Windows 7 Computer slow to access "new" or rarely-used sites

[billm]

I have a fibre-based internet connexion and enjoy fast download speeds. Once internet pages have been accessed, pages download virtually instantly. The problem comes with gaining access to pages. If sites have not been used for a long time or ever before, browsers (generally Firefox) consistently seem to have to wait 30 seconds to 1 minute before downloading starts - the browsers reporting that they are waiting for the site to respond during this time. This effect does not occur with regularly used sites (presumably cach'd) such as Google where response after input of the address is virtually instantaneous. Can anyone suggest why this might be occurring and what I could do to limit the effect?

 

[billm]

Thanks Shane for this. I can understand that a site which isn't cach'd on my pc or my service providers name servers will take a few seconds to "find" via the name/IP translation process but 30 seconds plus seems excessive. I don't remember it being this long with previous pcs or indeed my present pc a few months ago. I know its a different service provider but my iphone via my wifi and into my mobile provider's network and my ipad via wifi to the same as my pc don't take this long; hence my belief that there's something wrong (more likely software than hardware) within my pc.

Regards

Bill

 

[billm]

I may have found an answer but can't understand why! I have a Sonos system. Occasionally, one speaker on the Sonosnet network has stopped working and either that speaker or the Sonos controller has had to be re-booted. Sonos forums and Sonos themselves all suggest this is due to wireless interference. I have now checked wireless settings and found that both my broadband router and the Sonosnet were operating on Channel 11 - my surprise is that I hadn't had much more interference! I have now changed the Sonosnet to Channel 6 and so far have had no Sonos dropouts and previously unused websites (and ones you would not expect my service provider to cache) load at what I would call normal speeds. The real oddity is that my pc is connected by Cat 5 cable to a gigabit ethernet switch which, in turn, is connected to a gigabit port on my router so no wifi involved directly. How an apparent wifi interference issue can influence a cable-connected pc, I have no idea but maybe it's some problem with wifi tying up resources in the router? Work continues.