troubleshooting is too vague, bs says i'm not connected but i am!
 

i have no idea if i'm connected to bearshare or not, really. i'm guessing that i'm not because i can't search for anything. rather, when i click "search" the searches are "queued" and nothing ever happens.

i went to the troubleshooting area and tried the dos prompt command that it said, and dos replied with "request timed out." which apparently means i have a "general internet connectivity problem." what on earth does that mean?!! that doesn't help me at all! besides, i AM connected to the internet, my internet explorer and mozilla run just fine, i'm on an ethernet/LAN connection. can someone PLEASE help me ?
it would be much appreciated.
-very frustrated

In BearShare it is possible to enable/disable most of the Tab Screens...

You at least want to enable the Hosts Display Screen...

If after doing so you observe any 'Hosts' connections (should be 2), than you are connected.
If you see page after page of IPs scrolling upward without any connects, than you are not properly connected.

The above is no cure of any kind for problems, it's simply a basic test you can do yourself.

Also, try the Port :6346 - Test If It Is 'Blocked' link in my sig below.

Last for now... GO HERE >>>>>> http://www.bearshare.com/help/userguide.htm

BearShare has developed a really excellent help site...
It is not only of good use to BearShare users, but for all members of the Gnutella Network...

Have fun...

p.s. You did not mention whether or not you are possibly being restricted by an university administrator or perhaps security at the workplace... ???