we need more info, do you get the net from cable, or dsl, you say cable connects ok is that the light on the cable modem or what?
have you verified that you are getting an ip address if you are on cable or dsl?

Thank you very much for your help. We are running 4 'puters on a network on dsl. The dsl connection is ok--I tested it on this machine & the router l.e.d. is lit. The grandaughter's computer, running windows 98, is the one not connecting to the internet--A screen message says, "trying to retrieve yahoo buttons". Since she uses it for school work, I am on the immediate verge of buying her a new computer with XP. Do you have any suggestions as to where an internal fault could be, such as a poor connection in the female socket or a card? Again, I highly appreciate your assistance.

I would go to settings/control panel/addremove programs and remove that toolbar from yahoo, sometime toolbars like that can cause problems with your browser, I'd also download and run Adaware or Spybot to rid it of any spyware that could cause problems as well.