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OpenDNS does not suck
Thursday, 26 April 2007 — by Wayne Smallman
OK, I’ve been using OpenDNS for a few hours, and I’ve got some initial thoughts that I’d like to share with you.
First of all, it’s ace! Let’s face it, OpenDNS really does hand the web back to me / you in a usable way.
Secondly, there are some points I’d like to outline:
- I’d like to be able to export my list of Shortcuts and email them to someone else, or just back them up.
- I’d like to be able share my Shortcuts with someone else, which isn’t the same as just exporting them. This would allow people to access selected Shortcuts on my account.
- Does having intuitive aliases to websites and various web applications pave the way for similar functionality being built right into the browser itself? Which would totally negate the need for OpenDNS all together, especially if combined with Google Browser Sync, so you can do your thang from anywhere you are.
I can see OpenDNS being a ‘Geek-only’ tool, largely because some technical effort is required, and OpenDNS requires you to be signed in from a browser for it to work.
[Edit: a correction based on feedback]
Not being too clued up on the technical aspects, it would be pretty cool if an ISP made the leap and offered OpenDNS as a service to their customers right from the get-go.
Whether that’s doable isn’t something I’m too sure about.
For the likes of me, a guy who occupies the hinterland between Geek and regular vanilla-flavored ‘Netizen, I’m making the most of OpenDNS without having to break too much of a sweat…
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Wayne, thanks again for digging in. Interesting ideas. We’ll look into an export function soon. That’s straightforward. Sharing = also good, but more to think about.
We have a start on that with the form at the bottom of this page (http://www.opendns.com/start/features/shortcuts/) where you can create a shortcut to embed in your page. We’re enhancing that today.
If you build the functionality into the browser, well, that has been done before. The nifty part (I think) about what we’re doing with OpenDNS is taking it up a level, so it’s browser independent, and even computer independent.
Note: you do NOT have to be signed in to OpenDNS shortcuts. You have to be using OpenDNS, and be on an IP address (a network) that is part of your OpenDNS account. You can take your personal shortcuts and tag them for the network, and then they work everywhere on your network. Any computer, any browser.
That feature means that geeks can set it up for others… and if you don’t take that step, you can just be signed in — it’s not that hard.
Cheers,
John Roberts
OpenDNS