To be straight forward, I got a lot of viruses on my laptop, but eventually got rid of them all. Even after they were gone, though, my internet wouldn't work--through any programs trying to open it or just trying to run the program myself. I uninstalled it and reinstalled Internet explorer 8, but I think I need a new IP address. How do I solve this problem? Is it even possible? Thanks so much for your help!!

Right click on your wireless connection icon in your system tray and click on repair.That has worked for me on a number of occasions.