OpenDNS Rocks
We’ve been using OpenDNS at our church for quite a while. They actually began using it as our external DNS before I was employed, so I’m not sure how long we’ve been with them. I’ve got to say that I’m very impressed by their service.
I don’t have the energy to prove this, but the OpenDNS service is a TON faster than our RoadRunner Business Class external DNS. (More on RoadRunner in future posts… I don’t think a lot of their “business class” service).
In addition to rock solid, reliable DNS lookups, OpenDNS offers a host of features, many of them added in the last two months. When you sign up for an account with them, you can get a number of stats regarding your network’s Internet usage. There’s not a whole lot of detail, but the graphs and information can be helpful.
For instance, at a quick glance, I can see that the number two resolved domain yesterday was “mlb.com.” It looks like a number of our staff members weren’t completely focused on work.
They also block phishing sites and fix common domain typos. Plus, it’s all free. And, by now, you know that I like that – a lot. They do this by offering text ads on the guide page when a domain cannot be resolved. They even allow you to change the logo on that page.
But, the reason I wanted to post about OpenDNS today is this sweet new “shortcuts” feature they’ve recently added (actually about a month ago). As part of your account settings, you can enable and use shortcuts which are similar in function to AOL’s keywords.
So, I can set up a shortcut “fbc” that launches our Web site, and it saves time typing. Sure, that’s a novely, not really that big of a deal. But, how ’bout this one. Today, I set up the shortcut “bible” that launches the BibleGateway site. However, it goes one step farther. The actual shortcut redirects to http://www.biblegateway.com/quicksearch/?quicksearch=%s
So, users can type in “bible resurrection” to search for information about the resurrection or passages that contain the word resurrection. OR, they can type in “bible John 3:16″ to look up the passage John 3:16.
They’re launched network-wide immediately. No need to restart machines or wait for DNS caches to clear. It’s fast, it works well, and it’s worth a try at home or at work.
Matthew, great use of our features! Thanks for sharing. More good stuff coming soon. If you’d like to get an early look, please write in via the Feedback link in your OpenDNS account: https://www.opendns.com/account/feedback/
Cheers,
John Roberts
OpenDNS
[...] correction, not just the content filtering). Their service is already being put to use in several churches, but I can’t help thinking this will bump that trend right on up! Andrew Mitry at Anchorite [...]
New feature this morning = adult site blocking.
http://www.opendns.com/start/features/adult/
All optional, and free.
Let us know what you think.
Cheers,
John
OpenDNS