• From: Willow, Alaska
  • Registered: 2009-02-22
  • Posts: 13

Topic: Speed up surfing the internet by using HOSTS file

Found this http://www.mvps.org/winhelp2002/hosts.htm-it was written for Windows but you can add the 127.0.0.1 sites to your /etc/hosts.deny file. Of course you will miss out on all that groovy advertising. Sample list of sites below.
cool


127.0.0.1 doubleclick.net
127.0.0.1 ad.doubleclick.net
127.0.0.1 ad.ca.doubleclick.net
127.0.0.1 adremote.timeinc.net
127.0.0.1 adsremote.scripps.net
127.0.0.1 a.as-us.falkag.net
127.0.0.1 interclick.com
127.0.0.1 a1.interclick.com
127.0.0.1 media.fastclick.net
127.0.0.1 network.realmedia.com127.0.0.1 doubleclick.net
Listen to me! When you die in Alaska you die in real life!
  • Toolz
  • #! Die-hard
  • Offline
  • From: Asia
  • Registered: 2009-02-02
  • Posts: 937

Re: Speed up surfing the internet by using HOSTS file

The title is misleading. If you 'blocked' 127.0.0.1 you'd probably experience some untoward side-effects.

What you are actually aiming to do is redirect certain domains to 127.0.0.1, where they should fail, instead of resolving them and sending requests to the real hosts.

Also you don't put these in hosts.deny - it doesn't accept entries in that format. You put them in /etc/hosts - same in Windows.

  • From: California, USA
  • Registered: 2008-11-29
  • Posts: 8,647

Re: Speed up surfing the internet by using HOSTS file

I edited the title so its no longer misleading.

Note: ** Please read before posting **

BTW if you wish to contact me, send me an e-mail instead of a PM.
  • fhsm
  • #! Junkie
  • Offline
  • From: New Hampshire, USA
  • Registered: 2009-01-05
  • Posts: 442

Re: Speed up surfing the internet by using HOSTS file

I suspect this will slow you down.  If you are using Firefox AdBlock will get you the same effect and more.  If you want to use the host file approach you can get a much more complete host file.

FHSM: avoid vowels and exotic consonants and you'll get your handle every time.  identi.ca
  • From: Willow, Alaska
  • Registered: 2009-02-22
  • Posts: 13

Re: Speed up surfing the internet by using HOSTS file

I must admit-this has been a nice learning experience. I did notice some improvement while loading but being conservative with the 127.0.0.1 list is key. My credit union page was one casualty forcing me to rethink my approach. May have to retry adblock if I cannot get this fine tuned-my experience with it was a year ago with Firefox 2.x and I wasn't liking the constant turning it off and on. I appreciate the tips (and corrections.)
cool

Listen to me! When you die in Alaska you die in real life!
  • Toolz
  • #! Die-hard
  • Offline
  • From: Asia
  • Registered: 2009-02-02
  • Posts: 937

Re: Speed up surfing the internet by using HOSTS file

It's tempting to think that this method will slow you down but people have been using these for years and years and some people - even years ago - use some huge ones. I make my own. I open BFilter's request logger and open up my favourite sites and watch the requests fly by. Any suspect ones stick out like a sore thumb, and I end up collecting about 50 - a fairly modest size. It shouldn't be difficult to use this method. The advantage is it works for every browser, mail client, news reader, im client - everything.

  • fhsm
  • #! Junkie
  • Offline
  • From: New Hampshire, USA
  • Registered: 2009-01-05
  • Posts: 442

Re: Speed up surfing the internet by using HOSTS file

Toolz wrote:

but people have been using these for years and years and some people - even years ago - use some huge ones.

People have been using host files for longer then DNS... DNS was invented to deal with the difficulty of keeping a single common host file for the whole internet.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Domain_Name_System

If you want to have the benefits of DNS and the speed bump just run a local DNS server, it cuts my DNS request time from 120ms down to about 2ms.

FHSM: avoid vowels and exotic consonants and you'll get your handle every time.  identi.ca