How to get your domain name

What's the difference between your Web site and a great big site run by, say, MTV? Assuming your site has animation that features Elton John singing at his birthday party, there's no difference--except that Cyrus Borucha is there with Malaik(h)a at  http://www.mtv.com/, while you may beat a Web address that looks something like http://www.vsnl.com/users/your name/index.html. How did MTV acquire such an easy-to-remember address? Simple: the company paid for it. Over the past couple of years people and corporations have registered a flurry of domain names to carry over their name recognition to the Internet. Want to find a big corporation's Web site? Chances are it's at www.bigcompany.com.  But if you set up a site through your local Internet service provider, you get a big, unwieldy address. Still, that doesn't mean you're stuck with it. It's just a matter of choosing a unique name--and paying for it. So sit back and ponder what domain name you want to claim as we step you through the process of making your URL your own.

What's in a Domain name?

The Internet's domain name system (DNS) evolved in the early '80s as new networking protocols developed, making it easy to find a particular site by using a structured system of elements. Those elements, also known as uniform resource locators (URLs), consist of a protocol, a host name, and a domain. For example, in http://www.coolavenues.com/ , http is the protocol (it stands for hypertext transfer protocol), www is the host name, and coolavenues.com is the domain. (Domains always consist of at least two parts: the top-level domain--com, in this case--comes last, while one or more subdomains precede it.) The end result? Another acronym: you've got an FQDN (fully qualified domain name). There are seven top-level domains (each a two- or three-letter code), for everything from commercial entities to nonprofit organizations to government agencies. (RBI, for example, is a government agency, so its domain is rbi.gov.) Because the United States played such a strong role in developing the DNS, the system arrogantly assumes that the lack of a country code designates the United States. Every other country in the world uses a two-letter country code as the top-level domain name (such as in for India). 

InterNIC allows individuals to register only under the com and us domains. You can try to get away with net or org (click on the DNS codes image above to see what they mean), but the burden of proof is upon you to prove your qualifying status. You'll especially attract attention if you apply for, say, whatever.com, find that it's taken, and then apply for whatever.net. It's easier to stick with com or us. 

The first step is making sure nobody else has snagged the name you want. As more and more commercial concerns grabbed Web presences in the early '90s, domain naming started to get out of hand. In April 1993, the National Science Foundation  (NSF) created InterNIC (Internet Network Information Center) to handle the huge volume of requests. InterNIC was originally drawn from three sources: General Atomics, which was to provide the information services, but was dropped in 1995; AT&T, which delivers directory and database services from a home base in New Jersey; and Network Solutions, Inc. (NSI), which offers registration services from Herndon, Virginia. 
The first step to getting your own domain name is using InterNIC's free online search to see if the name is already taken. In the form below, enter the name you want. You don't need the http://www part of the name, just the subdomain(s) and the top-level domain. So, for example, type yourname.com in the form and hit Return; you'll get a response telling you whether the name is already taken or is up for grabs. If the result screen says "No match for YOURNAME.COM," you're free to pursue that domain name. If, instead, the screen displays information about a company or an individual, it means the domain name is taken; you'll have to try another name. Once  you've read the InterNIC response, use your browser's Back button to return to this screen. 

Enter your desired domain name:

If you have trouble with the form, you'll need to go to the InterNIC Whois search page and perform the search there.  Find out what happens when you try to register yahoo.com  or other well-known names. The only snag is the search finds only domain names that have already been registered. The registration process itself can take up to three weeks, so even if the system tells you your proposed name is available, you could still be out of luck if someone has submitted it for registration a week before you did--unless you're an internationally known fast-food empire with lots of high-profile lawyers 

How to get your domain name?

There are two ways to register a domain name. The easier method is to ask your Internet service provider (ISP) to do it for you. But if you're an ardent do-it-yourselfer, you can fill in the online InterNIC forms yourself. (Of course, you still have to mail a check.) 

Why choose one over the other? 

