Fairpoint DSL problems

A few days ago we noticed that our internet connection seemed to be grinding to a halt. We’ve been on the same DSL plan for years without problems until Fairpoint bought out our service area from Verizon. I despise Verizon and just about all monopolistic telecoms and cable companies, but Fairpoint is just a mess.

Fairpoint’s online account services (just now available after many months of paper billing) do not work with FireFox or Safari, just Opera. While Opera is a fine browser, it seems like an odd sole-choice.

Anyway, the slowdowns seemed really sporadic with sites very slow to start loading, but then loading content quickly. My hunch was DNS problems, which I verified by setting my router to point at the OpenDNS.com name servers at 208.67.222.222 and 208.67.220.220 rather then the default Fairpoint DNS servers. Instant speed up of all web access. So if any one with Fairpoint DSL has noticed a slowdown recently, try changing your DNS server settings in your router or computer and see if that helps.

2 Comments

  1. I’ve also been switched from Verizon to Fairpoint (I’m in Vermont) and I’ve been having a problem getting to some sites lately and it seems to point back to my end.

    I tried going the OpenDNS.com route, but I can’t figure how to point to those servers on the router (Westell 327w), as the menus have changed from the Verizon software and it doesn’t seem to do any good to plug in the OpenDNS numbers.

    Any suggestions for a good resource on this?

    Thanks,

    Stew

  2. I’ve been having a problem since the switch to fairpoint too. When I’m browsing, the internet light on my modem will randomly shut off for roughly 30 seconds. This seems to happen more often when I’m on Xbox LIVE though. I called fairpoint and asked them about and they said they had some routers down. I called back later and they said they fixed it but I still have the problem. Me and my dad are talking about switching to roadrunner if the problem doesn’t resolve.

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