Domain Names

A domain name is a unique name used to identify and locate computers on the Internet. For example, the domain name of this website is ‘wdhdesign.com’. A domain name provides an easy-to-remember address, which computers translate into numeric IP (Internet Protocol) addresses used by the Internet. An IP address like 216.205.67.185 is good for computers but difficult for humans to remember. Humans can more easily remember a domain name like wdhdesign.com.

We will be happy to walk you through the process of securing your domain name, or you can follow the steps outlined below and register the domain yourself.

How Do I Get a Domain Name?

The first step in getting your own domain name is picking a name that you like that reflects what your website is and making sure it is not already in use by another website. Individuals and businesses have been creating websites for over 15 years. You may need to be a bit creative in order to find a name that is acceptable to you but not already in use. You are limited to 256 characters, but please keep in mind that the longer your domain name, the easier it is for your users to mistype it!

To find out if your pick for a domain name is available, go to one of the domain host’s websites and do a search.

• Network Solutions: Type your chosen domain (without the ‘.com’) in the box in the upper left portion of their home page and click the ‘Search’ button.
• Go Daddy!: Type your chosen domain (without the ‘.com’) in the rounded box in the upper right area of the home page labeled ‘Start Domain Search’ and click the orange ‘Go’ button.

Once you have found an acceptabel, available domain name, you must pay a fee and register your domain at a domain hosting company. A domain hosting company (or domain host) maintains special computers called root name servers that keep records of domain name registrations and supply this information to other computers on the internet. Think of them as the postmasters that take in requests for webpages from browsing users and deliver them to the computers where the webpages are stored.

Follow the screens to register the domain. Note – domain hosts will routinely try to sell you upgrades and additional services. These are really not necessary and will add significantly to the cost of your domain registration. You can always add them later. You should be aware, however, that the contact information you enter when you register the domain will be a matter of public record. If this is a concern to you, you can make the registration ‘private’ so that the contact information is available to the domain host, but not freely searchable over the internet.

There are four parts to the domain registration record:

• Registrant: Person who registers and owns the domain name.
  
  This should be YOU. If you choose to let someone else take care of the registration process for you make sure the registration itself is in your name
• Technical Contact: Updates the name server information when your website is published or moved and takes care of any technical problems.
• Administrative Contact: Manages selling or reassigning a domain.
  
  This should also be YOU. It is generally not a good idea to put this contact in the name of an employee – it will require updating if there is a change in the responsible individual.
• Billing Contact: Handles domain renewal.

When you initially register the domain, all these contacts will be set by default to you as the registrant. They can be updated later. For example, many clients choose to make their web designer/maintainer their technical contact.