Domain registration can be an overwhelming task since there are so many different registration companies. A Google search alone brings up 5,740,000 results! Each company seems to offer the same service so what should you look for, and which company do you choose?
The most important thing is to make sure that when you register a domain, YOU are the owner. It is a common mistake to allow the person or company who registers it for you to be the owner. If you do not own the domain, it can be difficult if you ever want to move to a new hosting company. The good news is that there is a resource online called “whois” that can identify the domain owner. If you discover that you don’t own your domain, you should work to get that fixed right away.
If you are not 100% sure if you own the domain, go to www.whois.com right now. When you get to the site, click on the words that say “WhoIsLookUp” located in blue above the search bar. You will be able to see all of the contact information related to the registrant.
By the way, did you know all that information is public? Be careful of what personal information you type in because if you’re not, anyone could start emailing or calling your personal information. The good news is there is a way to hide this information. Tell your registration company that you are interested in privacy and they can hide it for an additional fee.
Friday, September 18, 2009
Web Hosting Guide At WPDesigner
WPDesigner has only one purpose for its visitors, to provide a guide for people looking for good web host providers by including important details like price, setup if it is free or not, domain if it is free or not, disk space information, if the web hosting provider offers a money back option and uptime information. These important details will give visitors a summarized idea what each web hosting provider has to offer to its clients and as such, can easily compare against other web hosting providers in the list that would best suit their preferences.
Other than that, an in depth review of the web hosting provider itself is provided for visitors to know more about the web hosting provider’s services. If you are totally new to the web hosting stuff, WPDesigner also has good articles that will get you started and guide you accordingly so you will have an idea what factors you may have to consider when you choose the best web hosting provider for you. Most people nowadays are after the cheap and affordable web hosting provider yet one that gives the best services as well. The most up to date top 10 list are there for you to check out, at WPDesigner.
Other than that, an in depth review of the web hosting provider itself is provided for visitors to know more about the web hosting provider’s services. If you are totally new to the web hosting stuff, WPDesigner also has good articles that will get you started and guide you accordingly so you will have an idea what factors you may have to consider when you choose the best web hosting provider for you. Most people nowadays are after the cheap and affordable web hosting provider yet one that gives the best services as well. The most up to date top 10 list are there for you to check out, at WPDesigner.
Visual Domain Names
Human memories remember words by visualizing them as pictures. For example, if you think of the words "pink" and "pig", your mind doesn't bring forward pictures of the words into your short term memory, it brings up a picture of a pink pig. It therefore follows that you should, if at all possible, use words that can be easily visualized in your domains. If you want customers to remember your domain name above all others, use words such as red, hot, purple, square etc.... It really is important.
Don't just take my advice, prove it to yourself. Read the next four site names; bartholimuwpatersonandsonsrecords.com, pink-pidgeon-records.com, square-penguin-cds.com and usbasedrecordandcdsuppliersandsupplies.com. Give yourself five minutes, reading the rest of the page and without referring back, write the four names down from memory. There is a 90% chance that you will remember number two and possibly number three, because your memory will have created a picture as you go along, but it's unlikely that you will accurately remember the other two. Even if you do, try remembering them again tomorrow. It won't be so easy.
Don't just take my advice, prove it to yourself. Read the next four site names; bartholimuwpatersonandsonsrecords.com, pink-pidgeon-records.com, square-penguin-cds.com and usbasedrecordandcdsuppliersandsupplies.com. Give yourself five minutes, reading the rest of the page and without referring back, write the four names down from memory. There is a 90% chance that you will remember number two and possibly number three, because your memory will have created a picture as you go along, but it's unlikely that you will accurately remember the other two. Even if you do, try remembering them again tomorrow. It won't be so easy.
How to save hundreds of dollars with multiple domain hosting while hosting several websites on 1 account
Multiple domain hosting lets you host different websites on 1 account while paying the hosting fee for just 1 website. This way you can save hundreds of dollars on hosting. And if you are an internet marketer with numerous mini sites or niche sites, you can cut your costs even more.
How much money can you save with multiple domain hosting?
Let's say you have 2 different websites, one is your personal blog, and another one is about your hobby (e.g. about DIY). You buy a 'traditional hosting' package that costs you $7 / month. For a whole year it would cost 12 x $7 = $84. And you would be charged that amount twice, since you have 2 websites. Your hosting costs would add up to $168.If you use multiple domain hosting where the fee is, for example, also $7 / month, then you would only pay 12 x $7 = $84 for hosting both your websites. Your savings are $84 / per year. It's not that much yet, but if you host much more websites on your multiple domain hosting account, your savings will rise exponentially. For example, if you have 10 different websites, you can save as much as $756 a year.
Comparision of the amounts you can save:
Different hosting companies and hosting plans allow a different number of additional domains (add on domains) that you can host on your account. Bluehost offers you the opportunity to host unlimited websites on 1 account while paying for only 1 account, The monthly free can be as low as $6.99 per month. Check out their site here >
How much money can you save with multiple domain hosting?
Let's say you have 2 different websites, one is your personal blog, and another one is about your hobby (e.g. about DIY). You buy a 'traditional hosting' package that costs you $7 / month. For a whole year it would cost 12 x $7 = $84. And you would be charged that amount twice, since you have 2 websites. Your hosting costs would add up to $168.If you use multiple domain hosting where the fee is, for example, also $7 / month, then you would only pay 12 x $7 = $84 for hosting both your websites. Your savings are $84 / per year. It's not that much yet, but if you host much more websites on your multiple domain hosting account, your savings will rise exponentially. For example, if you have 10 different websites, you can save as much as $756 a year.
Comparision of the amounts you can save:
Different hosting companies and hosting plans allow a different number of additional domains (add on domains) that you can host on your account. Bluehost offers you the opportunity to host unlimited websites on 1 account while paying for only 1 account, The monthly free can be as low as $6.99 per month. Check out their site here >
Find The Right Web Hosting Provider At Web Hosting Geeks
Finding the right web hosting provider is not easy. Competition is stiff and there are lots and lots of web hosting providers out there and of course, we only want the best provider that offers affordable packages. By that, I mean, we look for a balanced package of a web hosting provider that rarely has downtime and offers good bargains for its customers. Web Hosting Geeks saves you the trouble of having to look for and browse through all web hosting provider websites one by one in the internet. You save time by using Web Hosting Geeks’ resources to check out independent reviews, features, bonus features and ratings of the best web hosting providers in its list.
Whether it is a cheap web hosting service for a few bucks a month, shared or for a dedicated server, most if not all web hosting providers offer one free domain registration (which seems quite a given these days) and a 1 month money back guarantee. How great is that? Browsing through the site’s various categories for a web hosting provider, if you are looking for awarded sites, say, top rated web hosting, no problem. The cheapest? No sweat. Green hosting? They have it. You can also let the world know what you think about a web hosting provider that you have had experience(s) with by contributing a review about it.
Web Hosting Geeks has compiled its list of web hosting providers in such a way for you to be able to find the best web hosting provider suited to your needs and preferences. Its in depth reviews are more than enough to give you an idea what each web hosting provider can offer. My blog’s preference is having little or no downtime as much as possible and Web Hosting Geeks has quite a number of good web hosting providers that fit what my site needs.
Whether it is a cheap web hosting service for a few bucks a month, shared or for a dedicated server, most if not all web hosting providers offer one free domain registration (which seems quite a given these days) and a 1 month money back guarantee. How great is that? Browsing through the site’s various categories for a web hosting provider, if you are looking for awarded sites, say, top rated web hosting, no problem. The cheapest? No sweat. Green hosting? They have it. You can also let the world know what you think about a web hosting provider that you have had experience(s) with by contributing a review about it.
Web Hosting Geeks has compiled its list of web hosting providers in such a way for you to be able to find the best web hosting provider suited to your needs and preferences. Its in depth reviews are more than enough to give you an idea what each web hosting provider can offer. My blog’s preference is having little or no downtime as much as possible and Web Hosting Geeks has quite a number of good web hosting providers that fit what my site needs.
Website Hosting At Pickaweb
UK web hosting at its best is only provided by Pickaweb, offering services such as website hosting, storage, domains and even web design. If you have grown tired of your website’s layout, feel free to ask for a quotation and let their team of web designers build the site for you. Or, you can make use of their easy website builder once you purchase a hosting plan from them. If you do not want to waste time, view their multitude of web templates available and ready for you to use in an instant. There are no hidden fees, a positive uptime guarantee that your site will always stay up and online and even full control of the domain name of your choosing.
