There are many reasons why sometimes you can’t browse the internet. One of these reasons can be that you have a so-called dirty or noisy DSL line. Another probable reason is that your ISP’s name resolver (DNS server) is so busy that it slows down to the point that it does not respond anymore.This is a very common problem experienced by PLDT DSL subscribers. Globe Broadband users also suffer from this conundrum.
The solution to this problem is to simply change your computer’s DNS server address manually. Either set it to OpenDNS address or to Google Public DNS address. Either one will work and is SO much better than PLDT’s DNS servers.But which one is better: OpenDNS or Google Public DNS?
OpenDNS has loads of features (e.g.: adult-filtering, anti-phishing, typo-correcting, and many more). Parents will find these very useful as they can configure settings for each of their children’s PCs from virtually any terminal that has internet access. OpenDNS also redirects you to their search portal if you inadvertently entered a non-existing domain name.
On the other hand, Google Public DNS has absolutely nothing what-so-ever feature. And they are committed, according to them, that they will never add a redirector to those non-existing domain names.
Less is More
In my ping test, Google Public DNS appears to be faster than OpenDNS:
C:\>ping 208.67.222.222 (OpenDNS)
Reply from 208.67.222.222: bytes=32 time=204ms
Reply from 208.67.222.222: bytes=32 time=188ms
Reply from 208.67.222.222: bytes=32 time=210ms
Reply from 208.67.222.222: bytes=32 time=208ms
Minimum = 188ms, Maximum = 218ms, Average = 206ms
C:\>ping 8.8.8.8 (Google Public DNS)
Reply from 8.8.8.8: bytes=32 time=53ms
Reply from 8.8.8.8: bytes=32 time=53ms
Reply from 8.8.8.8: bytes=32 time=54ms
Reply from 8.8.8.8: bytes=32 time=57ms
Minimum = 53ms, Maximum = 60ms, Average = 55ms
As you can see from the chart, Google DNS ping response is 75% faster than that of OpenDNS response. Take note that this is just the Ping test. The DNS recursor response is a different category. I only did this Ping test because it’s the easiest way to test their general performance.
Summary
PLDT's DNS servers (and most local DNS servers) are very unreliable. OpenDNS has no record of downtime since they have gone public years ago. Google Public DNS has just recently been opened to service. It’s new, simple, and most of all, it’s fast.
Contributed by: Emil Baseleres
