I have a laptop and PC; they are both wireless. I have access to Internet Explorer from the laptop but I do not have access to Internet Explorer from the PC! I have checked with Virgin Media and they have confirmed that there is not any problem with their connection and the problem is from PC. Is there someone there to help me to sort out my problem? Thanks!
Troubleshooting Internet: Setting up Home Wireless Network
In order for both the PC and the laptop to be able to access the Internet, you need to have a home network set up. This consists of a broadband Internet connection, a wireless router, wireless network cards or network adapters for both the laptop and the PC. That’s the easy part. Next, you need to configure everything so that you can access the Internet. Have you checked to make sure that you set up the configuration of the router properly? Since you are getting Internet to the laptop, I am going to assume that it is set up correctly.
Troubleshooting Internet: Wireless Network Adapter
Since all computers do not include wireless network adapters, is the network adapter for the PC compatible with its operating system? Without a compatible network adapter, you aren’t going to gain access to the Internet. The best type for a PC is the USB wireless network adapter. It just slips right into an available USB port. If that is what you are using, then check it to see if it is plugged in securely. Even if it is just slightly askew, it can prevent you from connecting to the Internet.
Troubleshooting Internet Access: Connect the Computer
Are you receiving any type of message at all on the PC such as “Wireless Network Connection is available” or something similar? Typically, you will see some message to indicate that your computer has access or can gain access to the Internet. Do you see the small icon in the system tray in the lower right-hand corner of the screen? If you hover over it with the mouse, does it tell you what your signal strength is? If you right-click on the icon, it will generate an option to “View Available Wireless Networks.” If the icon isn’t there, then perhaps the computer hasn’t been configured properly to connect. If this is the case, make sure that you have installed the wireless network adapter card and connected the computer properly. The adapter should have come with instructions that prompted you once you inserted the card the first time. If this did not happen, you can try two things. First, select the option to “Refresh Network List.” Second, take the card out and try the process again.
Additional Tips for Wi-Fi Troubleshooting
Strategy 1: In some cases, having your Internet Explorer home page set to blank creates a problem connecting to wireless Internet. If you can, use an Ethernet cable to connect your PC to the router, open your IE browser, and set the home page to one of the websites that you frequent.
Strategy 2: Change your location. All too often, a wireless connection won’t work properly due to the distance between the router and the computer. Plus, the greater number of obstacles you have in the way such as walls, floors, large furniture, the more likely it is for you to have trouble accessing the Internet.
Strategy 3: Restart the service with these instructions:
- Click on Start.
- Open the Control Panel.
- Select Performance and Maintenance.
- Select Administrative Tools.
- Select Services.
- Select the option “Wireless Zero Configuration” on the right-hand side.
- Select Stop the Service.
- Select Start the Service.
Susan Keenan | June 23rd, 2009
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