Domain Names Explained

One of the most essential requirements for running a successful online presence is the domain name. It is what visitors will mark first when they visit your site and what they will link you with. The domain name should be easy to remember, but should also be something that tells your website's visitors what the site is about.

Generic Top-Level Domains (gTLDs)

A domain name traditionally contains two parts - a Top-Level Domain (TLD) and a Second-Level Domain Name (SLD). If you have domain.com, for instance, ".com" is the Top-Level Domain and "domain" is the Second-Level Domain Name. There are several sets of Top-Level Domain Names that you should consider before you pick the domain name you want. Your choice should rest on the intention of your website and on its target visitors. Let's take a glimpse at the gTLDs, or generic TLDs - these are the most common Top-Level Domain Names intended to designate a given function - .com (business establishments), .net (networks), .biz (companies), .info (informational sites), .org (not-for-profit organizations), .mobi (handheld devices), .asia (the Asia-Pacific), .name (individuals or relatives), .pro (given walks of life), etc. As you can see, these TLDs cover most spheres of life, so you should select the one that would describe the intention of your web page best. There is no restriction as to who can register such domain names, but some of them involve additional steps to demonstrate that you are eligible to have such a Top-Level Domain Name (.mobi and .pro, for example).

Country-code Top-Level Domains (ccTLDs)

The ccTLDs, or country-code TLDs, are country-specific Top-Level Domains. Each country has its own ccTLD. Choosing such a domain name is good if your target group of site visitors is from a specific country. Many visitors would rather purchase goods or services from a local web page, and if your target is Canada, for example, picking a .ca domain name could increase the visits to your web page.

Domain Redirects

You can register a bunch of Top-Level Domains, which can redirect your visitors to a specific web site like domain.com, for instance. This would increase the traffic and reduce the chance of someone swiping your site visitors by using the same Second-Level Domain with another Top-Level Domain Name - if you are not utilizing a trademark.

Name Servers (NSs)

Every Top-Level Domain Name has domain name records. The name server records (NS records, aka DNS records) display where the domain name is hosted, i.e. they point to the web hosting distributor whose name servers (NSs, also known as DNSs) it is utilizing at present. You can change the DNSs of your domain name whenever you want. You can have your domain name registered with one company and get the website hosting service itself from another. Hence, if you register your domain and detect good website hosting solutions somewhere else at a later time, you can point your domain name to the current provider's NSs straight off.

Domain Name Server Records (DNS Records)

On the whole, as long as your domain uses a particular pair of NSs, all its domain name server records will direct to the same website hosting distributor. Some website hosting companies, however, permit you to modify specific domain name records, among them the A records and the MX records of your domain name. The A record is an Internet Protocol address, which specifies on which server your web site is hosted, whereas the MX records show which web server handles the mailbox accounts related to your domain name. For example, if you engage a new site designer and he designs an .ASP site that will be situated on his personal Windows hosting server, you may want to modify only the IP address (the A record) but not the MX records of your domain name. Thus, www.domain.com will direct to the Windows hosting server, but your mail accounts or any sub-domain names such as forum.domain.com or shop.domain.com will still be in your current Linux hosting account. The .ASP environment is designed by Microsoft and demands a Windows hosting server, although a Linux web server would be far more stable.

Cheap Domains Offered by 'NameCheaply'

Only a few web hosting companies permit you to edit certain domain name records and very often this an extra paid service. With us, you have an enormous assortment of TLDs to pick from and you can modify all name server records or redirect the domain names using a redirection tool at no added cost.