Comments on: Are nearlyfreespeech.net servers globally banned by any filtering services?

Question: Are nearlyfreespeech.net servers globally banned by any filtering services?

allterrainbrain — Tue, 31 Oct 2006 17:58:35 -0800

I'm researching nearlyfreespeech.net. So far I find their operating policies & philosophies very solid, but I see another mf user commented, "Aren't the nearlyfreespeech servers auto banned by many filters?" (No one answered, since that was a piggyback question.) If there's any truth to that, it could be a dealbreaker for me since I need to not exclude users in academic/institutional settings. What say ye?

By: patr1ck

patr1ck — Tue, 31 Oct 2006 18:15:18 -0800

I haven't had any problems and highly recommend NFS, but I don't have a ton of experience working behind filtering services. I know it works at my school, and pretty much all other universities in Ontario, and that was good enough for me.

By: Captain_Science

Captain_Science — Tue, 31 Oct 2006 18:34:32 -0800

I also can second their service. Been using them for almost 3 years at this point with no problems, and great tech support/tech service. Never ran into any filter issues.

By: imposster

imposster — Tue, 31 Oct 2006 19:02:24 -0800

No problems, either.

By: rachelpapers

rachelpapers — Tue, 31 Oct 2006 19:16:26 -0800

I haven't had any problems with 'em.

By: allterrainbrain

allterrainbrain — Tue, 31 Oct 2006 19:24:03 -0800

To be perfectly clear, what the person I quote was talking about (and what I'm asking about) is whether the people who run any of the major commercial content filtering services have implemented a global ban on any content hosted by nearlyfreespeech.net.

This sounded plausible to me since NFS makes a point of accepting "adult" and "controversial" sites. But the ONLY place I've found this suggestion so far is in that one mf comment, and the comment (which I quoted in full) sounds secondhand/uncertain.

I'm especially concerned about my users in schools, libraries, etc. in the U.S., many of which use filtering programs by default (and/or by law, in the case of public libraries). Sadly that's one of many ways in which the U.S. is not as "free" as Ontario/Canada.

By: allterrainbrain

allterrainbrain — Tue, 31 Oct 2006 19:26:12 -0800

Uh... that is to say: has any filtering service implemented a global ban on ALL content hosted by nearlyfreespeech.net.

By: imposster

imposster — Tue, 31 Oct 2006 20:10:37 -0800

No problems = sites I've tested have never been blocked by any filters. Have you tried asking NFS support?

By: phrontist

phrontist — Tue, 31 Oct 2006 20:13:06 -0800

I know that BESS, one of the major filtering solutions used by secondary schools in the united states, does not have such a ban.

I use NFS, and they are by far the greatest service I've had the pleasure of using, hosting or otherwise.

By: GregX3

GregX3 — Tue, 31 Oct 2006 20:26:42 -0800

I've been a satisfied customer for about a year now. Here are two sites hosted there if you're able to test a filter:
www.blendedtechnologies.com
http://tablegen.nfshost.com/index.py

I'll also do a search on their "members-only" support forums, see if there's any mention there.

By: GregX3

GregX3 — Tue, 31 Oct 2006 20:30:23 -0800

Ok, searched the member forums and didn't turn up anything. Considering that people complain about EVERYTHING in there, it's probably good indication that nothing is unusual as far as their servers being blocked/banned.

By: allterrainbrain

allterrainbrain — Tue, 31 Oct 2006 22:21:26 -0800

Thanks everybody, especially GregX3 for looking in the member forums! I agree that if it's not there, it's really not likely to be an issue.

Now the only potential dealbreaker left is the fact that they don't provide pop or smtp, and my primary addresses are at domains I'd want to host at NFS. They will forward mail to a third-party address, and I've found highly-recommended third-party options for smtp, such as smtp.com. So, can I accept a somewhat higher likelihood of my emails being called spam (due to "faked" From lines and smtp) in exchange for the obvious benefits I see in using NFS? Probably... but if anyone has an alternate solution to the email problem, I would really appreciate hearing about it!

By: Pollomacho

Pollomacho — Tue, 31 Oct 2006 22:26:43 -0800

Just for reference, I am able to view both of GregX3's test sites and I'm behind the Great fireWall of China.

By: needs more cowbell

needs more cowbell — Wed, 01 Nov 2006 01:29:32 -0800

Google now has a tool for hosting email at your domain, which might work for you. It's free but it's in beta.