Microsoft websites are not loading

I have XP SP2 running on my system .For the past 2 weeks i cant able to log on to microsoft websites including update, hotmail,MSN,etc. I tried blocking firewall and all the antivirus programs but of no use .Can any one give a solution for this.
When i try to connect microsoft website i get the following error message
IE
Internet Explorer cannot display the webpage

Most likely causes:
You are not connected to the Internet.
The website is encountering problems.
There might be a typing error in the address.

What you can try:
Check your Internet connection. Try visiting another website to make sure you are connected.

 Retype the address.  

 Go back to the previous page. 

Firefox

The connection was reset
The connection to the server was reset while the page was loading.

*   The site could be temporarily unavailable or too busy. Try again in a few
      moments.

*   If you are unable to load any pages, check your computer's network
      connection.

*   If your computer or network is protected by a firewall or proxy, make sure
      that Firefox is permitted to access the Web.

(:m*) Removed unnecessary spaces

Greetings!

You’re not using a IP-filter like PeerGuardian?
Anyways, go to \WINDOWS\system32\drivers\etc and open the file hosts with notepad.
Check if there’s any entries like “127.0.0.1 microsoft.com”. If you find anything, delete it.

It’s also possible that you’re infected with malware. So do a scan with Trend Micro HouseCall in Safe mode with Networking (press F8, F12 or something during boot to get the boot options).
Else, the proiblem might be due to your MTU-settings. Are you using a router?

Cheers,
Ragwing