Re: Interesting Weirdness with WinXP and Mozilla.org

Flatfoot wrote:
> I just bought a new Sony Vaio computer with WinXP Media Center Edition
> and SP2.
> 
> I used Internet Explorer to run Windows update for the latest security
> fixes, which is the only thing I ever normally use IE for, and then I
> tried to use the pre installed Netscape browser to download Mozilla.  
> 
> The Netscape browser could not access the internet, even though my
> firewall explicitly allows it, and even when I turned the firewall off
> completely.
> 
> So I went back to IE and pointed it at Mozilla.org.  The page barely
> loaded.  It took a few minutes (I have broadband).  Then the link to
> download Mozilla didn't work at all, nor did any other links on the
> page.
> 
> I tried reloading the page.  Didn't work.  I tried other web pages
> such as google, yahhoo, etc.  Everything worked fine, but still not
> Mozilla.org.
> 
> Wondering if the Mozilla web page was having problems I turned to my
> other computer, and it was able to load the pages and download
> Mozilla, no problem.  But the new computer still couldn't do it.
> Hmmm.
> 
> I finally used the old computer to burn a copy of the Mozilla
> installation file to a disc, and used that to install it on the new
> computer.  It worked perfectly.  Once it was installed IE suddenly
> worked again on the Mozilla site.  Very strange.  Knowing M$ history,
> I wouldn't be surprised if they are setting things up to discourage
> people from switching browsers.
> 

Nope.  Some windows sockets were probably damaged due to unclean 
software uninstall.  I love conspiracy theory just like any other but 
this might not be the case.