02-08-2009, 03:11 PM

It just started for me about 2 or 3 weeks ago when the speed at which Safari accessed internet sites seemed to drop substantially. When I click on any website in my bookmarks it will take about 4 or 5 seconds before contact is made. Then the site may be downloaded is several segments. Each segment can take up to 5 seconds depending on the size. Some are faster than other but none are nearly as fast as they used to be. I was wondering if one of the recent system/program upgrades caused this slowdown.

What really made me curious is the fact when I used Explorer and Windows XP(Boot Camp) those same sites will download almost instantly just like Safari did in the past. I have tried Firefox but it is really no different than Safari. Are other people experiencing this problem?

02-08-2009, 06:47 PM

It almost sounds like a DNS address problem. Who is your internet provider?

I'm on Verizon FIOS here and had to switch to using OpenDNS because of the way Verizon develops an automatic DNS address. It didn't have any effect on my Windows PCs but I had the same slowdowns you described on my MacBook.

Regards.

02-08-2009, 08:27 PM

Thanks for your suggestion. I do need a bit more information about the function that DNS performs.
I am Canadian and my provider is Rogers Communications. I bought a new iMac about 8 months ago and it has been fast on the Internet until a few weeks ago so is it likely caused by something in the Apple OS or Safari that I have upgraded online that caused the DNS to change? I am not that knowledgeable about DNS but what I have looked up just refers to the faster translation of IP addresses. Does this not just refer to the initial contact? The worst of my problem is the chopped up download of a website after initial contact is made. I did not think that should have been a problem once the connection is made

02-08-2009, 09:20 PM

I don't think anything you may have done in the way of upgrades has caused the slowdowns. Sometimes these things are difficult to track down.

You might want to switch to OpenDNS as a test to see if that cures the problem. Switching is quite easy.

If you're currently connecting by wireless you'll need to first hook an ethernet cable from your Mac to the router or cable modem. That's so as not to lose contact. You'll also need to know how to access the router or cable modem setup menu. When in the setup menu change the primary DNS address to
208.67.222.222 and the secondary to 208.67.220.220.

Now for your Mac: Open System Preferences, Network. Highlight Ethernet. Click on the advanced button. Now click on the DNS tab at the top menu. You may be showing a grayed out address. Ignore it. Click the + button on the bottom and add the two addresses above. If there are other addresses in the box, click the - button and delete them.

OK your way out of the procedure and reboot your machine, the router, and cable modem. If everything works out OK and the problem was a DNS slowdown, you should see a speed up.

Be sure to keep track of all your old settings, both for the router, cable modem and System Preferences, Network. That's so you can get back to where you were in case things do not work out.

Post back and let us know.

Regards.

02-09-2009, 11:52 AM

I changed the DNS as you suggested yesterday evening but it hasn't made any change in the speed my Safari accesses an internet site. My iMac is directly hooked into the router and my PC laptop is on the wireless connection.

02-09-2009, 12:10 PM

Sorry! I should have read your instructions a bit more clearly before I made my last posting. I missed doing the "delete" of the existing DNS and had just added the OPENDNS to the list. I was just using the information on the Apple Help menu when I added the new addresses. When I looked at your instructions again again and went in and deleted the first DNS on the list the speed improved considerably.

THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!

02-10-2009, 06:59 PM

Not only did that change solve my problem I also mentioned it to a friend who had been having similar problems with his Mac and it solved his slow access too.