Had the same problem. Go to your "control panel" page. Click on add/remove programs. When the list comes up, scroll down and find IE8 and hit the delete box. Your computer will then default back to IE7. Let me know if you have any problems.
Firefox has gotten worse though. I have Firefox 3, and it keeps occasionally crashing. Never used to do that but, it started doing it a little bit on I think 2.5, now it's doing it even more on 3.0. Oh well, it's still free at least.
When you went to your control panel and clicked on add/remove programs, when the list came up, was Windows Internet Explorer 7 listed as a separate program? If not, go to the MSN website and download IE7. Then you can delete IE 8.
Try opening IE7 from your Program List rather than the Icon and see if that works. When you deleted IE8, it should have defaulted to 7 unless you have an Icon that still thinks 8 is there.
Just uninstall IE8. It will ask you if you want to revert to a previous installation. Answer yes. If you've past that point... go to oldversion.com and download a previous version.
IE8 is pathetic. All of the MS nannies make it slower than Christmas on my PC. I use Firefox for most everything... It's better but far from perfect.
I use FireFox, but I have Chrome and IE7 on my computer as a means of testing stuff on the forum. The interface on Chrome is unique, so it's taking some time to figure out.
Nothing wrong with IE8. I have installed it and working FINE on hundreds of computers. If you want to argue that it is bloated somewhat like lots of MS and other products ~ I would agree. The bloat is an evolution of trying to be all things to all people and keep everyone happy. It is also part of the evolution of better faster hardware, and Internet usage also requiring more bandwidth. IE as any browser is only as good as the web site being viewed is written. Some browsers may work better in those circumstances. As in many things sometimes we take 2 steps forward and 1 step back but we are still moving ahead. Most people remember the the step back wards and forget the steps forward. Do you remember what is was like technologically in the 90's vs today > we have come a long way and will go a long way further.
To the OP simply uninstall and go back to IE7 or try some other browsers that work in your low bandwidth situation.