I use firefox and chat works fine. not tried it with ie I got irritated with that program a while back and quit usin it..
Yes quiltin the fact that you have dialup is indeed a major reason you have problems with chat.
Since dialup isn't a "dedicated" internet connection (your phone and your neighbors all use same line)
it is really slow and has alot of problems keeping the connection to web sites/games/chats etc. because of all the traffic on the line.
You don't "Have" to have dsl or highspeed to use chat but they do make staying in chat a whole lot easier.