Tip #1772 - Your Very Own Domain
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WorldStart
So, you would like to design
your own website, huh? Well good for you :-)
Whether it's a personal
site or a business site that you are creating you will need a Domain Name
A Domain Name is a unique
name that identifies an Internet Site. Without getting into a bunch of technical
jargon it’s basically just the address for your site. For example, the
Domain Name for WorldStart is www.worldstart.com. Type that
Domain Name into the address bar of your Internet browser and the WorldStart
site will appear.
Now that you know what a
Domain Name is, let's choose one! This is the fun part. Pick a name that's reflective
of your site, easy to remember and not too long. Let's say I'm building a web
site in honor of my dog, Lily. I'll want a name that reflects that. I think
she is the greatest but the domain name www.lilyisthebestdoginthewholewideworldtimesinfinity.com
is too long—even though it's the truth. Something like www.lilydog.com
or www.superlilydog.com is better. It's a good idea to have
a couple of choices ready in case you find out that one of the names you want
is already taken. That's right. The name you want could already be taken. I
did a quick search on google.com and found a statistic, which stated that there
are over 45,000,000 names already registered. That statistic is a few years
old so I'm sure the number is a lot higher now.
You can find out if the
domain name you want is available by going to the "Who Is" section
of the InterNic website. http://www.internic.net/whois.html.
InterNic stands for Internet Network Information Center and they have the info
we need. Type the name you want into the Whois Search but leave out the www.
So, still using my example, I'll type in lilydog.com and choose the Submit button.
And, the results.... dang, it's already taken!! If the name you want is already
taken then you will be shown the registration information on it, which includes
when the registration expires, in case you want to wait it out and buy the name
then.
You can always try for a
variation on the name you want such as lily-dog.com if your heart is set on
it. But let's try the other name superlilydog.com. Type it in and choose submit.
Woohoo, it's available. If the name you want is available you will see a message
that says "No match for domain "SUPERLILYDOG.COM"”. Which
means that no one else has registered it and it’s available. Now just
choose the Registrars link to decide which one of the accredited companies to
use to register your domain name.
Next step: Find a Host :-)
~ Kim
Kim Ganues
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