BleepingComputer.com: Internet Explorer cannot display the webpage

I have not been able to get to some of my favorite online facebook games. I get the 'cannot display webpage' error message for only some of the websites. I can get to facebook and play Frontierville and Tetris Battle, but get the error message for Zuma Blitz and Mind Jolt. Off of facebook, I can get to Zynga.com but not to their support or customer help pages (same error message). I cannot get to popcap.com.

Windows Vista, Internet Explorer 7, NVIDIA GeForce 6150SE nForce 430 Graphic Card

I have been trying to do research to figure out how to fix it, so any knowledge I have is just from random websites....
Here are things that I have tried. The order is close, but probably not exact.
Update Flash
Update Windows Vista
Update DirectX (I think, about 80% sure I did)
I didn't do anything to update Internet Explorer (hmmm?)
Found out what my graphics card is using dxdiag and updated the driver
(some of the dxdiag information is below)
Followed some instructions to disable TCP auto tuning (do I need to re-enable it?)
Tried changing the reset rate when graphics flickered during games after updating the driver (set it back to 60Hz and when I restarted, the flicker was gone)
Clicked on the 'Reset' Button under 'Advanced' under 'Internet Options' on IE7


Part of the dxdiag:
------------------
System Information
------------------
Time of this report: 1/4/2011, 17:43:25
Machine name: HOME-PC
Operating System: Windows Vista™ Home Premium (6.0, Build 6002) Service Pack 2 (6002.vistasp2_gdr.100608-0458)
Language: English (Regional Setting: English)
System Manufacturer: Compaq-Presario
System Model: GC520AA-ABA SR5027CL
BIOS: Phoenix - AwardBIOS v6.00PG
Processor: AMD Athlon™ 64 Processor 4000+, ~2.6GHz
Memory: 894MB RAM
Page File: 1912MB used, 628MB available
Windows Dir: C:\Windows
DirectX Version: DirectX 11
DX Setup Parameters: Not found
DxDiag Version: 7.00.6002.18107 32bit Unicode

---------------
Display Devices
---------------
Card name: NVIDIA GeForce 6150SE nForce 430
Manufacturer: NVIDIA
Chip type: GeForce 6150SE nForce 430
DAC type: Integrated RAMDAC
Device Key: Enum\PCI\VEN_10DE&DEV_03D0&SUBSYS_2A5B103C&REV_A2
Display Memory: 313 MB
Dedicated Memory: 122 MB
Shared Memory: 191 MB
Current Mode: 1440 x 900 (32 bit) (60Hz)
Monitor: Compaq WF1907 Wide LCD Monitor
Driver Name: nvd3dum.dll
Driver Version: 8.17.0012.6099 (English)
DDI Version: 9Ex
BGRA Supported: Yes
Driver Attributes: Final Retail
Driver Date/Size: 10/16/2010 10:55:00, 10023528 bytes
WHQL Logo'd: Yes
WHQL Date Stamp:
Device Identifier: {D7B71E3E-4090-11CF-5F64-570A1CC2C535}
Vendor ID: 0x10DE
Device ID: 0x03D0
SubSys ID: 0x2A5B103C
Revision ID: 0x00A2
Revision ID: 0x00A2
Video Accel:
DDraw Status: Enabled
D3D Status: Enabled
AGP Status: Enabled


Thank you very much. I learned a lot from Bleeping Computers when working on getting rid of a virus. I now use MalWareBytes to occasionally scan my computer.
In case someone answers tonight, I'll check in a couple hours to see if more information about my system is needed, but won't be spending much time working on solutions. I'll check again in the morning (PST) to work on any ideas you have. Thanks again.

I'm still trying to learn about what could be going wrong. I don't understand firewalls very well, but could this somehow be my Windows Firewall not letting something through that is common to the sites I am trying to reach?

Do you have the same problem in a different browser such as firefox? If the problem still occurs try this:

-Go to command prompt, and type these 3 commands without the quotes:

"ipconfig /flushdns"
"ipconfig /release"
"ipconfig /renew"

Open up your browser and clear all temporary internet files/history/cookies, it's up to you to clear saved passwords or not.

