Host or Dig - Which command to use?

[Kevin Darcy]

June wrote:

>Both are DNS tools and each seems to be able to do its job..but when to use
>which? Is it just a personal preference or each has its strong side?
>
Personally, I never use "host" in my day-to-day activities. If I'm 
troubleshooting a DNS problem, then I find it much more useful to see 
the Authority/Additional Section information, the TTLs, etc., which are 
part of "dig"s default output format. Since I use "host" so 
infrequently, I haven't even bothered installing it on most of my boxes.

For casual use, though, "host" is just fine, and certainly better than 
"nslookup".

                                                                         
                                       - Kevin