These great hosting plans and bargains are offered at affordable rates to its customers. Online transactions and payments when subscribing to any of their plans are safe and secure as their site uses well known security technologies. And as customers are very important to them, 24 hour customer support is available anytime to accommodate you if you have questions or in your time of need. How confident is Pickaweb with any of their services? If you are not satisfied with their service, they offer a 30 day money back guarantee.
These great hosting plans and bargains are offered at affordable rates to its customers. Online transactions and payments when subscribing to any of their plans are safe and secure as their site uses well known security technologies. And as customers are very important to them, 24 hour customer support is available anytime to accommodate you if you have questions or in your time of need. How confident is Pickaweb with any of their services? If you are not satisfied with their service, they offer a 30 day money back guarantee.
Web Hosting
Domain Name
If you're seriously doing business on the WWW, you may consider to have your own domain name. Internic is the organization who provide domain name registration in the US. There are other organizations handle the registration in their own country or specific regions. To find out more about an organization who is responsible for domain name registration in your country, check Thomas Ohrbom's page or Yahoo.
Where can I have my site hosted?
This is the difficult question. If you cannot setup your own server, you may consider having web hosting providers to host your site.
You can choose from a lot of different web hosts. It's important to compare between different providers and to make sure that you really get the features you need, you don't want to pay to much, but still you don't want to be stuck with a provider that doesn't upscale your needs. You can read more about this and search for different types of web hosting like dedicated servers at www.webhostingsearch.com
Free Web Pages:
Yahoo provides links to free places. The most popular place people on the web go for free hosting is at Geocities. Anyway, there are many limitations of having your site host with free service providers. For example, you aren't allowed to make sub directories or use your own CGI.
If you're seriously doing business on the WWW, you may consider to have your own domain name. Internic is the organization who provide domain name registration in the US. There are other organizations handle the registration in their own country or specific regions. To find out more about an organization who is responsible for domain name registration in your country, check Thomas Ohrbom's page or Yahoo.
Where can I have my site hosted?
This is the difficult question. If you cannot setup your own server, you may consider having web hosting providers to host your site.
You can choose from a lot of different web hosts. It's important to compare between different providers and to make sure that you really get the features you need, you don't want to pay to much, but still you don't want to be stuck with a provider that doesn't upscale your needs. You can read more about this and search for different types of web hosting like dedicated servers at www.webhostingsearch.com
Free Web Pages:
Yahoo provides links to free places. The most popular place people on the web go for free hosting is at Geocities. Anyway, there are many limitations of having your site host with free service providers. For example, you aren't allowed to make sub directories or use your own CGI.
Choose a Memorable Domain Name
We would advise you to choose a domain name that your target audience will be attracted to and will remember. This does not mean that when you are completing your domain name registration, you should be packing the URL with keywords. It is better to use a brand or company name, particularly if you already have an established corporate identity, than to try to create a name, purely for the search engines. Many visitors may try to guess your domain name based on your company name (e.g. www.jimmy-domain-registration-advice.com), and by increasing the possibility of them finding it without having to use search engines, it is possible increase your flow of traffic. For example, we choose RDI Technologies as our domain name, as it is easy for our clients to remember, (and to return to), rather than using something like SEO-design-domain-name-registration-tips.com, as the latter is hardly memorable,. (RDI is derived from the names R:: Resources D:: Driven I:: Intelligently).
It used to be the case that using lots of keywords in your domain name gave you an advantage with the search engines, and that is often the outdated domain name advice that you will find elsewhere on the web, but now the advantage is so minimal, that it is more advantageous to have a corporate identity that is easily remembered.
It used to be the case that using lots of keywords in your domain name gave you an advantage with the search engines, and that is often the outdated domain name advice that you will find elsewhere on the web, but now the advantage is so minimal, that it is more advantageous to have a corporate identity that is easily remembered.
Domain Extensions
More correctly called 'top-level domains' they fall into two main categories, international top-level domains (COM, NET, ORG, etc.) and country specific top-level domains (US, UK. AU, CA, DK, etc.). The criteria for selecting a top level domain is simple and straightforward. If you want to target your site content to users Worldwide then you should choose an international top-level domain (e.g. '.COM') and if you want to target your site content to users in a specific locality or country then you should use a country specific top-level domain (e.g. '.CO.UK'). Do not make the mistake of thinking that you are obliged to choose a country specific top-level domain simply because you happen to live in that country.
For example, if your site is about web design then it is likely to be of interest to users all around the World and this means that you should choose an international top-level domain. At the opposite end of the spectrum, if for example you are a local window cleaning company then it is just not useful for your site to appear in search-engine listings thousands of miles away in other countries and this means that you should choose a country specific top-level domain. Choosing a country specific top-level domain name will give your site higher search engine positioning to searchers in that country and is likely to mean that you get preferential listing in local and area directories, etc. These factors can be very useful for a locality based business.
Failure to select the correct type of top-lever domain can result in great problems when it comes to promoting a web site or the product it sells.
For example, if your site is about web design then it is likely to be of interest to users all around the World and this means that you should choose an international top-level domain. At the opposite end of the spectrum, if for example you are a local window cleaning company then it is just not useful for your site to appear in search-engine listings thousands of miles away in other countries and this means that you should choose a country specific top-level domain. Choosing a country specific top-level domain name will give your site higher search engine positioning to searchers in that country and is likely to mean that you get preferential listing in local and area directories, etc. These factors can be very useful for a locality based business.
Failure to select the correct type of top-lever domain can result in great problems when it comes to promoting a web site or the product it sells.
Absolutely Free Domain Names
For anyone wanting to establish a presence on the web, a domain name is essential. Whether it be for business or personal use, you must have a domain name if you want the rest of the Internet world to find you. Domain names used to be very costly, but now there is a way to get absolutely free domain names. In this article, I will explain to you how to get these absolutely free domain names.
WS Domains and Global Domains International
Global Domains International, also known simply as GDI, is the official worldwide registrar for all .WS domain names. This means that, no matter who you register your domain through, your registration is initially handled by GDI. They are a very well established debt-free company, and have been listed in Inc.
magazines 'Inc 500' list of the 500 fastest growing companies in the United States. Part of the success of GDI is due to the fact that it offers absolutely free domain names on a 7 day trial period.To get your free domain from GDI, you must register a .WS domain. As the official .WS registrar, GDI can offer these absolutely free domain names on a trial period. You can register a .COM, .NET or other domain extension if you wish, however the free domain trial only applies to .WS domains.
Your free domain will also include web hosting. After your free trial, your domain and hosting will only cost you ten bucks a month. Plus, GDI has a way for you to get that money back every month, plus more, with their optional referral program. Just refer others to their service, and GDI will pay you a percentage of all your referrals monthly fees, down through 5 levels of referrals. This means that, not only do you get paid on the people you refer. You also get paid on the ones they refer, and the ones their referrals refer, through 5 levels.
WS Domains and Global Domains International
Global Domains International, also known simply as GDI, is the official worldwide registrar for all .WS domain names. This means that, no matter who you register your domain through, your registration is initially handled by GDI. They are a very well established debt-free company, and have been listed in Inc.
magazines 'Inc 500' list of the 500 fastest growing companies in the United States. Part of the success of GDI is due to the fact that it offers absolutely free domain names on a 7 day trial period.To get your free domain from GDI, you must register a .WS domain. As the official .WS registrar, GDI can offer these absolutely free domain names on a trial period. You can register a .COM, .NET or other domain extension if you wish, however the free domain trial only applies to .WS domains.
Your free domain will also include web hosting. After your free trial, your domain and hosting will only cost you ten bucks a month. Plus, GDI has a way for you to get that money back every month, plus more, with their optional referral program. Just refer others to their service, and GDI will pay you a percentage of all your referrals monthly fees, down through 5 levels of referrals. This means that, not only do you get paid on the people you refer. You also get paid on the ones they refer, and the ones their referrals refer, through 5 levels.
Buy .Asia Domain Names: Get Free 2GB Mini USB Drive
In a first of its kind deal, register .Asia domain names and domain owners get a 100% assured free 2GB mini USB drive! Its incredible that DotAsia has found this unique incentive to promote .asia domain name sales.
How to get a free mini USB drive?
First you register your .Asia domain for 2 years or more, with a participating registrar. There are many participating partners, but we prefer to buy our domain names from GoDaddy.
You will be sent a redemption code by email a week after your domain is registered. The go to FreeB.Asia and enter your redemption code and .Asia domain name. Confirm your postal address and a USB memory stick will be sent to you via mail within 6-8 weeks. FreeB USB memory stick promotional offer is valid from July 6 to October 6 2009 or while supplies last.
Who is promoting the offer?
DotAsia is a not-for-profit organization that oversees governance of .Asia domain names and promotes its Internet development and adoption across Asia. DotAsia has come up with this unique deal and it will surely promote .asia domain name sales.
