Q:
Whenever I try to open a new link from my e-mail or wherever, nothing happens. When I click on the link, my browser will not come up and a new window is not displayed. Just simply, nothing happens. What’s going on?
A:
I’ve gotten several e-mails recently about this very problem, so I’m glad you asked. This seems to be a somewhat common problem, so I did a little research on it in hopes of finding a quick fix for you all! Fortunately, I found a few things that could be causing this to happen.
To refresh, basically the problem is that whenever you’re using your e-mail program or an instant messenger type program (or any other application) and a link is included, you click on it, but nothing happens. Your computer may freeze up for just a second, but when it’s done, you’re left right where you started from. Your browser will not open, you cannot for the life of you get a new window to come up from the link. How annoying is that?!
Like I said before, there are a few things you can try to resolve this problem. Before we go any deeper, the first thing to check is your popup blocker. If you have a popup stopper installed on your computer, it could be interfering with the links you are trying to open. If this happens to be the case, you can always hit the Ctrl button and click on the link again. Ctrl + a click allows the link to open. If that was your problem, you are very lucky.
Another simple cause could be that you don’t have the correct browser set as the default for your computer. If you use Internet Explorer, you have to make sure it is set as your default browser. To check this, open IE and go to Tools, Internet Options. Click on the Programs tab and make sure the box clear down at the bottom that says “Internet Explorer should check to see whether it is the default browser” is checked. This will allow IE to open any links you click on. If you use Firefox, go to Tools, Options and choose the General tab. Make sure the box that says “Firefox should check to see if it is the default browser when starting” is checked.
If those two things still don’t fix the link problem, there are a couple more options you can try. We need to check and make sure your folder options are set to your specific browser. Go to Start, Control Panel and make sure it is in the classic view. Once there, click on the Folder Options icon and choose the File Types tab. Now, you’re going to look for the item “(NONE) URL: HyperText Transfer Protocol.” Highlight that and click on the Advanced button, then the Edit button. This will bring up some information on your browser. You’re mainly going to be looking at the Application line. If you use Internet Explorer, make sure it says IExplore and so on (for whichever browser you use). If you’ve recently switched browsers, you may still have your old settings in there and that could be causing the problem with the links. You just have to make sure you have the right browser selected so the links will open in the correct way.
Okay, there’s one more tip for you in case nothing has worked thus far. Go to Start, Run and type in “regsvr32 urlmon.dll” (without the quotes). Click OK when done and if a message pops up that says “DllRegisterServer in urlmom.dll succeeded,” the problem should be fixed. If that still doesn’t work, try typing in the following commands in the Run box:
– Shdocvw.dll
– Msjava.dll
– Actxprxy.dll
– Oleaut32.dll
– Mshtml.dll
– Browseui.dll
– Shell32.dll
One of these options should solve the link problem you are experiencing and you can enjoy link freedom once again!
~ Erin