DSL/Internet Explorer Problem

[sjm1027]

Hope you can help with my brothers problem.
He has a system running Windows 98 connected to DSL.
He has not had any email in a while. I set the outlook express outgoing and incoming to what I think needs to be set. Looks like all the setting are correct. Verizon says they can talk to the DSL modem but if I ask them for help the first thing they ask me to do after rebooting the modem and router is to bring up MS Internet Explorer.
He has been having a problem with IE and what is happening is if you invike IE it doesn't come up for over 10 to 15 minutes... Reason how I know this is I walk away and come back and I have a white screen with all of IE menues.
I then went to DOS window and tried to ping www.yahoo.com or www.google.com and get unknown host for both pings.
I then do a tracert www.yahoo.com and get unable to resolve target system name www.yahoo.com
Not sure what to try from here.
He really doesn't have the money to get a new system. He is a landscaper and this is his busy time of yera to top it all off.
I wanted to reload 98 over what is already there but think that may be a disaster... he can't afford to lose his clients names and addresses along with his books.
I was thinking of downloading a copy of a real simple browser like netscape or maybe something real simple. Do you think that may work? Verizon won't offer me any help unless I have a page come up even it in error.

Thanks
Steve

[glc]

Real simple = Mozilla Firefox.

http://www.mozilla.org/products/firefox/

Actually it sounds to me like he is clogged with viruses and spyware, it's not a Verizon issue. Reloading 98 on top of this mess will just make a bigger mess.