I think this will start a trend where lesser known domain name registries will offer freebies to domain name buyers to promote sales. Who minds extra free gifts with domain names… I don’t.
How to get a free mini USB drive?
First you register your .Asia domain for 2 years or more, with a participating registrar. There are many participating partners, but we prefer to buy our domain names from GoDaddy.
You will be sent a redemption code by email a week after your domain is registered. The go to FreeB.Asia and enter your redemption code and .Asia domain name. Confirm your postal address and a USB memory stick will be sent to you via mail within 6-8 weeks. FreeB USB memory stick promotional offer is valid from July 6 to October 6 2009 or while supplies last.
Who is promoting the offer?
DotAsia is a not-for-profit organization that oversees governance of .Asia domain names and promotes its Internet development and adoption across Asia. DotAsia has come up with this unique deal and it will surely promote .asia domain name sales.
I think this will start a trend where lesser known domain name registries will offer freebies to domain name buyers to promote sales. Who minds extra free gifts with domain names… I don’t.
Short Domain Names - Good Advice
Keep your domain names short and simple and you'll make them memorable. If you are using multiple words in your domain name, think about inserting a "-", between the words. For example, domainnameregistrationtipsus.com is an awful lot more difficult to read, recognize and to remember, than domain-name-registration-tips-us-com. While offering short domain name advice, I would suggest that you avoid acronyms, as they are sometimes hard to remember, for example; xscpr.com.
Regional Domain Names
If you are aiming at a regional audience as well as a global one, our advice is to try to register names with different extensions (e.g. .com and .co.us). If you are a US based company then a .co.us domain name will give your US based audience the confidence that they are dealing with a company 'close' to them as well as ensuring International audiences are aware of the fact that you are a US based company.
A .com extension will ensure that you will attract casual visitors, as well as providing your site with an International profile.As you will likely be using your domain names for email as well as other marketing, you should ensure that they are both memorable and enduring.We hope that you have found these domain name tips useful.
You can check to see if your choice of domain name is available by visiting our domain name registration. If it is available, register the domain name straight away, as any delay can cause it to be snatched up by someone else and put you back to square one.
A .com extension will ensure that you will attract casual visitors, as well as providing your site with an International profile.As you will likely be using your domain names for email as well as other marketing, you should ensure that they are both memorable and enduring.We hope that you have found these domain name tips useful.
You can check to see if your choice of domain name is available by visiting our domain name registration. If it is available, register the domain name straight away, as any delay can cause it to be snatched up by someone else and put you back to square one.
Understanding Domain and Hosting
In the world of website or blog, certainly you often hear the term of domain or hosting. Domain and hosting are the essential things for a website or blog. Therefore, let’s know and understand what domain and hosting are. For those of you who are not familiar yet with domain and hosting, below is the discussion that Kang Rohman can deliver to you.
• Domain
In creating a website or blog, you are obligated to have the domain. What is domain?
Maybe you have ever heard about this term in other fields such as math or others. If we observe the general definition, domain means a place or the territory. It will be the same as in the internet; you need to have a place for your website or blog.
To differ from one domain with another domain, the domain should be given a name, or we call it the domain name, e.g. http://kangrohman.com, http://berandaku.com, http://blogspottutorial.com, etc. In the popular term, the domain name refers to Domain.
The Domain name is various according to the goal of a website created. The types of domain are specified with the words after it such as:
• com ( read: dot com ) : for commercial website
• org : for organization website
• info : for website contains information
• biz : for business website
• gov: for government’s website
• etc
There are also domains tend to territory:
• us : for website in the United States (US)
• co.id ( read : dot co dot id ) : for website in Indonesia
• cn : for website in China
• co.il : for website in Israel
• my : for website in Malaysia
• etc
However, in the practical, the domain names are no longer for the specified identities, for instance, the domain name ends with .org, used for personal website not for an organization, domain name ends with .info, used for commercial, and so on.
To purchase the domain, you can buy it at the websites that sell domain. This purchase is not permanent, but for a period in years (usually, the price will be for one year). Or precisely, we hire the domain, not buy. But it is more popular to buy a domain not hire a domain.
In the domain, there’s something called Sub Domain (part of domain). The Sub-domain is created of the main domain. The Sub domain can be identified from a separate written by dot (point). For instance, the main domain is kangrohman.com, we can create the sub-domain as blog.kangrohman.com, tool.kangrohman.com, nangkring.kangrohman.com. Or the real example for you is like kolom-tutorial.blogspot.com. Main domain is blogspot.com and the sub domain is kolom-tutorial.
• Hosting
If you have bough a domain and you access the domain, it will be a blank page. In order to fill out the domain, we will need a hosting to store the database, web machine, etc.
An easy illustration, domain is like a computer and hosting is like the electricity. Both are to support each other. Or another example, the laptop with its battery. So, a website should have the domain name and hosting so it can be accessed by public.
To create a webhosting, you will need the very expensive tools, therefore, a webhosting company are present to give the space or bandwidth. You can find many webhosting companies on the internet.
Hiring a webhosting is usually fixed to 3 months, 6 months, 1 year, 2 years, etc. One webhosting is certainly different from another one.
That’s all today’s post. Next posts, I’ll try to discuss about how to buy a domain, select domain name, select the right hosting, etc.
If there’s a mistake in writing and explaining about domain and hosting, please correct. Thanks.
• Domain
In creating a website or blog, you are obligated to have the domain. What is domain?
Maybe you have ever heard about this term in other fields such as math or others. If we observe the general definition, domain means a place or the territory. It will be the same as in the internet; you need to have a place for your website or blog.
To differ from one domain with another domain, the domain should be given a name, or we call it the domain name, e.g. http://kangrohman.com, http://berandaku.com, http://blogspottutorial.com, etc. In the popular term, the domain name refers to Domain.
The Domain name is various according to the goal of a website created. The types of domain are specified with the words after it such as:
• com ( read: dot com ) : for commercial website
• org : for organization website
• info : for website contains information
• biz : for business website
• gov: for government’s website
• etc
There are also domains tend to territory:
• us : for website in the United States (US)
• co.id ( read : dot co dot id ) : for website in Indonesia
• cn : for website in China
• co.il : for website in Israel
• my : for website in Malaysia
• etc
However, in the practical, the domain names are no longer for the specified identities, for instance, the domain name ends with .org, used for personal website not for an organization, domain name ends with .info, used for commercial, and so on.
To purchase the domain, you can buy it at the websites that sell domain. This purchase is not permanent, but for a period in years (usually, the price will be for one year). Or precisely, we hire the domain, not buy. But it is more popular to buy a domain not hire a domain.
In the domain, there’s something called Sub Domain (part of domain). The Sub-domain is created of the main domain. The Sub domain can be identified from a separate written by dot (point). For instance, the main domain is kangrohman.com, we can create the sub-domain as blog.kangrohman.com, tool.kangrohman.com, nangkring.kangrohman.com. Or the real example for you is like kolom-tutorial.blogspot.com. Main domain is blogspot.com and the sub domain is kolom-tutorial.
• Hosting
If you have bough a domain and you access the domain, it will be a blank page. In order to fill out the domain, we will need a hosting to store the database, web machine, etc.
An easy illustration, domain is like a computer and hosting is like the electricity. Both are to support each other. Or another example, the laptop with its battery. So, a website should have the domain name and hosting so it can be accessed by public.
To create a webhosting, you will need the very expensive tools, therefore, a webhosting company are present to give the space or bandwidth. You can find many webhosting companies on the internet.
Hiring a webhosting is usually fixed to 3 months, 6 months, 1 year, 2 years, etc. One webhosting is certainly different from another one.
That’s all today’s post. Next posts, I’ll try to discuss about how to buy a domain, select domain name, select the right hosting, etc.
If there’s a mistake in writing and explaining about domain and hosting, please correct. Thanks.
Domain or Blogspot Sub Domain: Which is Better for a Blogger?
A few days ago, in this blog, I wrote an entry: Ten Things Every Blogger Needs to Start a Blog. If you were a new Blogger, I strongly recommend you to read it and if you have already read the entry, then you must have noticed that one of the most important things that you have to decide is whether you want to buy a domain or blog in a sub domain of popular blogging websites like Blogger/Blogspot or WordPress. In this entry, I would like to discuss this simple question from different point of views.
Why your own Domain
Your own domain means something like this: blogging37.com. You are the owner of this name and it exclusively belongs to you. There are naturally some advantages about something that you own. First of all, you have total control on it and you do not need to worry about the ownership of another person. Some people feel that independent domains do better in search engine rankings, compared to sub domains or Blogspot or WordPress. It is perhaps a very difficult to prove but I have the same opinion and I have noticed that especially when it comes to other search engines except Google like Bing and Yahoo, Blogspot blogs don’t do well compared to independent domains. And last but not least, your own domain gives you an opportunity to establish a brand- like my brand is called Blogging37 or Sports37 etc. By the way, buying a blog is very easy and very inexpensive- $8-$10 per year.
