12029 Error for FTP Kicking my Arse. HELP!!

[AnitaDiskount]

the day before X-mas Eve i realized i could not log into my favorite website. The errror message from the IE8 browser i was using gave Diagnostic feedback that my FTPS was not working (error 12029) and that i needed to check with my network administrator to fix it..uh i don't really have one of those. Th eproblem has now spread to my Mozilla firfox browser, I have one PC connected to Verizon Highspeed. I am running 32-bit XP Professional 2002 with service pack 3. I have never had this problem in the two years i have owned this computer and the fifteen yeasr i've been surfing the net.

After researching what FTP's function is I definately worried about not being able to connect to FTP sites. I looked up how to open my ports and did so with ports 20 and 21. I also added their activity as exceptions through my firewall. That didn't work. Then I turned off my  firewall altogether but that didn't seem to be the culprit as the problem persisted after. and is still kicking my arse now

after a million minutes on the phone with a verizon rep (most likely a subcontracted worker in istanbul) who shared my screen and went through some basic troubleshooting out of some god forsaken  text book , i was told the problem must be with my computer hardware itself. and that i have to contact my computer's manufacturer. i laughed .  when i asked if they could see on thier end what is blocking my ports i was told no. that it was not possable. However, the rep said  verizon  can fix the problem. An advanced team of  technicians (ooh la-la) can reconfigure my FTP settings. Now this is where it gets interesting. In order to do that i would have to sign up for a monthly fee of 39.99. no one time service options .

O.o

 I am asking someone to either co-sign on this problem here in forum or propose a solution to the problem. I removed IE8 as i have read online it causes FTP issues , and i removed all updates to windows within the time frame of the 12029 FTP error. Nothing has changed the fact i cannot connect to any site that needs to use FTP.

I am not tech savvy. I am computer literate though and can pull off any walkthrough no problem. so please post recommendations..and if you happen to work for verizon i am asking you not to mislead or redirect me. I don't care whose fault it is (eyes modem provided by verizon suspiciousely ) I just want the problem fixed pronto.

Help. Thankyou.

[dslr595148]

Another user had this problem and quickly fixed it by going into internet explorer(it doesnt matter if you dont use internet explorer)>tools>internet options>connections tab>lan settings> untick the "use a proxy server for your lan...etc"

That should work.

If not..

What firewall do you have?

What version of ie do you have?

What anti-virus program do you have?