How is downrightnow better than doing a ping test?
A ping test will check to see if an Internet server is online and responsive. A server that doesn’t respond or responds very slowly can be a sign of service or network problems. However, service issues that are software-related won’t be discovered by a ping test. For example, if the web site for an email service is online but is showing an error message, a ping test won’t turn up any problems. downrightnow uses several indicators to identify service problems, including ping tests. User reports and other sources we monitor can highlight service issues in situations where a ping test won’t locate a problem.