Why Blogspot/Blogger
You may wonder now that after all the benefits of a domain, why should anyone be interested to go for a sub domain in Blogspot? Well, the first thing that comes to my mind is that maintaining a blog in Blogspot is very easy and it doesn’t need any effort at all. You do not need to have any kind of technical skill. This facility surely encourages a lot of people and that is why you can find perhaps more than 8 million blogs in Blogspot. The second benefit you get is that you’ll also get free hosting and you also have the opportunity to earn money with Google Adsense and other advertising programs. So, with Blogspot blogs, you can earn money without investing anything.
Why not Wordpress.com Sub Domain?
I know that these days most bloggers are passionate fans of WordPress. I’m also a big fan of the technology but not of the free version WordPress.com where just like Blogspot.com, you can get a free sub-domain and free hosting. The thing that I do not like in WordPress.com it that he does not allow you to earn money by putting advertisements. There are some other limitations too. So, if you care about the earning any money then you should just simply forget it. Of course, if you’re a hobby Blogger then you have no problem.
Own Domain with Blogger Hosting
This is the thing that I like most these days. I have two blogs with my own domains but hosted on Blogger. I just needed to buy the domain for only $7.5 per year and then the hosting is free. It needs some technical know how but it is very easy as both Google and Godaddy have put up enough help materials.
Self Hosted WordPress Blogs
Among professional bloggers, it is very popular. For example this blog (Blogging37.com) is of this kind. I bought the domain and hosting from Godaddy and then installed WordPress at free of charge. It has many facilities and you have all the freedom in the world. However, just remember that you need to have some decent amount of technical knowledge and you have to give some time to look after the domain and the hosting and also you need some knowledge about maintaining a blog in WordPress.
I have talked about almost all the issues that a blogger may face about domain related matters. I hope that it has answered to most of your questions. Still, if you want to know anything more then leave a comment.
Why your own Domain
Your own domain means something like this: blogging37.com. You are the owner of this name and it exclusively belongs to you. There are naturally some advantages about something that you own. First of all, you have total control on it and you do not need to worry about the ownership of another person. Some people feel that independent domains do better in search engine rankings, compared to sub domains or Blogspot or WordPress. It is perhaps a very difficult to prove but I have the same opinion and I have noticed that especially when it comes to other search engines except Google like Bing and Yahoo, Blogspot blogs don’t do well compared to independent domains. And last but not least, your own domain gives you an opportunity to establish a brand- like my brand is called Blogging37 or Sports37 etc. By the way, buying a blog is very easy and very inexpensive- $8-$10 per year.
Why Blogspot/Blogger
You may wonder now that after all the benefits of a domain, why should anyone be interested to go for a sub domain in Blogspot? Well, the first thing that comes to my mind is that maintaining a blog in Blogspot is very easy and it doesn’t need any effort at all. You do not need to have any kind of technical skill. This facility surely encourages a lot of people and that is why you can find perhaps more than 8 million blogs in Blogspot. The second benefit you get is that you’ll also get free hosting and you also have the opportunity to earn money with Google Adsense and other advertising programs. So, with Blogspot blogs, you can earn money without investing anything.
Why not Wordpress.com Sub Domain?
I know that these days most bloggers are passionate fans of WordPress. I’m also a big fan of the technology but not of the free version WordPress.com where just like Blogspot.com, you can get a free sub-domain and free hosting. The thing that I do not like in WordPress.com it that he does not allow you to earn money by putting advertisements. There are some other limitations too. So, if you care about the earning any money then you should just simply forget it. Of course, if you’re a hobby Blogger then you have no problem.
Own Domain with Blogger Hosting
This is the thing that I like most these days. I have two blogs with my own domains but hosted on Blogger. I just needed to buy the domain for only $7.5 per year and then the hosting is free. It needs some technical know how but it is very easy as both Google and Godaddy have put up enough help materials.
Self Hosted WordPress Blogs
Among professional bloggers, it is very popular. For example this blog (Blogging37.com) is of this kind. I bought the domain and hosting from Godaddy and then installed WordPress at free of charge. It has many facilities and you have all the freedom in the world. However, just remember that you need to have some decent amount of technical knowledge and you have to give some time to look after the domain and the hosting and also you need some knowledge about maintaining a blog in WordPress.
I have talked about almost all the issues that a blogger may face about domain related matters. I hope that it has answered to most of your questions. Still, if you want to know anything more then leave a comment.
Win FREE Web Hosting with Domain Name for 1 year!!
Attention All bloggers out there, wishing or planning to buy a domain for their blogs, there's a good news for you all. You don't need to spend your money, as you can it get it now Absolutely FREE via a Contest.
TheGadgets.net today has started a contest giving away Premium Web hosting and Domain all for FREE for whole ONE year!!
It was my first visit to the site today.The quality content there forced me to subscribed myself to the feeds. As I'm a "Tech Freak" myself!
With Beautiful looking Magazine Style Theme, TheGadgets.net is one of the leading sites out there which covers all the News, Reviews and Tips of Latest Gadgets and Gizmos.
The Owner and Author AwaisNaseer tries his very best to keep the blog updated and his efforts show the results in form of huge amount of readers/visitors to the site!
I'd recommend you to check out his idea of holding this contest of giving away FREE Web Hosting+Domain (via Lucky draw).
Package Includes:
• 1GB hosting space-
• Domain (for 1 year)
• Unlimited Email address and databases
The Reason I'm sharing this with you is that I need to win this contest cause I badly need a Domain for my blog :p. And you may get a chance to try your luck too!
And Who'd leave the golden chance when you can get this all absolutely FREE!
For more Details about this, CLICK HERE to see the actual post.
Don't forget to spread the Word to your needy friends! :DNote: Contest will end at May 31, 2009.
TheGadgets.net today has started a contest giving away Premium Web hosting and Domain all for FREE for whole ONE year!!
It was my first visit to the site today.The quality content there forced me to subscribed myself to the feeds. As I'm a "Tech Freak" myself!
With Beautiful looking Magazine Style Theme, TheGadgets.net is one of the leading sites out there which covers all the News, Reviews and Tips of Latest Gadgets and Gizmos.
The Owner and Author AwaisNaseer tries his very best to keep the blog updated and his efforts show the results in form of huge amount of readers/visitors to the site!
I'd recommend you to check out his idea of holding this contest of giving away FREE Web Hosting+Domain (via Lucky draw).
Package Includes:
• 1GB hosting space-
• Domain (for 1 year)
• Unlimited Email address and databases
The Reason I'm sharing this with you is that I need to win this contest cause I badly need a Domain for my blog :p. And you may get a chance to try your luck too!
And Who'd leave the golden chance when you can get this all absolutely FREE!
For more Details about this, CLICK HERE to see the actual post.
Don't forget to spread the Word to your needy friends! :DNote: Contest will end at May 31, 2009.
3 Free domain name websites : Advantages and Disadvantages
It is a well known fact that a Domain Name adds a profession touch to your website/brand. But, it is sometimes a case of financial crisis or some other problem that a web publisher is not able to purchase a Generic Top-Level Domain for his brand or Website in general.
In such cases a need for free Domain names is required. So, I am going to tell you about three Services which allow you to register a Domain name for free. I mentioned above that these services will allow you to register a Domain name for free, but another bonus is that they will also allow you to manage your DNS entries like CNAME, A, MX, NS records for free! Now I will describe the benefits and Demerits of each of these service for you to decide which one is the Best suited for you.
CO.CC Advantages:
• Zero Renewal fees for Personal Domain names
• Allows registrations of two domain names for free
• Web forwarding facility available
• If you donate to co.cc, you can register 100 more free domains in your account
• You can earn money by referrals
CO.CC Disadvantages:
• If you place Ads on the Domain name, then you have to pay 3$ as renewal fee of the Domain name every year. If you don’t pay the required amount then your Domain name will be deleted
• The domain name will be suspended without notice if it contains any illegal/ spam/ adult material
• Not all the Domain names are free to register. Some domain names need you to pay a small amount to register
• You need to Set-Up your Domain name before 48 hours of Registering, else it will be deleted
CO.TV Advantages:
• Allows registrations of three domain names for free
• Web Forwarding Facility available
• Site Builder functionality available
CO.TV Disadvantages:
• Domain name is registered only for one Year. You need to re-register it after one-year.
