maybe I just don't know how the internet works but i aways though that if a connection goes down packets are suppose to be rerouted. yet for some reason i'll loose access to my server but others don't.

I just don't understand becuase others can connect just fine using alternate routes and I can still surf around so why doesen't the packets just bounce around and find some other stinking connection in?

a normal trace
1 4 ms 1 ms <1 ms vrrp-087-a03-resnet2.gate.kent.edu [131.123.87.254]
2 1 ms 2 ms 3 ms lib4-252-e40-legacy.gate.kent.edu [131.123.252.252]
3 4 ms 15 ms 17 ms lib2-255x248-fe40-lib4.gate.kent.edu [131.123.255.193]
4 15 ms 14 ms 15 ms reserved.neo.rr.com [204.210.218.129]
5 16 ms 13 ms 15 ms atm5-0.100.ncntoh1-rtr1.neo.rr.com [24.164.96.249]
6 22 ms 22 ms 23 ms pop1-col-P3-1.atdn.net [198.81.2.117]
7 20 ms 17 ms 18 ms bb2-col-P4-0.atdn.net [204.148.102.241]
8 33 ms 33 ms 35 ms bb2-ash-P15-3.atdn.net [64.236.7.133]
9 32 ms 34 ms 33 ms pop1-ash-P1-0.atdn.net [66.185.139.198]
10 30 ms 34 ms 34 ms sl-st21-ash-13-0.sprintlink.net [144.223.246.129]
11 30 ms 32 ms 30 ms sl-bb26-rly-15-2.sprintlink.net [144.232.20.2]
12 * 41 ms 32 ms sl-bb22-rly-9-0.sprintlink.net [144.232.14.173]
13 50 ms 43 ms 44 ms sl-bb21-atl-10-0.sprintlink.net [144.232.8.126]
14 64 ms 66 ms 61 ms sl-bb20-fw-10-1.sprintlink.net [144.232.18.214]
15 76 ms 86 ms 81 ms sl-gw35-fw-9-0.sprintlink.net [144.232.11.234]
16 69 ms 67 ms 81 ms sl-ethoscomm-3-0.sprintlink.net [144.232.236.34]
17 86 ms 85 ms 85 ms cox-okcquail-48-26.ethos.net [209.217.48.26]
18 92 ms 87 ms 81 ms aux-209-217-52-177.mycatalog.com [209.217.52.177]

a trace when I can't connect
1 1 ms <1 ms <1 ms vrrp-087-a03-resnet2.gate.kent.edu [131.123.87.254]
2 3 ms 2 ms 2 ms lib4-252-e40-legacy.gate.kent.edu [131.123.252.252]
3 4 ms 16 ms 16 ms lib2-255x248-fe40-lib4.gate.kent.edu [131.123.255.193]
4 13 ms 13 ms 14 ms reserved.neo.rr.com [204.210.218.129]
5 14 ms 17 ms 15 ms atm5-0.100.ncntoh1-rtr1.neo.rr.com [24.164.96.249]
6 * * * Request timed out.
.
.
.
22 * * srp1-0.polkoh1-rtr1.neo.rr.com [24.164.96.101] reports: Destination host unreachable.

5 14 ms 17 ms 15 ms atm5-0.100.ncntoh1-rtr1.neo.rr.com [24.164.96.249] It looks like the last hop is your provider's (maybe provider's provider's) ATM link to the 'Net. If that's down, there is not routing around it as that is probably thier only link.

well you'd think that but the thing is i can still access rest of the net.

it's been going in and out all day yet i've been able to surf and download from rest of the world just fine. seems like for some reason it just doesn't route to catalog.com... :confused:

oh well i give up trying to understand this stuff it give me a headache

Yep, you may still be able to see the rest of the 'Net. I could be bad BGP, bad ACLs, etc. Can you talk with someone in IT, you would be surprised what you can find out about what is going on. ;)