| |
How to register your domain
By Ted Prodromou
When you launch a new website you must register a
unique domain name with an authorized registrar.
When the internet was first starting, all domain names
and IP addresses were registered through one
organization, Internic. Eventually Network Solutions
took over the role as ¡°keeper¡± of the internet domain
names. Today, there are hundreds of websites where
you can register your domain name but Network
Solutions still maintains the main database of domain
names. Some websites charge as little as $2.95 per
year for your domain name while others charge as
much as $35 per year for the exact same service.
Some even offer one year free if you register your
domain name with them and host your website on
their servers. Why pay $35 when you can register
your domain name for much less at another website?
So why does Network Solutions charge $35 a year if
they are the keeper of the database and their resellers
charge a fraction or even nothing? Who knows and
who cares! Register your domain with one of the
cheaper providers and you'll be fine. A word caution -
be care who you choose to host your website. Getting
a free year of your domain name isn't worth it if your
webhost is unreliable and your website is down more
than it's up.
You pay for your domain name on a yearly basis. It's
a separate charge from your webhosting bill. When
you register your domain name choose the
autorenewal option if it's available. This way your
domain name will not expire if you forget to renew it.
If your domain name expires, it's free for anyone else
to register so you need to stay on top of when it's
expiring. Also registering your domain name for a 3 to
5 year term will often save you money. For example,
godaddy.com charges $8.95 a year for your domain
name but only $7.25 a year if you register for a 5
year term.
When you register your domain you can create
different contact names. The three contacts are
Administrator, Technical and Billing. Most of the time
the same person is all 3 contacts. If you web designer
registers your domain name for you, make sure you
are designated as the Administrative contact. This
gives you control over the domain name and you
must be notified if someone is trying to make changes
to your record. If you aren't one of the contacts then
someone can transfer ownership of the domain name
without your permission.
To see a record of your domain name, go to
www.networksolutions.com
and use their
WHOIS utility which is located in the bottom left corner
of their home page. Simply enter your domain name
and click Search. You'll see the complete record of
your domain name, where it's registered and where
your website is hosted. For a complete video of how
to use WHOIS, visit
www.valiss.com/video/whois/whois.html
.
When you register your domain name you'll have to
the option of making it a private registration. I highly
recommend paying the additional fee to make your
information private. If you leave your registration
public anyone can look up your domain information
which includes your home or business address and
your email address. Many spammers scan public
domain registration records to find valid email
addresses to spam.
I always use a yahoo or hotmail email account when
registering my domains. This way if spammers to find
my email address, I can just get a new ¡°throwaway¡±
email address and I won't receive spam at my primary
email address.
Always make sure your domain record remains
locked. Locking your domain name is a feature
implemented a few years ago. When you want to
transfer your domain name to a different registrar you
must unlock it. Once it's unlocked the new registrar
can ¡°pull¡± your domain name from your current
registrar. Once the transfer is complete, the domain
name will be locked to prevent anyone else from
¡°pulling¡± your domain away from you.
About the Author
Ted Prodromou spent over 25 years in the computer industry working for IBM, Digital, and Cellular One. Today he's the owner of Valiss IT, a consulting firm that provides personalized web design and small business marketing solutions. Visit http://www.valiss.com for lots of free "how to" articles about marketing your business online.
Copyright 2005 Valiss IT, Inc. All Rights Reserved
This article may be reprinted only if it remains unchanged.
Article Source: http://www.simplysearch4it.com/article/14712.html
| If you wish to add the above article to your website or newsletters then please include the "Article Source: http://www.simplysearch4it.com/article/14712.html" as shown above and make it hyperlinked. |
| Some other articles by Ted Prodromou | Domain Names and Webhosting Explained
Domain Names and Webhosting Explained
When you launch a new website you must register a unique domain
name with an authorized registrar. When the internet was first starting, all
domain names were ...
|
|
| |
|
|
|