• Registering a Premium Domain name costs you 199$ flat.[Premium domain names are usually keywords which are short, can easily be remembered, has multiple meanings or generic quality names]
• The domain name will be suspended if any violent/ humiliating/ illegal/ spam/ ad*lt material is hosted on it
• You need to Set-Up your Domain name before 24 hours of Registering, else it will be deleted
No referral system for earning through affiliates
• They can Anytime convert any free services to paid services, remove a part or all of the services temporarily or permanently
UNI.CC Advantages:
registered for Life-Time. Forget about renewals!
UNI.CC Disadvantages:
• Only one domain name can be registered per IP Address
• UNI.CC might serve Advertisements on your website (in some cases)
• Your Domain name will be deleted without notice if you don’t get more than 10 Hits in 3 months duration
• Domain name is deleted if any defamatory, inaccurate, abusive, obscene, infringing, or threatening content is hosted on it
• Members need to pay a small maintenance fee to keep their sites free of banner Ads
You cannot manage CNAME entries in your DNS settings
Even though there are many more services like these ones, most of them are spam sites. Keep in mind that these services allow you to Manage your Domain names completely by giving access to DNS setting and these services are completely different from URL redirection services.
Now, I think I have made a decent effort to tell you the Advantages and Disadvantages of these services and I would like to know which services interest you and which of these will you use for free domain name and WHY? . Looking forward your answers!
In such cases a need for free Domain names is required. So, I am going to tell you about three Services which allow you to register a Domain name for free. I mentioned above that these services will allow you to register a Domain name for free, but another bonus is that they will also allow you to manage your DNS entries like CNAME, A, MX, NS records for free! Now I will describe the benefits and Demerits of each of these service for you to decide which one is the Best suited for you.
CO.CC Advantages:
• Zero Renewal fees for Personal Domain names
• Allows registrations of two domain names for free
• Web forwarding facility available
• If you donate to co.cc, you can register 100 more free domains in your account
• You can earn money by referrals
CO.CC Disadvantages:
• If you place Ads on the Domain name, then you have to pay 3$ as renewal fee of the Domain name every year. If you don’t pay the required amount then your Domain name will be deleted
• The domain name will be suspended without notice if it contains any illegal/ spam/ adult material
• Not all the Domain names are free to register. Some domain names need you to pay a small amount to register
• You need to Set-Up your Domain name before 48 hours of Registering, else it will be deleted
CO.TV Advantages:
• Allows registrations of three domain names for free
• Web Forwarding Facility available
• Site Builder functionality available
CO.TV Disadvantages:
• Domain name is registered only for one Year. You need to re-register it after one-year.
• Registering a Premium Domain name costs you 199$ flat.[Premium domain names are usually keywords which are short, can easily be remembered, has multiple meanings or generic quality names]
• The domain name will be suspended if any violent/ humiliating/ illegal/ spam/ ad*lt material is hosted on it
• You need to Set-Up your Domain name before 24 hours of Registering, else it will be deleted
No referral system for earning through affiliates
• They can Anytime convert any free services to paid services, remove a part or all of the services temporarily or permanently
UNI.CC Advantages:
registered for Life-Time. Forget about renewals!
UNI.CC Disadvantages:
• Only one domain name can be registered per IP Address
• UNI.CC might serve Advertisements on your website (in some cases)
• Your Domain name will be deleted without notice if you don’t get more than 10 Hits in 3 months duration
• Domain name is deleted if any defamatory, inaccurate, abusive, obscene, infringing, or threatening content is hosted on it
• Members need to pay a small maintenance fee to keep their sites free of banner Ads
You cannot manage CNAME entries in your DNS settings
Even though there are many more services like these ones, most of them are spam sites. Keep in mind that these services allow you to Manage your Domain names completely by giving access to DNS setting and these services are completely different from URL redirection services.
Now, I think I have made a decent effort to tell you the Advantages and Disadvantages of these services and I would like to know which services interest you and which of these will you use for free domain name and WHY? . Looking forward your answers!
Domain Hosting and Bandwidth
Why bandwidth is so important when you sign up for a web hosting plan? By definition, bandwidth is the amount of data that passes through a certain connection over a period of time. Its unit of measurement is bits-per-second or bps, while it can also be measured in megabits per second, or mbps. This term is interchangeable with data transfer allowance.
Web hosting provider put a high regard to bandwidth because as the web hosting client, you need to see to it that the amount of data transferred is acceptable, because this will help determine how much data is allowed for your website. The transfer allowance is basically the amount of allowable data transferred between your website and the people accessing your website. Now the million dollar question is: how do you determine the amount of transfer allowance that your website needs? If you want to know, you should take a good look at the actual data transfer created by your website.
To cite an example, if your website has 5 pages, then each page is approximately 50 kb. This means that if a user will take a look at one page of your site then that amounts to 50 kb. If he views 5 pages then that's 50 kb multiplied by 5 (pages) which makes it 250 kb. If you have around a hundred visitors in a day and they view all your web pages, then that is about 25,000 kb or 24.41 megabytes. If you multiply this amount with 30 (number of days in a one month period), then that is the transfer allowance or the bandwidth you will need per month. Take note that there should still be extra room for other things which require data allowance, such as emailing, utilizing FTP, and uploading. So you see, getting a good understanding of the bandwidth your site needs will surely help smoothen the flow of traffic to your website.
Web hosting provider put a high regard to bandwidth because as the web hosting client, you need to see to it that the amount of data transferred is acceptable, because this will help determine how much data is allowed for your website. The transfer allowance is basically the amount of allowable data transferred between your website and the people accessing your website. Now the million dollar question is: how do you determine the amount of transfer allowance that your website needs? If you want to know, you should take a good look at the actual data transfer created by your website.
To cite an example, if your website has 5 pages, then each page is approximately 50 kb. This means that if a user will take a look at one page of your site then that amounts to 50 kb. If he views 5 pages then that's 50 kb multiplied by 5 (pages) which makes it 250 kb. If you have around a hundred visitors in a day and they view all your web pages, then that is about 25,000 kb or 24.41 megabytes. If you multiply this amount with 30 (number of days in a one month period), then that is the transfer allowance or the bandwidth you will need per month. Take note that there should still be extra room for other things which require data allowance, such as emailing, utilizing FTP, and uploading. So you see, getting a good understanding of the bandwidth your site needs will surely help smoothen the flow of traffic to your website.
Tips on Choosing a Good Domain Name
Before you rush out and choose your domain name or name your website, you might want to consider the following points:
Your Domain Name Should Be Your Website Name
Naming your site after your domain may seem obvious to some of you, but you'll be surprised to learn that not every website is named after the domain name even when the webmaster owns that domain name.
Naming a site after its domain name is important, for the simple reason that when people think of your website, they'll think of it by name. If your name is also your URL, they'll automatically know where to go. For example, when people think of thefreecountry.com, they don't have to wonder what URL to type into their browser to get there. The name of the site is also the URL.
Imagine if your business (or website) is called "Acme", but somebody else holds that domain name. Instead, you have some obscure domain name called, say, "mybusiness.com". What happens when your customers, recalling that Acme has a product they want, type "www.acme.com"? They'll wind up at your competitor's website. One lost sale.
In the modern world of the Internet, where people automatically turn to the Web for information, it pays to have a domain name that reflects your site or business. There are just fewer things for your customers or visitors to remember. Moreover, you don't seriously think that they'll try to memorise an unrelated URL just because you want them to, do you? The only people who'll memorise it are you and your competitors who want to compare your prices.
What if you cannot get the domain name of your choice? It really depends on how committed you are to that particular name. If you have an existing brand name that you're known for, you'll probably not want to ditch that name just because you couldn't get the domain name. After all, it took you a lot of time and money to establish that name. If so, you might simply want to try to buy over the domain name from the current owner. Check up the "whois" information for the domain, and contact that person listed to see if they're willing to sell it. You probably should be aware that they are likely to want to charge a higher fee than you'll normally get when buying new domains (assuming they want to sell it in the first place).
On the other hand, if you're just starting out, you might prefer the cheaper alternative of trying to obtain a domain name first, and then naming your website (or business) after the domain that you've acquired. So if you've acquired, say, the domain name "acme.com", then your website and business might be named "Acme" or "acme.com". I know this seems a bit like putting the cart before the horse, but that's the reality if you don't want to lose out on the Internet.
Generic Names Or Brand Name Domains?
know that a number of people seem to think that your domain name really must be some generic name like "cars.com" if you are selling cars. Witness, for example, how much money those generic names are being sold for. But seriously, if you were looking for a car, you'll probably already have some brands in mind, and you're more like to try out things like generalmotors.com or toyota.com rather than just cars.com.
