How to Fix Web Pages That Don't Load Properly

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It may be nearly impossible to work online when Web pages do not load properly. Websites with blurry text and distorted or missing images indicate a problem within the browser itself. To fix these problems, you may need to adjust your browser settings or delete corrupted data stored by cookies or plugins.

Check Other Browsers

Open the site or sites you are having trouble with using a different browser. If the Web page loads normally, you most likely have a problem with your current browser. If the second browser cannot load the problematic site, check your antivirus or firewall settings. Some security software allows you to block certain types of content, like images. If this is the case, it may prevent all browsers from accessing content, causing Web pages to load incorrectly. Determining whether Web pages load incorrectly in one browser or all browsers will help you narrow your troubleshooting options.

Deleting Data

Websites regularly store cookies and other browsing information on your computer to help load content faster and provide a more customized browsing experience. These are essentially small text documents that communicate with websites at certain intervals. These pieces of software, when corrupted, can conflict with normal browser functions and cause pages to crash or display incorrectly. Mozilla Firefox Support also states that when out of date, cookies and caches may load old website code with newer code, causing the page to display incorrectly. Try deleting all cookies and other browsing data and revisiting the problematic Web page.

Enable JavaScript

JavaScript is a popular computer programming language for displaying interactive content like online quizzes, for example. Many sites require JavaScript to display correctly, and you may experience problems if JavaScript is disabled. Check your browser to ensure JavaScript is enabled. If it is, check your security program's settings and make sure they are not blocking online JavaScript.

Add-ons and Hardware Acceleration

If you notice only certain kinds of content display incorrectly, try troubleshooting add-ons and hardware acceleration. Add-ons like plugins or extensions are software that run independently of your Web browser, and may conflict with normal browsing. Hardware acceleration, a process that uses your graphics card to load websites faster, may also distort Web pages. Try disabling hardware acceleration in your browser and revisiting the site. Disable all third-party plugins, restart your browser and visit the problematic Web page. If the site looks fine, enable one plugin at a time, and retest the site after enabling each plugin.

Compatibility View in Internet Explorer

Microsoft Support writes that when visiting a website that displays incorrectly, the site may be incompatible with Internet Explorer itself, or with the version you are currently running. Microsoft recommends turning on Compatibility View in Internet Explorer for the desktop, as Compatibility View helps make Internet Explorer compatible with sites that were designed for older Web browsers.