- Can the PC ping the WMP54G router?
- The WAG54G should also have an IP address assigned to it by DHCP from the router. Can you ping it? The address has nothing to do with connectivity and is used only to configure the WAG54G.
- Check the default route on the PC and make sure it points to the IP address of the WMP54G router. Run: start -> run -> ipconfig
- Check your c:\windoze\hosts file and make sure that it's not populated with a bunch of junk like: formatting link127.0.0.1formatting link127.0.0.1formatting link127.0.0.1 (etc) Some viruses add this to the hosts file to prevent you from accessing anti-virus web sites and downloading fixes.
- Check if your DNS servers are correct and working. If you manually setup the IP addresses in the router, double check that these are valid DNS servers. Also run: ipconfig /all | find /I "dns" to see if what the Win98 box thinks is the DNS server. It should point to the WMP54G router.
- Try disabling the wireless and plugging the Windoze box directly into the router using a CAT5 ethernet cable. If the symptoms persist, then there's something wrong with the Win98 PC. I suggest borrowing a known working machine, verifying that the router and ISP connection is functional, and then concentrating the troubleshooting the part of the puzzle that's broken.
- Disable any software firewalls on the Win98 PC while testing.