For that reason, I personally feel that a domain name that matches your brand name is very important. The very name that you use to advertise your product is the name that you will want for your domain, because that is the first thing that people will try in their browser. It is also the easiest thing for them to remember, and whatever that is easily remembered, will be more likely to be tried out than the obscure domain name
Long or Short Domain Names?
Domain names can be of any length up to 67 characters. You don't have to settle for an obscure domain name like avab.com when what you mean is AcmeVideosAndBooks.com.
Having said that, there appears to be some disagreement about whether a long or short domain name is better.
Some argue that shorter domain names are easier to remember, easier to type and far less susceptible to mistakes: for example, "getit.com" is easier to remember and less prone to typos than "connecttomywebsiteandobtainit.com".
Others argue that a longer domain name is usually easier on the human memory - for example, "gaepw.com" is a sequence of unrelated letters that is difficult to remember and type correctly, whereas if we expand it to its long form, "GetAnEconomicallyPricedWebsite.com", we are more likely to remember the domain name.
Some of these arguments are actually academic. It's increasingly difficult to get short meaningful domain names. I have not checked, but I'm fairly certain that names like "getit.com" and "good.com" have long been sold. If you manage to get a short domain name though, the key is to make sure it's a meaningful combination of characters and not the obscure "gaepw.com" in my contrived example above.
Long domain names that have your site keywords in them also have an advantage in that they fare better in a number of search engines. The latter give preference to keywords that are also found in your domain names. So, for example, if you have a site on free C++ compilers with a domain name like freecpluspluscompilers.com, it might fare better in a search for "free C++ compilers" than my other site, thefreecountry.com.
Which would I go for? I'd go for the shorter name if I can get a meaningful one, but I'm not averse to longer names. However, I would probably avoid extremely long names verging on 67 characters. Aside from the obvious problem that people might not be able to remember such a long name, it would also be a chore typing it and trying to fit it as a title on your web page.
Hyphenated Names?
Should you get a hyphenated name? There are a few things to consider here:
a. Disadvantage: It's easy to forget the hyphens when typing a name. Many users are used to typing things like freecpluspluscompilers.com but not free-c-plus-plus-compilers.com. They'll probably leave out the hyphens and wind up at your competitor's site.
b. Disadvantage: When people recommend your site to their friends verbally, having hyphens in your domain name leads to more potential errors than when the name does not contain hyphens. For example, how do you think your visitors will refer to your site if it is named "acme-books-and-videos.com"? They might say, "I visited Acme Book and Videos dot com yesterday. It was fabulous." Their friends, remembering that comment later, might type into their browsers "acmebooksandvideos.com". Oops.
c. Disadvantage: It's a pain in the neck to type. Enough said.
d. Advantage: Search engines can distinguish your keywords better and thus return your site more prominently in search results for those keywords occurring in your domain name.
e. Advantage: The non-hyphenated form may no longer be available. At least this way, you still get the domain name you want.
Personally, I prefer to avoid hyphenated names if I can, but I guess it really depends on your domain name and your situation
Plurals, "The", and "My" Forms of the Domain Name
Very often, if you can't get the domain name you want, the domain name registrar will suggest alternate forms of the name you typed. For example, if you wanted website.com, and it was taken (of course it is), it might suggest forms like:
thewebsite.commywebsite.comwebsites.com
and the like, if they were not already taken as well. The question is, should you take them?
My personal opinion is that if you take the "the..." and "my..." forms of the domain name, you must always remember to promote your site with the full form of the name. Otherwise, people are likely to forget to affix the necessary "the" or "my". For that reason, I always advertise my sites as "thesitewizard.com" and "thefreecountry.com" in their full domain name forms, rather than just "Free Country" or "Site Wizard" (without the article).
On the other hand, I would not take the plural form of the domain name (eg, websites.com) if I cannot also get "website.com", since the chance of the visitor failing to type the "s" in the name is very great. Think about the famous name tussle between etoys.com and etoy.com. Many people wanting to go to etoys.com were apparently going to etoy.com instead. If it happened to them, it can happen to you too.
COM, ORG, NET, etc?
One common question I encounter is from people who can't get the ".com" domain of their choice, but find the ".net", ".org" or other country-specific top level domains (TLDs) available (like .de, .nu, .sg, etc). Should they try for these?
The answer is not as straightforward as you might think. If your website or business caters to the local community, such as a pizza delivery business or recruitment agency or the like, then it makes sense to get a country-specific domain. You actually benefit from having such a local domain because the people in your country know that they're dealing with a local entity, which is what they want. After all, if they stay in (say) the United Kingdom, they're not likely to want to try to order pizza from pizzaparlour.com, which suggests a US or an international site. You'll have better luck calling it pizzaparlour.co.uk, ie, with a UK domain.
What if yours is a site or business that can benefit from an international audience? There are actually many schools of thought on this. I'll just mention a few common ones.
The first school of thought goes on the premise that it is better to have a domain name of your choice "myperfectdomain" even if it has a TLD of ".net", ".org" or some other country specific extension, than to wind up choosing an obscure domain name for the simple reason you can't get your first choice. Thus they would settle for domain names like "myperfectdomain.de" or "myperfectdomain.net" or whatever. Against this is the argument that if you get a country specific domain, people might think that your business only caters to that country.
Another school of thought finds that ".net" and ".org" extensions are actually quite acceptable domain names. For some, the ".org" extension actually describes the non-profit nature of their organisation. So, for example, the famous Apache web server can be found at "apache.org".
Others settle for the ".com" extension and no less. As grounds for their arguments, they cite the browser algorithms used to locate a website when a user simply types a name like "acme" into the browser. Apparently, the browser searches for a domain name "acme.com" before attempting "acme.net", etc. As such, people who do that will be delivered to your competitor's site if you do not also own the ".com" extension. Indeed, even if people do not rely on their browser to complete their typing, many simply assume a ".com" extension when they type a domain name, so if your business is "Acme", they'll just assume your domain name is "acme.com" rather than "acme.net" or some other such name.
Your Domain Name Should Be Your Website Name
Naming your site after your domain may seem obvious to some of you, but you'll be surprised to learn that not every website is named after the domain name even when the webmaster owns that domain name.
Naming a site after its domain name is important, for the simple reason that when people think of your website, they'll think of it by name. If your name is also your URL, they'll automatically know where to go. For example, when people think of thefreecountry.com, they don't have to wonder what URL to type into their browser to get there. The name of the site is also the URL.
Imagine if your business (or website) is called "Acme", but somebody else holds that domain name. Instead, you have some obscure domain name called, say, "mybusiness.com". What happens when your customers, recalling that Acme has a product they want, type "www.acme.com"? They'll wind up at your competitor's website. One lost sale.
In the modern world of the Internet, where people automatically turn to the Web for information, it pays to have a domain name that reflects your site or business. There are just fewer things for your customers or visitors to remember. Moreover, you don't seriously think that they'll try to memorise an unrelated URL just because you want them to, do you? The only people who'll memorise it are you and your competitors who want to compare your prices.
What if you cannot get the domain name of your choice? It really depends on how committed you are to that particular name. If you have an existing brand name that you're known for, you'll probably not want to ditch that name just because you couldn't get the domain name. After all, it took you a lot of time and money to establish that name. If so, you might simply want to try to buy over the domain name from the current owner. Check up the "whois" information for the domain, and contact that person listed to see if they're willing to sell it. You probably should be aware that they are likely to want to charge a higher fee than you'll normally get when buying new domains (assuming they want to sell it in the first place).
On the other hand, if you're just starting out, you might prefer the cheaper alternative of trying to obtain a domain name first, and then naming your website (or business) after the domain that you've acquired. So if you've acquired, say, the domain name "acme.com", then your website and business might be named "Acme" or "acme.com". I know this seems a bit like putting the cart before the horse, but that's the reality if you don't want to lose out on the Internet.
Generic Names Or Brand Name Domains?
know that a number of people seem to think that your domain name really must be some generic name like "cars.com" if you are selling cars. Witness, for example, how much money those generic names are being sold for. But seriously, if you were looking for a car, you'll probably already have some brands in mind, and you're more like to try out things like generalmotors.com or toyota.com rather than just cars.com.
For that reason, I personally feel that a domain name that matches your brand name is very important. The very name that you use to advertise your product is the name that you will want for your domain, because that is the first thing that people will try in their browser. It is also the easiest thing for them to remember, and whatever that is easily remembered, will be more likely to be tried out than the obscure domain name
Long or Short Domain Names?
Domain names can be of any length up to 67 characters. You don't have to settle for an obscure domain name like avab.com when what you mean is AcmeVideosAndBooks.com.
Having said that, there appears to be some disagreement about whether a long or short domain name is better.
