Resolved How to eliminate searches with ISP search page

Often, I find that after searching for a term in my URL bar, I am not directed to Google (which is my browser---Firefox 7.0--default search), but to Charter, my ISP.

Is there something I can do, to make all my searches end up with Google?

I have checked, and Google is set as the default search engine.

 

Paul, probably easier to direct this to Malware & Virus removal, it may not be malware as you see it but in my mind it is.

Since I can't reply to your threads in that board please provide a link to this thread to explain the problem and let the Analyst know it's not top priority. The worst that'll happen is you'll get a free checkup

Read this post, then post the requested log(s) in the Malware and Virus Removal forum.

@Admin or Staff, if you feel this is inappropriate/overkill please remove this post.

 

Ahh, missed that part I always use the search bar unless I know the URL.

Paul ignore my post above.

Thanks Arie.

 

I didn't think it was malware either.

I do plenty of searches in my URL bar (that end up in Google). This has been standard practice in Firefox for a while, and is the default location to search in Google Chrome, so I know it can be done. I'm just wondering how.

 

As Arie informed you, this is an ISP procedure, talk to them or use the Search Bar.

 

Found out that others posting with this problem were able to find a link (usually at the bottom of the search results page) that let them opt out. Sure enough Charter had one and I opted out. Started working immediately.

I think what was going on is that I have been googling abbreviations, and from what I read on other threads, Charter decided that this wasn't a search, but an attempt to type in a URL, so it didn't direct me to Google, my search engine.

 

Thanks for letting us know Paul, but just to be clear you weren't searching (googling) for anything.

If you type an incorrect URL in the Address Bar then any ISP's DNS server takes over, some try to help (as yours does) by suggesting other sites others will commonly return a 404 not found error. It is down to you to enter the correct URL in these situations.

If you want to search for anything, use the search bar not the address bar.

 

Sorry, but searching via the URL bar has been done for years now. You don't have to do it, but many folks such as myself prefer to. When I type in a term that doesn't have www and .com, etc., I'm searching and want a google search results page for that term.

And now I've made sure that I can do this all the time.

 

We're going around in circles here, if you enter an incorrect URL then your ISP may provide alternate suggestions. your ISP may be more flexible than others.

I'll stand with what I said, if you want to search use the search bar, if you know the URL use the address bar.

 

Tony, thanks, I already got in touch with someone at OpenDNS and from what I could tell they were telling me that their DNS didn't support this--that I would still be directed to their own pages for "bad URLSs." I heard that Google's DNS will let you avoid this; perhaps I'll adopt them as a more permanent solution.

Or am I wrong about OpenDNS? I'd rather use them than Google.

 

Here is the entire contents of an email reply I got from them a day or two ago. (1) referred to something I was asking about their support forum itself:

Hello,

1) We are looking into the forum issue

2) OpenDNS Basic is ad-supported (http://www.opendns.com/home/basic) and you will get our OpenDNS Guide Page for certain issues, like, NXDOMAINS,NO_RESPONSE from domains; you can also look into OpenDNS VIP http://www.opendns.com/home/vip.

-Dominic
OpenDNS Support