... and also ...

[anastasiav]

My home PC has recently developed a very odd problem. Can you tell me how to fix it?

Sometimes I can get to the web fine. Other times, I get an "Alert" message that says something like "www.yahoo.com could not be found. Please check the name and try again." If I keep trying the site a few times, I will eventually get there.

This is a pain in the butt. Why did it suddenly start doing this and can it be fixed?

Comments

[theresat.livejournal.com]

I get the same thing. What is that about?

[herooftheage.livejournal.com]

The possibilities I know of, in their order of likelihood:

1) You ISP is having trouble connecting to a Domain Name Server. Changing ISPs might help, but is a pain. If you have an alternate DNS listed in your network configuration, you might try flipping it with your primary one.

2) something flakey with your router - either the hardware is now dicey or you have a loose cable. I'd check the cabling first, and then have your ISP test the router remotely unless you have the geekery to do it yourself. I'd discount this one unless your email is also being flakey.

3) You use Windows, and it is getting close to enough bit-decay that it time to reinstall from the distribution disks. May God have mercy on your soul.

4) You have a virus that is trying to look at your input and is then doing a poor job of passing it on. Running your favorite virus cleaner would fix that.

The order I would do things in is: 1) check the cabling 2) run the virus checker 3) talk to my ISP 4) re-install Windows 5) seek professional help.

ISP Wars

[dauphin1974.livejournal.com]

There was a note in the security newsletters and the Boston Globe recently about a price war between two of the top internet backbone service providers. One had shut the other one out of access to their network, thus essentially breaking the internet into two separated pieces.

However, the internet is more resilient and connected than that, and so sometimes it takes a while for your computer to get a new "path" to the computer it wants to get to.

This is probably what you are seeing - paths to certain popular sites get overloaded depending on which backbone is "closest" to your computer.

Obscenely related to money and power. Technically interesting. Otherwise just a pain in the *ss.