In laymen’s terms, as this is an education blog, a web site is hosted on a computer on the world wide web.  That computer has an address… called an IP Address.  It is comprised of several blocks or octets of numbers and normally would look like 10.10.10.10 or some variation.  Where does a domain name come in?

Well, to get to a website, we could laboriously type in http://10.10.10.10 and IF we had a good memory or great numerical typing skills, we may get that particular website associated with that IP…. OR, we can work with DOMAINS and configure a domain name to point to that server IP for us.  So in essence… 1.  Typing in www.domainname.com would point to 10.10.10.10 and our web page would be seen….

The advantage of using a domain name is that it should be easier to remember, easier to type, and should ultimately be associated with the content or subject matter of your website.  Domain names are a BIG deal… Why would I reserve a domain name like www.thisismyreallycoolwebsite.com when people may misspell it or may not remember it?  Afterall, it then teeters on the decision to memorize http://102.92.78.201 as a website address… doesn’t it?

Check out the following article from http://www.sitepoint.com/article/tips-choosing-domain-name for a great assessment on choosing a domain name!  Although this article is dated, these are time tested tips!  So YES… there is some major HYPE in domain names… and for a great reason!

8 Quick Tips to Choosing a Domain Name Your domain name is the center of your Internet identity. So what type of things should you take into consideration when choosing the name that will represent you on the Web? Jumpline.com offers these 8 handy tips. 1. Keep it short Although some places allow you to register a name with up to 63 characters, you have to keep in mind that people need to be able to remember it, and easily type it into their browser. Try to register the shortest name that your customers and visitors will associate with your Website. The general rule of thumb is, keep it under seven characters if possible. (Not including the suffix.) 2. Dot What? There are many different extensions available right now. For businesses, we recommend a .com suffix. It is the first extension that most people try when searching for a Website. Also, since it is one of the oldest extensions, .com shows that your business has been around for a while and that you have a well-established presence on the Web. 3. Avoid Trademarked Names There are two really good reasons for this. First, it’s not very nice. We have all heard the stories about the zany guy who thought ahead and bought “some-huge-multi-million-dollar-company.com” and sold it to the company for enough money to retire on. But, remember that those companies, like yours, have spent lots of time and money creating their brand, and what goes around comes around. Also, companies are no longer opening their pocketbooks to get their names back. They are calling their lawyers. 4. Register Your Domain NOW Domain names are being snatched up faster than candy at the St. Patrick’s Day parade. You must register soon unless you want to get stuck with “the-domain-name-that-no-one-wanted.net“. You do not have to have a Webmaster or an ecommerce department or a Web design consultant or… Heck, you don’t even need a Web page. Just get out there and register before you loose the opportunity to get the name you really want. 5. One May Not Be Enough Sometimes, it isn’t a bad idea to register several similar domain names. If you have “yourname.com”, register “yourname.net” so no one else takes it. You can register your full company name and a shorter, easier to remember version. Some people even register common misspellings of their company’s name. (You don’t need a separate Web page for each. Several domains can point to the same Website.) 6. Character Types Just a reminder. Domain names can only use letters, numbers, and dashes. Spaces and symbols are not allowed. Also, domain names are not case sensitive. 7. Ask Around When you have settled on several available name choices, see what your friends and clients have to say. A name that may make perfect sense to you may be too hard for other people to remember. Is your domain easy to say? Is it hard to spell? Do you have to explain why you chose the name? 8. Don’t Shell Out Large Amounts of $$$ At one time, companies were able to get away with charging reservation fees plus a “mandatory” $70 InterNIC fee. Recently, it was decided that other companies should be able to compete to sell domain names. This has lowered prices dramatically. And remember, if you think that if you have found the right domain name, but you’re not quite sure if it’s the one… register it anyway before someone else does!

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