How do I block websites?

Is it possible to block a website, I want to block a website using vista...

 

hosts file, or you could modify your DNS settings on your local router... probably the easiest way.

try adding an alias to the hosts file...

google it, you'll probably be able to figure it out.

FYI, you need admin rights to edit the file.

 

http://www.islibrary.com/blogs/comm...e-websites-using-microsoft-windows-vista.aspx

Less than a 1 minute search . Once you get good with google you can find anything.

 

that extra info section is totally unnecessary for 90% of the things you'd wanna do. haha.

 

I really didn't read through the whole thing to be honest I was in the middle of writing a paper

 

I would check out opendns.org

It's a pretty sweet deal, may even speed up your browsing if your ISPs DNS servers are poo

 

opendns is a better solution, it blocks traffic before it ever reaches your home. If set up properly I do not think it is easily circumvented, by say using a different browser.

 

the hosts file is both transparent and fully effective. it's the first place windows checks for DNS Name resolution. Also, since it's the first place to check, it would also respond the fastest.

Additionally, even most geeks don't even know the hosts file exists, making it almost entirely undetectable. I wouldn't even think to look there for a problem with DNS name resolution... at least not until I got to a command prompt, typed "ping *url*" and got a bogus response...

I'm sure OpenDNS has it's merits, but it's likely a lot more complicated to setup. Which is another factor limiting it's usefulness. A lot of those people who only need this or that blocked, won't know how to setup and use OpenDNS properly, since they don't understand the technology.

I could argue this all day, as to the millions of reasons why the hosts file is 1000000000000000000x better than any DNS solution (local or remote). And while OpenDNS might be more versatile(I'm not sure, I havn't looked at it yet), it's not necessarily the best option, in this case.

 

I can assure you that opendns is more user-friendly than stepping through a host-file solution with someone who has trouble navigating something as basic as the "Control Panel"

 

yes, reconfiguring your router's DNS/DHCP settings is not difficult at all!

nor could anyone possibly screw that up and accidentally disable their DNS hostname resolution for the entire web....

nope. not possible.

 

shakenbakenyc, pay attention to the forum where you are posting threads. This has nothing to do with Alienware and is considered off-topic there. I moved it to another forum instead of closing it. I will not do that next time, however.

 

If you're using Firefox, you can get the extension Blocksite which will allow you to block sites easily enough.

 

If your using Vista, check out the Parental Controls feature

 

If you've ever ran through OpenDNS' solution, with their tutorials and extensive support, you might not be so sarcastically doubtful.

 

I should probably go back to using OpenDNS's for their malware blocking ability. My nephew got a nasty trojan installed on the family computer and I think using OpenDNS could have probably blocked it or at least helped. I'll have to be more proactive the next time.