Thank you NpaMa. I have never used another browser, but I just downloaded firefox and tried popcap.com and received the following:

The connection has timed out
The server at www.popcap.com is taking too long to respond.
* The site could be temporarily unavailable or too busy. Try again in a few
moments.
* If you are unable to load any pages, check your computer's network
connection.
* If your computer or network is protected by a firewall or proxy, make sure
that Firefox is permitted to access the Web.

I made sure that Firefox is permitted in Windows Firewall.

I did the three prompts you gave me. The first one flushed the DNS Resolver Cache successfully, but Release and Renew said, No operation can be performed on Local Area Connection while it has its media disconnected. I wish that I knew more about this stuff. I'm connected to the internet wirelessly - is this why they didn't work?

This post has been edited by mommafrick: 06 January 2011 - 09:04 PM

Open up command prompt and type the following (once again, without the quotes).

"tracert popcap.com"

Once it finishes right click and choose "mark" highlight everything that appeared and press enter. Now come back and paste that in your next reply.

Quote

It should have worked on wireless, but it's probably not related to your problem. I just tell people to go ahead and do that so it's a "fresh start" when they go to troubleshoot things.

Microsoft Windows [Version 6.0.6002]
Copyright © 2006 Microsoft Corporation. All righ

C:\Users\Terri>tracert popcap.com

Tracing route to popcap.com [64.246.180.111]
over a maximum of 30 hops:

1 1 ms 1 ms 1 ms 10.10.1.1
2 * * * Request timed out.
3 * * * Request timed out.
4 * * * Request timed out.

blah blah blah

26 * * * Request timed out.
27 * * * Request timed out.
28 * * * Request timed out.
29 * * * Request timed out.
30 * * * Request timed out.

Trace complete.

Can you post the same thing except to Google? That looks weird that you can't get any responses past your router/modem.

"tracert google.com"

It is now working with Internet Explorer. I did another flushdns, shut down computer, unplugged modem and router, waited, then started them again. So it worked, but it doesn't help me in the future if I don't really understand what happened. What does unplugging modem and router do to them? And what may have been messed up to make that work? (If there are many reasons, what do you think the top two are?)

Just to see the difference, here is the tracert to popcap.com now. Are those showing packets of information that popcap sent my router?
Tracing route to popcap.com [64.246.180.111]
over a maximum of 30 hops:

1 4 ms 4 ms 4 ms dslrouter [192.168.1.1]
2 34 ms 38 ms 34 ms L100.LSANCA-DSL-08.verizon-gni.net [71.108.0.1]

3 37 ms 37 ms 37 ms G3-1-2811.LSANCA-LCR-11.verizon-gni.net [130.81.34.224]
4 36 ms 36 ms 39 ms so-4-3-0-0.LAX01-BB-RTR1.verizon-gni.net [130.81.29.244]
5 38 ms 37 ms 38 ms 0.so-6-2-0.XT1.LAX7.ALTER.NET [152.63.112.45]
6 38 ms 36 ms 37 ms POS6-0.BR2.LAX7.ALTER.NET [152.63.112.145]
7 39 ms 38 ms 37 ms p64-6-1-3.r20.lsanca03.us.bb.gin.ntt.net [129.250.8.205]
8 50 ms 50 ms 50 ms ae-2.r21.snjsca04.us.bb.gin.ntt.net [129.250.2.147]
9 47 ms 48 ms 48 ms ae-0.r20.snjsca04.us.bb.gin.ntt.net [129.250.2.96]
10 71 ms 71 ms 69 ms ae-4.r20.sttlwa01.us.bb.gin.ntt.net [129.250.3.52]
11 65 ms 65 ms 67 ms po-2.r01.sttlwa01.us.bb.gin.ntt.net [129.250.4.158]
12 70 ms 69 ms 68 ms xe-7-2.r01.sttlwa01.us.ce.gin.ntt.net [198.104.202.18]
13 67 ms 68 ms 69 ms agg1-sea-p10.bb.spectrumnet.us [208.76.153.42]
14 68 ms 68 ms 69 ms PopCap-1-SEA-10000M.demarc.spectrumnet.us [216.243.28.238]
15 * * * Request timed out
.......
30 * * * Request timed out.

