Internet Explorer 6 won't respond to external links

Using Windows 98, Internet Explorer 6 will happily take me to a typed URL. While visiting that site I can click on all internal hyperlinks and be take to those sections. If I click on a link that is to take me to an external website, address bar goes blank and curser has it’s holding egg timer.
If I click on the Stop key at the top, the website address I should be going to appears in the address bar and then requires me to click on Go to open it.!! Any ideas? Thanks, everyone.