So, on my laptop I randomly run into this problem where I suddenly can't connect to just about any website, or to IRC, or anything, however the few things that are already connected remain fine, and some websites continue to display as well.

For example, right now I am somehow able to access GamingW, and MSN is still connected, but nothing else is working, in fact oftentimes I can't even access localhost/ in a web browser when it hpapens. Any idea what retarded thing is at work here...?

Also it should be noted that restarting the computer always solves the problem, but obviously that is not a very useful solution

Also, I have Windows Vista (home premium I think)

Tell us about your network setup. Do you have software firewalls like windows or norton internet security? What kind of internet connection do you have? What else is connected to it besides your system? Do you have any special features enabled on those devices like firewall or qos? Does directly connecting to your modem solve the problem (if applicable)?