Computer Question: I can connect to my router, it says I have local and internet access, but I can't pull up any web pages.

I can connect to the wireless internet at the school, and it shows a local and internet connection, but I can’t pull up any sites. Using the command prompt, we pinged yahoo by both www.yahoo.com and it’s number (looked like an IP address), and failed. Then we pinged the router, and that’s totally fine.

(By ‘can’t pull up any sites’ I mean I type it in the address bar and go, but end up with the same message I’d get if I were offline (something like ‘this web site is unavailable or you screwed up typing it in’).)

Took the laptop home, same problem with my own internet, regardless if I connect wirelessly or with a wire. Everyone else can connect to both my home and the school’s internet fine.

I downloaded new virus protection while at school, disconnected, uninstalled my old (PC Tools that always came up with error at startup), installed the new (Avast! Free), and couldn’t access any websites. The software found a few things, but didn’t do anything with them as far as I know. I don’t remember what the files were.

I also downloaded a free white noise MP3 from www.whitenoisem3s.com. I added it to my MP3 player playlist and synced the player, and the player screwed up. I can only get one song on there now, and when it plays it is screwed up. Whn I tried to format it, it couldn’t delete everything (did erase the white noise file though). So my MP3 player is shot too. It did error on some of the files prior to my computer even visiting www.whitenoisemp3s.com, though.

Any thoughts? I uninstalled the virus software, and I’m thinking about uninstalling my browser and reinstalling it, but I don’t think that will work if I can’t get anything through the command prompt. By the way, I have this problem with both IE and Chrome.

I don’t think it’s a virus, since I haven’t gone to any sites that I don’t already go to. I’m thinking the virus software may have moved those files, and that might be the problem. Everything else on the computer works fine. I would have tried formatting the darn thing and starting fresh, but I lost my copy of Office 2007 that I have installed on it, so I’d be without that.

When I started the new virus software (Avast!), it gave me an error about not being able to get the web filter thingy going. Prior to PC Tools, I had NOD 32.

Secondary question: Which virus software do you think is best? A “I have this and I’m fine” answer won’t help me, I’m looking for a reason its better. I’ve browsed the www.lifehacker.com posts regarding this, and come up with several different answers. I’m thinking about just going back to NOD32, even though I have to pay for it. Seems like I’d have a customer service number to call if I paid for the software.

Thank you for reading all this. Ask me anything, I feel so lost without the internet on my computer. I may not be able to check this for a couple days due to my obvious lack of internet, so please take your time with a response.