LucyDuke
staring at the clock
I have a very strange problem with getting my computer to connect to a wireless network. Very strange. I hope somebody here doesn't think it's that strange and knows how to fix it. 
Quick background, I had the computer built in '04, took it with me to school and had it on a wired network there. It's got XP Pro. I just installed SP2 a few days ago and it didn't make the problem any better or worse. I can get other specs if they're relevant. I had to configure some crap about the school network, but I certainly don't remember what I had to do with it. I brought it home after that and connected it to my home wired network. Everything worked fine.
Then we switched to a wireless network for no real reason. This is when the problem started. The router and the wireless cards are Belkin thingies that I don't know much about. I think the wireless cards are these ( http://catalog.belkin.com/IWCatProductPage.process?Product_Id=179211 ) but I'd have to go home and check to be sure. If they're not that specifically, they're very similar. We've got about five of the cards, and I've swapped 'em between the other computers and they work fine on the other computers so I know it's not the card itself. I've got an old 1996 laptop about three feet away from the problem computer, and the wireless signal is good on the laptop, so I don't think it's a problem with the wireless signal strength. There's no separate network card for the wired network, the socket for the cable is stuck right onto the motherboard. The wireless cards are USB cards. I've got two USB slots on the tower's face, one of them does not work at all for anything, the other is fine for any other use. I usually don't have anything in either. There are either three or four USB slots on the back, all of which work just fine. One of them has a mouse plugged into it, the others are usually free. I've tried each USB slot and none works better than any other (except that the dead one does not work at all).
Now the actual problem. The computer cannot hold a connection to the network. Most of the time when I boot up the computer finds several networks and connects to mine. The network is unsecured, I don't know if that matters. The neighbors have secured networks that I cannot get onto. Sometimes when I boot it, it doesn't get that far and it goes right into the problem mode. But anyway, if I boot it and it does connect, it usually will not disconnect if I don't use the network. Sometimes it does, but usually if I boot up and start doing something that doesn't require the network (playing a game, running Word or PSP or Winamp or something), it doesn't lose the network.
If it does connect to the network when I boot, I can usually use mIRC without a problem. Usually. AIM usually works for a minute or two, then causes the failure. If I try to use Internet Explorer or Firefox at all, the connection will fail. Sometimes it fails for no apparent reason. Sometimes it lets me get a page or two loaded through IE or Firefox, but it will always fail within a few pages.
When it fails, it disconnects from my wireless network and cannot see any networks at all. When I try to search for a network, it cannot find any in range, even though there are at least four (secured) other ones. Very rarely it will eventually find the networks again, but usually the failure is complete until I reboot. Sometimes rebooting doesn't even help, and when I boot it back up it still can't find any networks. I can shut down and leave it off for a few minutes and boot back up and that doesn't seem to convince it.
The only patterns I can discern are that web browsers guarantee a failure, and that once it's failed, it's usually failed until I reboot.
This is all very strange to me. If anyone can help at all I will be very grateful.
Thanks!
Quick background, I had the computer built in '04, took it with me to school and had it on a wired network there. It's got XP Pro. I just installed SP2 a few days ago and it didn't make the problem any better or worse. I can get other specs if they're relevant. I had to configure some crap about the school network, but I certainly don't remember what I had to do with it. I brought it home after that and connected it to my home wired network. Everything worked fine.
Then we switched to a wireless network for no real reason. This is when the problem started. The router and the wireless cards are Belkin thingies that I don't know much about. I think the wireless cards are these ( http://catalog.belkin.com/IWCatProductPage.process?Product_Id=179211 ) but I'd have to go home and check to be sure. If they're not that specifically, they're very similar. We've got about five of the cards, and I've swapped 'em between the other computers and they work fine on the other computers so I know it's not the card itself. I've got an old 1996 laptop about three feet away from the problem computer, and the wireless signal is good on the laptop, so I don't think it's a problem with the wireless signal strength. There's no separate network card for the wired network, the socket for the cable is stuck right onto the motherboard. The wireless cards are USB cards. I've got two USB slots on the tower's face, one of them does not work at all for anything, the other is fine for any other use. I usually don't have anything in either. There are either three or four USB slots on the back, all of which work just fine. One of them has a mouse plugged into it, the others are usually free. I've tried each USB slot and none works better than any other (except that the dead one does not work at all).
Now the actual problem. The computer cannot hold a connection to the network. Most of the time when I boot up the computer finds several networks and connects to mine. The network is unsecured, I don't know if that matters. The neighbors have secured networks that I cannot get onto. Sometimes when I boot it, it doesn't get that far and it goes right into the problem mode. But anyway, if I boot it and it does connect, it usually will not disconnect if I don't use the network. Sometimes it does, but usually if I boot up and start doing something that doesn't require the network (playing a game, running Word or PSP or Winamp or something), it doesn't lose the network.
If it does connect to the network when I boot, I can usually use mIRC without a problem. Usually. AIM usually works for a minute or two, then causes the failure. If I try to use Internet Explorer or Firefox at all, the connection will fail. Sometimes it fails for no apparent reason. Sometimes it lets me get a page or two loaded through IE or Firefox, but it will always fail within a few pages.
When it fails, it disconnects from my wireless network and cannot see any networks at all. When I try to search for a network, it cannot find any in range, even though there are at least four (secured) other ones. Very rarely it will eventually find the networks again, but usually the failure is complete until I reboot. Sometimes rebooting doesn't even help, and when I boot it back up it still can't find any networks. I can shut down and leave it off for a few minutes and boot back up and that doesn't seem to convince it.
The only patterns I can discern are that web browsers guarantee a failure, and that once it's failed, it's usually failed until I reboot.
This is all very strange to me. If anyone can help at all I will be very grateful.
Thanks!
)
The USB slots are all fine for anything else.
