Unable to connect to a different forum

This condition started about a week ago and I have bumfoolzed (their word) the support staff for that other forum and myself. Several days ago I deleted all cookies, history, cache, off line files, etc. I do this regularly to cut down on possible adware, spyware, etc. in addition to having Norton and the satellite software (WildBlue.net) blocking bad stuff. A couple of days later this occurred:
1. I attempt to log on to the forum (I had been doing it with no problems since the erasure.
2. I get logged on, get the acknowledgement, and am presented with the topics page similar to this forum. On that page I am acknowledged as being logged on with the date and time of the last logon and with my user name, eg., mdietz39l for this forum.
3. I click on a topic to view the messages which have come in on that topic and get the the listing of the messages.
4. I click on a message and am immediately listed as a guest. I am directed to login in order to respond to the message(s). I can view the messages but cannot post a reply.
5. If when I am on the topics page I click on their equivalent of User CP or Members List or any of the other menu options I get an error page saying that function is not available to a guest and would I please log in or register.

It looks as if the handshaking between my computer and the server when I am logging in works fine. I am assuming my ip address or some kind of identification is then held at the server. When I try to do an "action" type of request, such as responding to a message, a different ip address or identification is sent to the forum which does not recognize this address or id and so places me in a guest mode.

I have tried everything I know of. Deleting cookies, history, off line files, internet cache, URL Drop list, fix registry problems, etc., etc. I am using a program called WinNet Cleaner. I have reset all options in IE6, internet, security, etc., to default conditions. I have lowered my security levels to all LOW. I have turned off firewalls, turned off all security, etc., etc. I have run a full system scan for viruses and malware with nothing found.

I have tried to connect to the forum on my laptop and the wife's desktop. Same results. I have XP Pro, she has XP Family, the laptop has Vista. The only common aspect of the whole system is we use a Linksys router and of course the Wild Blue satellite modem.

It appears that something in the software or hardware associated with the router or modem is not transmitting the same data after the logon procedure has completed. I am an active user of several other forums and have had no trouble with any of them.

The support staff at the forum have deleted my old account and I have re-registered with the same results. I then re-registered under a different name, password, and e-maill address with the same results. I have been a member of that forum for about 10 years and so am not a newbie.

Any suggestions would be deeply appreciated.

Thank you
Mike

 

sounds like a pain in the butt. couple of things. have you reset your modem and router? if not try that. have you tried from a different location? library or other wireless network?

 

Thank you for the reply. I have reset the modem and router, no luck. I live 60 miles out in the country but will be trying to connect to the forum from in town later this week.

My sons who are geeks are also completely baffled by this. Their opinion is it is at the server and I tend to agree with them. The only thing I can come up with at this point is my initial signon data is saved in an encrypted mode but the second request is not and so the server cannot associate the two and therefore sets me to guest. Now I have to find if there is a setting to not encrypt the data sent to the forum server in the router. One son said it might be a firewall in the router.

Very perplexing.

Thanks again.
Mike

 

IE6 might be the issue as the browser is out of date. try to either update your browser or download a different one ie:firefox

 

Thank all of you for all the time and attention you spent on this problem. It has been solved. I bypassed the router, connecting the computer directly to the satellite modem and the problem disappeared which proved the problem was with the router. I went to the D-Link web page and discovered there is a hardware reset button on the device. I had never known this. I pushed the button for ten seconds and waited 30 seconds for the device to reset. I then accessed the forum with no problem. So the hardware reset is not the same as turning the device off and on.

Anyway the problem is solved. As to why and how the blip in the router ten days ago would affect the one forum is still a mystery. But now I have an answer if it occurs again.

Again thank you.
Mike

 

routers are finiky things sometimes. glad to hear you got fixed