Windows – Firefox and internet explorer not reponding, but chrome works fine

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I have been using multiple browsers successfully for years, but now I seem to have run in to a problem. When I run firefox or IE, they appear to start up, but the mouse pointer just permanently turns into an eggtimer, and I can do nothing else with them. Task manager shows them as "not responding". I then have to use task manager to "end task". I tried re-installing firefox, but that made no difference. Google chrome works fine. Any ideas what could be happening?

EDIT: Firefox has just spontaneously started working… I have no idea why.

EDIT: Firefox has just spontaneously started failing again… I have no idea why.

EDIT: Firefox has just spontaneously started working… I have no idea why.

EDIT: After a couple of reboots and all three browsers are now working.

Best Answer

Try running IE or Firefox with no Add-Ons.
For IE, there should be an option for this under Start > Programs > Accessories > System Tools > Internet Explorer (no-Addons)
For Firefox, try Start > All Programs > Mozilla Firefox > Mozilla Firefox (Safe Mode) and then tick the Disable all Add-ons option.

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