I would suggest you look at the other programs on your computer. I found that for a while my antivirus (AVG) wasn't playing nicely with IE in particular. I use Firefox for most things, but to log on at work in secure email and such, I must use IE to get the full functionality.

I switched antivirus programs (I read the reviews and use Avast free right now) and while there is a little lag time as the links are check, it isn't nearly like it was before, and it isn't slow enough to make me look for a new program.

I have Opera, but haven't loaded it on the computer again since the latest OS work (installed Win 7 Ultimate).

SRS