DNS settings, what are they and how do i fix them if they go wrong?

[Dr Lee]

righty... couple of weeks back we switched internet suppliers at home and since then we have had problem, after problem, after problem with the internet not recognising URLs.

We have a full strength connection to the internet and we can use Tweetdeck and Xbox Live.... but 80% of the time we cannot connect to ANY web pages.

Each time it comes up with a 105 error, while running a quick Diagnose & Repair says there is a DNS problem

And, as neither i nor anyone else in the house know what DNS settings are...... we are in a bit of a pickle.

I'm not a techie guy, i like gadgets, but point me at programming or anything like that i get lost within a few words of an explanation.

Is there anyone out in the Hype that can help with this?

Thanks in advance

 

[Kane52630]

DNS means Domain Name Service, If most of the sites are not working then I suggest you contact your ISP provider to see whats the problem, maybe someone else here can help.

 

[Dr Lee]

we called BT (Our provider) maybe 4 times already... they can't find a fault.... yet there is...

Interestingly enough, the XP computers here are having much more success than my the three laptops we have running Vista and Windows 7

 

[Buffaloed]

I use Open DNS. The Basic Plan is free. Setup instructions are detailed and accompanied by screenshots and a video. It solves a lot of problems with slow loading and unreachable sites.