Need help getting into a forum I have used for the past 2 yrs

[George Yves]

I'm using Firefox 3.0.5 (with NoScript, Adblock Plus, WOT, DNS Prefetch and dozens of other extensions), Avast 4.8 Home Edition (with default settings), Spywareterminator 2.3, Windows firewall and Vista Home Basic SP1. My Internet connection is DSL, 128 Kb/s. I could get to the forum almost instantly and had no problems in browsing all its pages.

[alanrf]

The fact that many of us can access the forum referred to when the original poster cannot is interesting but simply tells us that another factor may be inhibiting the original poster. 

I suspect it is that factor that needs to be determined, not how many other avast users can get to the site without problems.

If the accessibility of the forum in question has changed for the original poster I have to hope we will be advised.

[Abraxas]

The fact that many of us can access the forum referred to when the original poster cannot is interesting but simply tells us that another factor may be inhibiting the original poster.

Yes, I must agree the fact that others can access the Forum is not at all the point here, earguijo also has been able to, but cannot.
Hopefully a response from him in reference to his HOSTS file may shed some light on the problem, which is obviously based on "his" system, as everyone else can access this site.
The likely problem will I'm sure be found through taking a check of logical steps, HOSTS file, Firewall settings, a Newly installed program which is blocking the site in question, on earguijo's machine.

[ardvark]

If I may be allowed to quote my friend ardvark ... May God Bless you!

Hi Alan...

Any time!

@earguijo: My prayers are with you and may the Lord heal and comfort you in your time of need and distress!

May God Bless you all!

[DavidR]

Personally I would be surprised if this was a HOSTS file blocking issue, as the norm would be to block the domain and not a sub-folder or page of the domain, it will not hurt to check though.

What it might be is very strange, as I was confident that it might be some weird IE7 security setting (I don't use IE7 so I can't help in that regard), which would have meant firefox would have worked, but no.

So the next common factor is your modem/router if that has any outbound firewall ability to block sites (again no broadband/router experience, dial-up only here).

Or if you have any parental monitoring software, to block sites.

I tried a google search on the error text see if there is anything in these hits, http://www.google.com/search?q=Internet+Explorer+cannot+display+the+webpage.

Other than the above I'm at a loss as to what else to try.

[earguijo]

Hello, I have Spybot - Search & Destroy and what ever my internet provider At&t provides online but that I have not downloaded.  I brought my computer to work last week and was able to access the forum from their wireless At&t but when I try it from my home it's impossible?  I know it's not my machine settings otherwise I would not have been able to access it from work with my laptop.  Puzzled.  I also contacted Sharon the web adminstrator at the website and she is sharing info with some other tech's to try and get me back on line.

Bless everyone for trying to help me out.

Respectfully,  earguijo

[scythe944]

I'd think that this was a DNS issue, but if you can reach the root domain, it's highly unlikely.

DavidR is correct as well, if hosts was configured to load the page on an alternative address, the root domain wouldn't work either.

Maybe there is something wrong with your broadband modem or router.

I've seen weird things like this happen when a modem starts failing, and it loads many different webpages, but not all of them.

It's a longshot, but still a possibility.  Have you had any brownouts / power outages / etc recently?

If you can reach the website at home and not the forum, and reach everything at your work, you pretty much nailed it on the head.  It doesn't seem like your computer has anything to do with the problem.  Next would be your switch / router / or modem.