What does this alert mean, please?

[carol sheridan]

I am completely computer illiterate - wrong age and sex! Suse Linux was installed in my old computer when my last hard drive packed up. It has worked well for two years but now I am getting an alert box on every site, saying URL not valid, cannot load. If I turn off my computer and/or my Livebox and turn them back on it works for a short time, but then the box comes back. I have been given some advice on another non-specialist forum, but I don't understand the jargon my advisors use!
Can anyone explain in layman's terms what I must do to get rid of this alert.

[hazel]

Cheer up! There's no such thing as "wrong sex" or "wrong age" when it comes to Linux.

Here's a piece of advice that I found on the net - I'll try to describe it in simply language:

1. Type "about:config" (without the quotes) into the address bar of your browser. You will get a long text listing with all the configuration variables that have been set.

2. Type the word "keywords" into the text box near the top (labeled "filter"). The list will shrink to one or two entries.

3. The entry "keyword.enabled" should be set to true. If it is not, double-click on it to change it. Then close the window.

Good luck!

[carol sheridan]

Thank you, Hazel. I typed 'keywords' into the bar marked 'filter' but all I got was a blank page headed 'Preferences'. I really don't know what 'enabled' means.

[hazel]

Oops! Sorry, that should have been "keyword" in the singular.

You'll see a line starting with "keyword.enabled" and, in the column labelled value you should see the word "true". This means that keywords are "enabled" i.e. you can put an incomplete address into the address bar of your browser and it will automatically complete it, treating what you have entered as a keyword or search term. If keyword.enabled is set to "false" then anything you type into the address bar will be treated as a full address and rejected if it is not found.

Some people find that they still get the same error message even if keyword.enabled is set to true, but it's still worth trying as this is apparently a common cause of the problem.

[carol sheridan]

Thanks again, Hazel, it worked this time and it does say 'true'. It has been much better today, but still the box appears from time to time. I have noticed that it does complete addresses whilst I am still typing them, so I don't think that has been the source of the problem.

[gogalthorp]

If the DSL server you are using is overloaded or down you might get an error box. THe DSL server is the computer that converts the URL address to the numeric network address. that is need to connect to the site you want. Think of it as an automated phone book. If too many people are looking up address at the same time you will get a timeout or incorrect address error. This is under control of you ISP and other then complain there is little you can do.

[carol sheridan]

Thank you - I will try logging on very early in the morning (I always wake at 5 a.m.) MY ISP is Orange France, which is where I live. I don't think I will bother complaining to them - their help line is notoriously unhelpful!