Using OpenDNS to Get Around Dead Sites

There seems to have been something wrong with AT&T’s pipes to the Internet today. A number of websites seemed to be down and wouldn’t load for a variety of people. Through all of the discussion I heard many suggestions to use OpenDNS to get around these challenges.

"DNS" stands for domain name services or system. The service that’s provided is the translation of all of those domain names people register to the IP (Internet Protocol) addresses of the computers/servers that are hosting the files that make-up that website.

The challenge is that many hosting providers use their own DNS translators and if something goes wrong with their own service, anyone accessing the Internet through their pipes isn’t going to get directed to the right website and the site will appear dead.

OpenDNS works on its own your Internet browser or router gets the translation service directly from them. Both avoiding the bottleneck at your own ISP and going to an independent 3rd party insures that you’re not broke-down on the side of the road on the Information Superhighway.