I've been trying to connect my WinXP Pro SP2 laptop to one of the free wireless public hotspots offered by the Chicago Public Library but cannot get to the point where I can surf on the Internet. I get connected with a strong signal and excellent to very good link quality but all my pings (except to localhost) are unsuccessful. The library's system is completely open and does not require passwords or WEP, just an SSID (CPLWiFi). I've tried two different libraries and have been Googling for a solution all week and have tried many recommendations, but still, no success.
My Dlink 650 PCMCIA card connects and allows me to surf the Internet just fine with my brother's wireless Actiontec router (he uses WinXP Home SP2).
I updated my Dlink 650 driver software, no difference.
I disabled the WinXP firewall and completely turned off my regular firewall (freeware Agnitum Outpost) before trying to connect. I also turned off my antivirus and antispyware sentries.
I've tried turning on/off just about every network-related service, but no relevant difference in results.
I tried connecting with Wireless Zero Config service, and with the Dlink connection software (entering the SSID manually), no difference. (For some reason the Dlink connection software won't change the channel number after I set it to different values before rescanning. It always selects channel 1.)
When I "ipconfig /all" I get a valid (non 169.x.x.x) IP address, MAC address, and the DHCP and DNS servers give me expected values (however, Node Type = "unknown,' I can't get it to = 'broadcast').
I tried setting the TCP/IP DNS properties manually, but it made no difference.
Turned off autoconfiguration options and proxy settings in the Internet Options->Connections setup (as recommended by the library's wireless FAQ), no difference.
I reinstalled WinXP Pro with SP2, and used LSPfix and WinsockxpFix but still can't ping successfully although I continue to get a strong connection.
I ran antivirus and antispyware (Adaware, Spybot S&D, MS AntiSpyware) scans on my system.
I haven't a clue what to try next. Any help will be gratefully appreciated. Thanks in advance.