Internet connection is not the problem. Oddly enough, just now Mozilla notified me of an update. I installed it, restarted Mozilla and then it said Mozilla couldn't access the internet!! I did a System Restore and now i can use Mozilla. This example has lead me to think that every time I've used IE or Safari, i think there was an updating notification and in both instances after I've updated both browsers ceased to work! Maybe this is a coincedence, who knows?

But right now I'm out of options and have NO idea what's wrong. It has to be internal to my computer and can't be the internet connection. It has to be a virus right? Then why doesn't my AVG scanner pick anything up? Any help on getting back IE and Safari (but mainly IE) would be really appreciated! Thanks,

RADIATE!

 

Hey Evan, thanks for the advice but i did everything you suggested and still IE 7 doesn't work and is still saying "IE cannot display the webpage ".

It's SO bizarre! I've asked every computer-competent guys i know but they're all equally stumped.

RADIATE!

 

Yep tried to manually enter a web address into a google-bar but no luck. Also removed some rarely-used programs and some programs from the system tray but no luck either! It's weird how it's affected both IE AND Safari, unless the two problems are completely unrelated.

Interestingly, I did reboot the computer and went into Safe Mode with Networking. I COULD use IE in Safe Mode. So what does that mean? Is there hope yet of saving my beloved IE lol?

And FYI i'm using Windows XP.

RADIATE!

 

I tried the steps in the link you've provided but still no luck.

How do I go about installing/updating my drivers? Or find out which programs are conflicting with my IE & Safari?

I've got Norton (which came installed with the laptop) however I think it's out-of-date or something to that extent. I know that it's currently acting as my Firewall though.

RADIATE!

 

I'd be more inclined to Read This and post the appropriate information in The Malware Removal Forum. There are a lot of things that AVG isn't going to catch but just as significantly, by your own admission you are running both AVG and Norton. The folks over in Malware Removal are going to be best able to assist you. That's no rub on Evan's advice - he's given you very good guidance but there may be a few other things that need to cleared up first.

 

Thanks Rockster2U, i've submitted a new thread but accidentally submitted the first one without my DDS or Attach, so resubmitted a thread with DDS and Attach. Hope that doesn't cause any problems.

Can Evan Omo still give me some help if he has any or should I just wait for responses from the new thread?

RADIATE!