Some argue that shorter domain names are easier to remember, easier to type and far less susceptible to mistakes: for example, "getit.com" is easier to remember and less prone to typos than "connecttomywebsiteandobtainit.com".
Others argue that a longer domain name is usually easier on the human memory - for example, "gaepw.com" is a sequence of unrelated letters that is difficult to remember and type correctly, whereas if we expand it to its long form, "GetAnEconomicallyPricedWebsite.com", we are more likely to remember the domain name.
Some of these arguments are actually academic. It's increasingly difficult to get short meaningful domain names. I have not checked, but I'm fairly certain that names like "getit.com" and "good.com" have long been sold. If you manage to get a short domain name though, the key is to make sure it's a meaningful combination of characters and not the obscure "gaepw.com" in my contrived example above.
Long domain names that have your site keywords in them also have an advantage in that they fare better in a number of search engines. The latter give preference to keywords that are also found in your domain names. So, for example, if you have a site on free C++ compilers with a domain name like freecpluspluscompilers.com, it might fare better in a search for "free C++ compilers" than my other site, thefreecountry.com.
Which would I go for? I'd go for the shorter name if I can get a meaningful one, but I'm not averse to longer names. However, I would probably avoid extremely long names verging on 67 characters. Aside from the obvious problem that people might not be able to remember such a long name, it would also be a chore typing it and trying to fit it as a title on your web page.
Hyphenated Names?
Should you get a hyphenated name? There are a few things to consider here:
a. Disadvantage: It's easy to forget the hyphens when typing a name. Many users are used to typing things like freecpluspluscompilers.com but not free-c-plus-plus-compilers.com. They'll probably leave out the hyphens and wind up at your competitor's site.
b. Disadvantage: When people recommend your site to their friends verbally, having hyphens in your domain name leads to more potential errors than when the name does not contain hyphens. For example, how do you think your visitors will refer to your site if it is named "acme-books-and-videos.com"? They might say, "I visited Acme Book and Videos dot com yesterday. It was fabulous." Their friends, remembering that comment later, might type into their browsers "acmebooksandvideos.com". Oops.
c. Disadvantage: It's a pain in the neck to type. Enough said.
d. Advantage: Search engines can distinguish your keywords better and thus return your site more prominently in search results for those keywords occurring in your domain name.
e. Advantage: The non-hyphenated form may no longer be available. At least this way, you still get the domain name you want.
Personally, I prefer to avoid hyphenated names if I can, but I guess it really depends on your domain name and your situation
Plurals, "The", and "My" Forms of the Domain Name
Very often, if you can't get the domain name you want, the domain name registrar will suggest alternate forms of the name you typed. For example, if you wanted website.com, and it was taken (of course it is), it might suggest forms like:
thewebsite.commywebsite.comwebsites.com
and the like, if they were not already taken as well. The question is, should you take them?
My personal opinion is that if you take the "the..." and "my..." forms of the domain name, you must always remember to promote your site with the full form of the name. Otherwise, people are likely to forget to affix the necessary "the" or "my". For that reason, I always advertise my sites as "thesitewizard.com" and "thefreecountry.com" in their full domain name forms, rather than just "Free Country" or "Site Wizard" (without the article).
On the other hand, I would not take the plural form of the domain name (eg, websites.com) if I cannot also get "website.com", since the chance of the visitor failing to type the "s" in the name is very great. Think about the famous name tussle between etoys.com and etoy.com. Many people wanting to go to etoys.com were apparently going to etoy.com instead. If it happened to them, it can happen to you too.
COM, ORG, NET, etc?
One common question I encounter is from people who can't get the ".com" domain of their choice, but find the ".net", ".org" or other country-specific top level domains (TLDs) available (like .de, .nu, .sg, etc). Should they try for these?
The answer is not as straightforward as you might think. If your website or business caters to the local community, such as a pizza delivery business or recruitment agency or the like, then it makes sense to get a country-specific domain. You actually benefit from having such a local domain because the people in your country know that they're dealing with a local entity, which is what they want. After all, if they stay in (say) the United Kingdom, they're not likely to want to try to order pizza from pizzaparlour.com, which suggests a US or an international site. You'll have better luck calling it pizzaparlour.co.uk, ie, with a UK domain.
What if yours is a site or business that can benefit from an international audience? There are actually many schools of thought on this. I'll just mention a few common ones.
The first school of thought goes on the premise that it is better to have a domain name of your choice "myperfectdomain" even if it has a TLD of ".net", ".org" or some other country specific extension, than to wind up choosing an obscure domain name for the simple reason you can't get your first choice. Thus they would settle for domain names like "myperfectdomain.de" or "myperfectdomain.net" or whatever. Against this is the argument that if you get a country specific domain, people might think that your business only caters to that country.
Another school of thought finds that ".net" and ".org" extensions are actually quite acceptable domain names. For some, the ".org" extension actually describes the non-profit nature of their organisation. So, for example, the famous Apache web server can be found at "apache.org".
Others settle for the ".com" extension and no less. As grounds for their arguments, they cite the browser algorithms used to locate a website when a user simply types a name like "acme" into the browser. Apparently, the browser searches for a domain name "acme.com" before attempting "acme.net", etc. As such, people who do that will be delivered to your competitor's site if you do not also own the ".com" extension. Indeed, even if people do not rely on their browser to complete their typing, many simply assume a ".com" extension when they type a domain name, so if your business is "Acme", they'll just assume your domain name is "acme.com" rather than "acme.net" or some other such name.
15 tips on how not to get screwed by your web host
As a smart consumer, you must be aware that every web host are in the business to make money. Therefore, it’s necessary for web owners to put up certain level of defense against their own web host (even if they are trustworthy and efficient).
To get you started, here are 15 ways to protect yourself from a bad web hosting deal.
1. Register domain separately from your web host
Just because your web host offer a free domain doesn’t mean that you should let the hosting company controls your domain registration. Personally, I prefer keeping my domain names with a large registrant (in my case, GoDaddy) and separate them from the web host. By doing so, I can change my domain DNS anytime I want and avoid myself from being locked with a particular web host.
2. Test customer service before you sign up with a web host
A web host customer support department can be your savior or, nightmare. As most hosting companies provide 24/7 online chat support I suggest you to talk with their staffs at least once before you purchase. Ask questions to test the quality of their services and only go with those that provide satisfying answers.
3. If possible, pay with a debit card or PayPal
Lousy web hosts do not play gentlemanly when you are leaving them. I once had my website hosted with Network Eleven (which is a terrible hosting company) and they refused to stop charging my credit card when I unsubscribed my service. Eventually, I have to cancel my credit card in order to stop them bullying me. Moral of the story, always go safe when it comes to money. If possible, always pay your web host with a debit card or PayPal account. Just in case your web host turn bad, you can stop your subscription easily.
4. Learn the basics in web hosting
One good way to avoid from being fooled by the web host personnel is by educating yourself. Even if you are a non techie, make time to learn the basics in web hosting. You should at least understand the differences between various types of web hosting, pros and cons for different web host operating system, as well as some fundamental knowledge about hosting bandwidth.
5. Avoid web host with black-holed IP
Does your favorite web host allow spam activities? Is your website sharing the same server with a porn sites? All in all, is your hosting provider listed on Spamhaus Block List? Many hosting companies care little about what their clients are doing with the hosting as long as they get paid. Sharing same IP with such spammers will bring you nothing but troubles (imagine if your emails can only be found in your recipients spam box – terrible!).
So before you make any purchase decision, make sure you run a quick check with SpamHaus Block List.
6. Check your web host spam policy
I can’t stress how important it is to avoid hosting your website at a spammy web host. In fact, checking on SpamHaus Block List is not enough. A web host that isn’t black listed now doesn’t mean that they will not be blocked in future. To be safe, check out your web host’s spam policy in the FAQ section. A responsible web host will normally have clearly written guidelines in fighting spams. For example, as in my recent post about Lunarpages, there’s a policy where unsolicited bulk emails are forbidden with all Lunarpages accounts.
7. Understand the meaning of overselling
Overselling might not be a bad thing as it cuts down web hosting cost. However you have to be clear about the meaning of overselling. A manged-overselling is acceptable; but overselling without proper planning is simply rubbish and you should runaway from such hosting services as far as possible. To learn if your web host is well prepared for overselling, check your server load regularly. Do not hesitate to complain or even switch host if things look fishy to you.
8. Make sure your web host offer long enough trial period
Following up on the overselling issue, it’s important to work only with web host that offers long enough trial period. This is to ensure you have sufficient time to test out the servers without any risk of losing money.