I looked at google now and it looks similar, of course. My old tracert for popcap didn't even have the DSL modem number in the first line. Does that mean the wireless router didn't even make it to the modem? And why would it for some, but not others?

Actually, I decided to post the google one, too, in case it holds information for you.
Tracing route to google.com [66.102.7.99]
over a maximum of 30 hops:

1 4 ms 3 ms 5 ms dslrouter [192.168.1.1]
2 34 ms 32 ms 34 ms L100.LSANCA-DSL-08.verizon-gni.net [71.108.0.1]

3 34 ms 36 ms 37 ms G3-1-2811.LSANCA-LCR-11.verizon-gni.net [130.81.34.224]
4 35 ms 35 ms 36 ms so-4-3-0-0.LAX01-BB-RTR1.verizon-gni.net [130.81.29.244]
5 38 ms 35 ms 35 ms 0.so-6-2-0.XT1.LAX7.ALTER.NET [152.63.112.45]
6 37 ms 36 ms 35 ms 0.so-7-1-0.XL3.LAX15.ALTER.NET [152.63.1.226]
7 38 ms 37 ms 36 ms TenGigE0-6-1-0.GW4.LAX15.ALTER.NET [152.63.114.209]
8 35 ms 36 ms 73 ms google-gw.customer.alter.net [63.125.112.154]
9 37 ms 46 ms 38 ms 216.239.46.38
10 37 ms 48 ms 41 ms 64.233.174.70
11 36 ms 37 ms 40 ms lax04s01-in-f99.1e100.net [66.102.7.99]
Trace complete.

Now, I'm looking closer, and I was wrong about it all being information from popcap, right? It talks to verizon, then are the LAX1, LAX7, LAX15 looking for a network out? Lines 7 to 13 of popcap are things that don't even show up in the google list, and the popcap seems to quit before my computer was ready for it, but the google list just ends. Hmmm...

Thank you NpaMa for all of your time. My head is full of questions and if it is interesting to you, I would love a few answers, but I'm interested enough to really go research how the websites talk to my computer, so I'll probably find my answers in time. I really appreciate your time and want to 'let you out' of figuring out how to word the knowledge in your head for me if it isn't fun for you.

Quote

The only reason I could see right now is a problem with your modem/router or a local PC firewall. It not even getting the router IP (192.168.1.1) eliminates your ISP and PopCap's servers.

As you can see in the working traceroute for both,

1 4 ms 4 ms 4 ms dslrouter [192.168.1.1]

That indicates the connection is making it to your router, and then the server/router it connects to past there is

2 34 ms 38 ms 34 ms L100.LSANCA-DSL-08.verizon-gni.net [71.108.0.1]

This is most likely a local DSL center within a few miles or so of you. This is most likely what everyone that's on Verizon in your area connects to before actually accessing the "full" internet. More things come into play - but just keeping it simple.

Quote

All traceroutes should start out the same way. The first few hops are normally the same. Although they can be different and still work correctly, if the second hop for a working and unworking site are different, then that points to the problem being with your internet provider and not the website itself. Although all "request timed outs" are not bad, they can be used to tell were the connection is being dropped "down the line". So if it shows verizon as the last hop before dropping out, then you can assume the problem is with Verizon. Although that's not always the case, it is about 80% of the time. Because it wasn't even getting to your modem, then that shows it was a problem with your modem/router or the IP given (although I was able to rule that out when you posted the first traceroute due to receiving the correct IP).

Quote

As noted before the first hops are the same, however because the servers are located at different places, different routes are taken. It's like going to a local store or going to one 200 miles away. You start out the same by leaving your house and going down the road and you may even make a few more turns the same, however before too long you will go in different directions. Were Google ends, hop 11, is the server Google.com is hosted on for you. The first "request timed out" in the PopCap traceroute, is were we can assume the PopCap server is. Although it may be 1 or 2 more past that.

---
The request timed out on the popcap traceroute past 15, are because the server at PopCap doesn't answer ping requests for "security" reasons. That's why as I said above "not all request timed outs" are bad.

Hope that atleast helps.

This post has been edited by NpaMA: 09 January 2011 - 09:45 PM

Huge help. Thanks for explaining.