Question for computer whizzes

[Salty Gibbon]

I have been accessing a certain website for many years now and this week I suddenly cannot get access to it.

The website operators have assured me that the site is running perfectly and I have verified this by accessing it at my local library.

So the problem seems to be localised in my own computer set-up at home. I have no trouble whatsoever accessing any other websites. This is the only one that I have a problem with.

Any ideas ?

 

[Rognvald]

Have you been adjusting your internet protection and inadvertently blocked access to it ?

 

[Salty Gibbon]

Don't think so. I have not knowingly changed anything.

 

[Salty Gibbon]

Should I clear out all the cookie files maybe and reset ?

 

[Rognvald]

I don't think that would help especially. Are you runing a frewall that lets you block sites. If so look at what sites are blocked. Does the site rely on activex for content visibilty. Is activex enabled in your browser

 

[Trader333]

Which site is it ?


Paul

 

[Salty Gibbon]

www.towrylaw.com.hk

 

[FetteredChinos]

i wish people wouldnt look at porn during daylight hours..

its more a night time activity dont u think?



FC

 

[candles]

I hate computers. Your problem will fix itself in a few days. Ive had the same thing happen to me about 4 times in the past now with different sites. I didn't change a thing and suddenly i couldn't access certain sites, like you. I went to all kinds of computer help forums where even the whizz-kids couldn't find a solution and then about 3 days later it was working all by itself again...

 

[riddle]

Get PingPlotter from www.pingplotter.com
It is a freeware visual ping utility that shows the routing, packet-loss and ping times. This will show whether the problem is at the isp, enroute or at the website end. Very useful when your datafeed/brokerage link is broken.

 

[Trader333]

SG,

I was able to access it but it was slow to load and that is with a broadband connection. It may well sort itself out. I presume that you havent changed any of your internet settings recently ?



Paul

 

[Salty Gibbon]

Not knowingly

 

[bonsai]

you could just try deleting your temp files, close and reopen browser

 

[Salty Gibbon]

Is that what is known as clearing the cache ?

Done that b4 but can't remember why ? Whatever it was for it did solve the problem.

 

[frugi]

Could be that some of DNS servers between your ISP and the website you are looking for aren't working. These translate a website name into the actual IP address e.g. 80.1.2.3 and I believe different providers use different DNSs and/or different sites are "found" via different DNSs which might explain the selective admission. I use NTL and very often can't reach one or two sites but if I type in the numberic address they work fine. Could just be a case of waiting for the ISP to sort it out I'm afraid.

 

[oatman]

http://www.xs4all.nl/~mp2004/

To flush the DNS cache, run this:ipconfig /flushdns

 

[Bluewave]

I understood this problem to be the fault of your ISP. It's something to do with them not keeping certain network links up-to-date, and so when a site changes content, or the internet route to their site changes slightly, your ISP doesn't know where to look for it.

This is copied from the Help file of Tweakmaster software which I use to improve my connection:

DNS Accelerator

Normally, when your computer needs to resolve an Internet host name into its numerical address, it contacts your ISP's DNS server. That DNS server sends a query to another DNS server which is responsible for the domain where the host in question belongs. After the reply for that query is received, it is passed back to your PC. Clearly, this procedure takes some time, and in extreme cases can take many seconds.

DNS Accelerator records "host name to IP address" mapping locally on your computer, stored in the Windows Hosts file, and the next time host resolution is required, the answer is available instantly!

Why are periodic updates essential?

Due to the dynamic nature of the Internet, "host name to IP address mappings" change from time to time. If the DNS Accelerator list is not updated regularly, it will become stale and will contain incorrect data which can easily cause you to completely lose connectivity to certain websites. This is in fact a common problem with many other so-called "DNS caching" utilities. The risks can often be greater than the rewards.

So there you go...you had a case of a dodgy DNS! If you continually find access to some sites stopped, contact your ISP and ask them to update their DNS to those sites.

I would suggest clearing your Hosts file also. Do a local machine search for "HOSTS" (without speech marks!), delete the file and when you start surfing again your web browser will create a new file with the most recent addresses.

Incidentally, the HOSTS file can be used to block spyware and other annoying adware. Have a read of this: http://www.mvps.org/winhelp2002/hosts.htm

 

[oatman]

Flush out your prefetch once a month.

 

[Salty Gibbon]

Prefetch ?

 

[oatman]

files :cheesy: