I'm Off the Net!!!
by Gary Woods

One of the saddest calls I get is when someone has lost contact with the Internet. All of a sudden they feel cut off from the world. The next time this happens to you and you're unable to get your Internet Service Provider on the phone right away there are some things you can try.

A lot of you probably have routers. This device connects to the modem provided by the cable or phone company and then distributes the signal to all the computers in your home. First unplug the cable that runs from your computer to the router and plug it directly into the modem so your computer and modem are connected directly. Next unplug the modem and count to ten the plug it back in. Generally this will clear up the problem.

If that reset doesn't clear things up go down to the Start menu and click on Run. Type cmd and hit Enter on your keyboard. From there type ipconfig and hit Enter. If you've looking at a bunch of 0's your ISP is down for the count. Shut everything down and wait for about an hour then try it again.

If you see some numbers try typing ping google.com and press Enter. What should happen is you'll get the response "Reply from 209.85.171.99" 3 times. If you get a bunch of time out errors of get nothing back it would be time to call your provider and tell them what's going on. Generally the problem is the provider and your service will come back in a reasonably short time.

If you have any suggestions or questions for me please drop me a note at gandlwoods@earthlink.net or see my column on the Internet at http://www.santabarbaraproperties.com or call me at (805) 729-0910