It sounds like you may have some type of "Accelerator" on your computer. These programs supposedly make your Internet go faster while sacrificing your Image quality for speed. I recommend removing any of these programs.
Locate and remove these programs by going to:
Start>> Control Panel>> Add/Remove Programs.
Also, your Internet Service Provider may also offer an Accelerator. If you are on AOL, turn off AOL's top speed technology. If you use BellSouth, you would turn of the BellSouth accelerator.