Heya folks, bizarre Internet Connectivity issue here, I've started smashing my head into the table, so I seek your help. Turned on my machine today, connected to the Internet via Mobile Broadband as usual (Middle of moving house, stuck with it), worked fine for the past few months, but today only specific appplications are connecting to the Internet. MSN and Internet Explorer work fine, which is a **** take, because "Microsoft FTW!", christ... Trillian, Mozilla FireFox & the FoxMarks Addon, Lolifox, mIRC, ICQ - they all fail to connect to the Internet. Basically all complain the Internet isn't there, because they can't contact their Servers. After further checking, apparently Ultima Online (An MMORPG) successfuly connects though, and works fine. I don't understand why they are suddenly all failing. I have no Firewall running right now, Windows Security Centre and my ESET Antivirus/Firewall software is disabled via the Services Panel. I sometimes operate through a Proxy (Tor/Privoxy) but I've checked; my Browsers and IM Clients aren't configured to work through it right now, and I have tried Shutting Down/Turning On those Proxy applications anyway - no change. I'm worried it's something more serious within the Operating System, because all of a sudden Microsoft ActiveSync is claiming it's Connection to what would usually would be my phone, is Disabled. A Red Cross on the icon for it in the System Tray, never done that before, I wonder if something it relies on has gone up the creek. Looking in my Event Viewer I have various COM+ Service Errors, but I've apparently suffered them for at least 2 weeks, so I don't believe it's related. (Other less noteworthy Errors is the Volume Shadow Copy Service & Google Updates, both which have existed for just as long, and are both disabled in the Services panel - they both errored before they were disabled anyway!). It's random, and it's annoying. FireFox doesn't even load now, I think because it was Auto Patching and could only make it half way througth the process without Internet Connectivity - and Lolifox loads fine, just instantly fails to connect to any website. I personally believe it's either a nasty problem with my OS that's decided to form, or Three Mobile Broadband is going wack on me and disallowing certain Ports or something? Any thoughts on this would be much appreciated! Of course, I'm happy to supply any extra information where requested.

I really don't bluddy believe this, I solved the problem. Just got home from work with a fresh mind on the matter. Firewall. Disabled in Services, none of the ESET Processes running in the Task Manager, but SOMEHOW, it was still working. I just don't understand how it was still mysteriously running without being activated or a listed process. There's something I don't know about PC's man, seriously, my Higher National Diploma apparently means Jack Crap, because I don't know where the frickin'ell that's working that magic. (Actually, just occured to me there might be something lingering in MSConfig... but I just looked, and I had everything unchecked under Services & Startup! I intentionally wanted it disabled since it annoys me about buying it right now, Evaluation periods up!) Since no one replied; either I don't make sense in the initial post, or it is a baffling tale - bluddy computers eh?