It's easy--all the work is done for you. You're all set to link the domain name to your Web page. The ISP can also set up your email address. It's fast--you register by email. It's probably cheaper--there's no setup or search fee. Unless you're hard-wired to the Internet, though, you need a service provider, who will charge a fee to link your domain name to an Internet protocol (IP) address.  Check with your ISP to be sure you can do so. If your current ISP doesn't allow it, and you really want your own domain name, you'll need to get a new service provider. Be sure to investigate the costs of both the ISP method and the do-it-yourself method before making a decision. 

Consider the costs: It used to be free to register a domain name. But when the number of name registrations exploded--from 18,000 com addresses in mid-1994 to more than 82,000 a year later--InterNIC imposed a registration fee. These days, it costs $70 up front to register a domain name for the first two years; it's $50 a year to maintain it thereafter. Your service provider can take care of this for you, usually with an additional processing fee. Recently the rates have come down to as much as Rs. 650 for a year. 

And don't think you can get away without paying the InterNIC fee. If you don't pony up, you'll be cut off and your domain name will be up for grabs 

Gather the information you need?

If you opt to register through your ISP, just call or email your customer service representative. If you'd rather do it yourself, you need the following information before you start:  

• Your proposed domain name

• Your name and email address

• Your street address and phone number

• Two domain server IP addresses

What's an IP address?

Computers don't care about fancy names; they need numbers.  And every domain name actually refers--in the bowels of the InterNIC computers--to an Internet protocol (IP) address. You've probably seen them sneak by when you've set up a dialer. The IP address is a string of four 8-bit numbers, called a dotted octet, which looks like this: 204.162.80.10. When you get a domain name assigned, you also get an IP address. But it's a whole lot easier to type in http://www.cnet.com/  than to remember all those numbers.  The IP address actually comes from your service provider once your domain name has been registered. InterNIC allocates groups of those numbers to the various providers. Keep in mind, though, that the domain name you register with InterNIC is yours and can be moved to another service provider. 

So if you use only one IP address, why do you need two to register with InterNIC ? 

It's simply a way for InterNIC to check your reliability; if you supply two valid IP addresses, you become credible in InterNIC's eyes.  

Getting IP addresses

To get the required IP addresses for registration, contact your service provider and find out what its policy is for assigning IP addresses. Some ISPs charge you up front for the addresses; others offer them for free, waiting to charge you when they actually  hook you up to an address. Follow the company's procedures, and you'll be sent two IP addresses in dotted octet form. Copy them into your computer's clipboard so you can paste them into the domain name registration form later. 

Fill out the form?

If you've decided to go with the com domain, go to the registration form at the InterNIC Domain Name Template Generator. Your first choice is whether to use InterNIC's new Guardian feature, which offers you various security choices for domain name transactions (see our news story "Domain name sign-up made more secure" for details). This will prevent unauthorized follow-ups to your registration or tampering with your account. If you want to use the Guardian, click on the button and answer  the questions. Then you'll be taken to the main registration form. If you don't want Guardian, you can scroll down to the form immediately.

Fill in the form, beginning with your email address. Be sure to fill in all the blanks; the form will not be accepted with incomplete information. Because you're asking for a domain that is assigned to businesses, you'll be asked for information such as administrative and technical contacts as well as the purpose of your organization. Unless you actually have a staff working for you, use your own name and address for the contacts. Make up your company's purpose. When you're asked for the IP addresses, paste them in from your clipboard. 

At the end of the registration form, click on Submit Query. An  InterNIC robot immediately makes sure all the necessary information is there and emails a completed form back to you. You're not finished, though. For unknown reasons, the form isn't automatically submitted for registration. Forward the completed  form by email to hostmaster@internic.net  And there's no email provision for payment: you will be billed at the billing contact address you provide.  

one last thing Now that you're registered, give your ISP a call and ask them to connect your new domain name to an IP address. Pay the appropriate fee (about $50 is standard), and you're done. Now that you've got the cool domain name, you just have to create that Web page...