9. Understand that unlimited hosting is NOT unlimited
Accept it, unlimited hosting is only unlimited when you are not using too much of the hosting capacity. All hosting services are offered based on series of limited resources – how are you suppose to get unlimited hosting capacity with just $3.95 per month? So be wise, if you foresee your website will attracts crazy volume of traffics, a dedicated hosting is the way to go.
Learn when you should pick up a dedicated server.
10. Ensure that your web host provide clear refund policy
Does your web host provide full money return if you choose to refund your service within trial period? How about the refund policy after the trial session? It’s important to know your web host refund policy in-and-out so that you won’t panic when things go wrong. A point worth noting is that some good host (Bluehost, for example) provide pro-rated refund even if your trial period is past. Needless to say, web host offering such benefits is always recommended.
11. Find out what others have to say about the web host
When it comes to web host shopping, it’s important to get opinion from your experienced friends. These friends can be your neighbors, Poker buddies, favorite bloggers or even Internet friends you met on FaceBook. User reviews are always helpful when it comes to picking up the right host!
(In case you need my opinion, here’s where I place my honest hosting review based on my real usage experience.)
12. Read and participate in related forum discussions
As said, nothing’s more important than getting yourself educated. If you are into website hosting, make sure you visit frequent enough on related forums. Web Hosting Talk and Webmaster World are the two best places to visit. I suggest all of you mark them down on your favorite list and visit them from time to time.
13. Make sure your web host runs on with a redundancy protection plan
When dealing with smaller hosting merchants, make sure they have their own data centers and more over, have the data centers fully protected with redundant power supplies and connectivity. “How many lines do they have coming into the facility? Do they have redundant power to the servers? Do they have an on-site power generator? What sort of security measures do they have for the network?” – these are the basic questions to be asked.
So go back to tips #2 and test their support!
14. Do your own backups regularly
Even if your web host provides sufficient redundancy protection, do not trust them 100%. Your website should be backed up always. Utilize cPanel’s cron job and backup features to ensure backup works are done regularly without fail.
15. Always keep your option open
Last but not least, always have an open mind in term of your web hosting choice. It is, after all, simple to switch your website from one host to another. So why stuck with the same old lousy host? If they don’t appreciate your business, someone else will.
To get you started, here are 15 ways to protect yourself from a bad web hosting deal.
1. Register domain separately from your web host
Just because your web host offer a free domain doesn’t mean that you should let the hosting company controls your domain registration. Personally, I prefer keeping my domain names with a large registrant (in my case, GoDaddy) and separate them from the web host. By doing so, I can change my domain DNS anytime I want and avoid myself from being locked with a particular web host.
2. Test customer service before you sign up with a web host
A web host customer support department can be your savior or, nightmare. As most hosting companies provide 24/7 online chat support I suggest you to talk with their staffs at least once before you purchase. Ask questions to test the quality of their services and only go with those that provide satisfying answers.
3. If possible, pay with a debit card or PayPal
Lousy web hosts do not play gentlemanly when you are leaving them. I once had my website hosted with Network Eleven (which is a terrible hosting company) and they refused to stop charging my credit card when I unsubscribed my service. Eventually, I have to cancel my credit card in order to stop them bullying me. Moral of the story, always go safe when it comes to money. If possible, always pay your web host with a debit card or PayPal account. Just in case your web host turn bad, you can stop your subscription easily.
4. Learn the basics in web hosting
One good way to avoid from being fooled by the web host personnel is by educating yourself. Even if you are a non techie, make time to learn the basics in web hosting. You should at least understand the differences between various types of web hosting, pros and cons for different web host operating system, as well as some fundamental knowledge about hosting bandwidth.
5. Avoid web host with black-holed IP
Does your favorite web host allow spam activities? Is your website sharing the same server with a porn sites? All in all, is your hosting provider listed on Spamhaus Block List? Many hosting companies care little about what their clients are doing with the hosting as long as they get paid. Sharing same IP with such spammers will bring you nothing but troubles (imagine if your emails can only be found in your recipients spam box – terrible!).
So before you make any purchase decision, make sure you run a quick check with SpamHaus Block List.
6. Check your web host spam policy
I can’t stress how important it is to avoid hosting your website at a spammy web host. In fact, checking on SpamHaus Block List is not enough. A web host that isn’t black listed now doesn’t mean that they will not be blocked in future. To be safe, check out your web host’s spam policy in the FAQ section. A responsible web host will normally have clearly written guidelines in fighting spams. For example, as in my recent post about Lunarpages, there’s a policy where unsolicited bulk emails are forbidden with all Lunarpages accounts.
7. Understand the meaning of overselling
Overselling might not be a bad thing as it cuts down web hosting cost. However you have to be clear about the meaning of overselling. A manged-overselling is acceptable; but overselling without proper planning is simply rubbish and you should runaway from such hosting services as far as possible. To learn if your web host is well prepared for overselling, check your server load regularly. Do not hesitate to complain or even switch host if things look fishy to you.
8. Make sure your web host offer long enough trial period
Following up on the overselling issue, it’s important to work only with web host that offers long enough trial period. This is to ensure you have sufficient time to test out the servers without any risk of losing money.
9. Understand that unlimited hosting is NOT unlimited
Accept it, unlimited hosting is only unlimited when you are not using too much of the hosting capacity. All hosting services are offered based on series of limited resources – how are you suppose to get unlimited hosting capacity with just $3.95 per month? So be wise, if you foresee your website will attracts crazy volume of traffics, a dedicated hosting is the way to go.
Learn when you should pick up a dedicated server.
10. Ensure that your web host provide clear refund policy
Does your web host provide full money return if you choose to refund your service within trial period? How about the refund policy after the trial session? It’s important to know your web host refund policy in-and-out so that you won’t panic when things go wrong. A point worth noting is that some good host (Bluehost, for example) provide pro-rated refund even if your trial period is past. Needless to say, web host offering such benefits is always recommended.
11. Find out what others have to say about the web host
When it comes to web host shopping, it’s important to get opinion from your experienced friends. These friends can be your neighbors, Poker buddies, favorite bloggers or even Internet friends you met on FaceBook. User reviews are always helpful when it comes to picking up the right host!
(In case you need my opinion, here’s where I place my honest hosting review based on my real usage experience.)
12. Read and participate in related forum discussions
As said, nothing’s more important than getting yourself educated. If you are into website hosting, make sure you visit frequent enough on related forums. Web Hosting Talk and Webmaster World are the two best places to visit. I suggest all of you mark them down on your favorite list and visit them from time to time.
13. Make sure your web host runs on with a redundancy protection plan
When dealing with smaller hosting merchants, make sure they have their own data centers and more over, have the data centers fully protected with redundant power supplies and connectivity. “How many lines do they have coming into the facility? Do they have redundant power to the servers? Do they have an on-site power generator? What sort of security measures do they have for the network?” – these are the basic questions to be asked.
So go back to tips #2 and test their support!
14. Do your own backups regularly
Even if your web host provides sufficient redundancy protection, do not trust them 100%. Your website should be backed up always. Utilize cPanel’s cron job and backup features to ensure backup works are done regularly without fail.
15. Always keep your option open
Last but not least, always have an open mind in term of your web hosting choice. It is, after all, simple to switch your website from one host to another. So why stuck with the same old lousy host? If they don’t appreciate your business, someone else will.
Domain Names
One of the most important things you will have to do when starting a website is to pick a domain name. It for sure is not the easiest thing to do, as most good ones already are taken, and it is at the same time something that can make or break your business. A domain name is a unique name that usually offers a public service as the World Wide Web or e-mail. Originally it is a numeric IP Address, but the DNS (Domain Name System) translated into IP addresses into alphabetical letters. Having an alphabetical address instead of a numerical makes the site easier to find for visitors.
So, how does one know what domain names are up for grabs? You can use a domain searcher such as our - simply type in the name that you want. You will immediately find out if the domain name is taken or not. If the domain you want is already taken, you will get a list of names that could be of interest to you. GoDaddy and similar domain registrars work in a similar way. One difference is that if you go directly to a registrar and the domain name already is taken you could possibly obtain it anyway with the help of a "Domain Buy Agent." These agents will look up and contact the owner of the domain and make them an offer to sell it.
More about DNS
The [[LinkExternal:www.webhostingsearch.com/articles/what-is-dns.php]]Domain Name System[[/Link]] was created in 1983 and it translates numbers into letters and meaningful domain names for us humans. One can say that the DNS is the phonebook of the Internet. Ít also makes sure that the readable names are translated into the abstruse IP addresses, which the computers need to communicate with each other.
Apart from allowing you to easily surf the Internet will the Domain Name System also make sure that all of your e-mails find its way to the inbox. In other words, a stabile DNS is necessary for companies wanting to work effectively and that wants everything to run smoothly.
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