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What is a Domain Name ?

As your phone number is unique so is the identity of every computer on the Internet. Every time you connect your ISP assigns you an Internet Protocol or IP address such as 185.182.73.xxx that identifies your computer on the Internet.

A Domain Name converts these numbers into something more recogniseable and memorable such as geminiwebdesign.co.uk and is organised within something called the Domain Name System (DNS) which converts and recognises these names and appropriate IP numbers to make the contact between one computer and another on the Internet.

We strongly advise you to register your company name on the Internet as soon as possible.

Benefits

By registering your domain name, this allows you to become more personalised on the Net, with a memorable website and email addresses. Only one domain name with a particular extension can exist on the Internet, so thousands of people are securing their names right now to ensure that they get the name they want. What's more, you don't have to have a web site in order to register. So if you do want a name for your Internet presence, don't delay, they are going like 'hot cakes' - and that's no exaggeration.

Summary

  • Your customers can access your Web Site via your chosen name e.g. "http://www.homebuilder.com" rather than "http://www.freeserve.com/~joebloggs".
  • You get personalised e-mail. Again, rather than "joebloggs@freeserve.com" , you get "sales@homebuilder.com" for example.
  • This is far tidier, more professional and of course, easier to remember.
  • Your e-mail addresses are unlimited so you can have as many prefixes as you want. This will help you sort your mail as it arrives.
  • Domain registration will also help your rankings in any search engine.

Domain Types

Each country has its own extension they are allowed to assign to names such as .co.uk, .us, .se, .fr and so on, and there are also International domain names such as .com, net, etc. Each country therefore has its own central registry where all the domain names for that country are registered. In the UK this central registry is called Nominet. For international domains, there are a number of companies who can register the domains, but the central database is held by one company, InterNic.

  • .co.uk. - Most commonly used for small business in the UK today.
  • .com. - The most widely known and used. Globally recognised. Essential for international trading.
  • .net. - Only available to Internet Service Providers. (International)
  • .ltd.uk. - Domains must exactly match the Companies House listing. e.g. if you have "Joes Window Cleaners Limited" you can apply only for joeswindowcleaners.ltd.uk or joes-window-cleaners.ltd.uk. This cannot be shortened. All applications for .ltd.uk domains must be accompanied by your Companies House registration number.
  • .org. - Organisations, Charities, Universities etc.(International)
  • .gov. - Government only.(International)

Who owns the name?

At all times you are the legal registrant of the domain name and the name is simply registered and held on your behalf by the company through which your name was purchased. So long as you continue to pay the renewal fees when due for the domain name you can continue to use it indefinitely.

Cost

Costs are coming down all the time and are extremely cheap today. The actual charges depend on your choice of domain type.

Initially there is a small charge for this arrangement which covers Internet Naming Authority fees for the first two years and Web Site & e-mail forwarding. You can choose to have your site "Masked" if you wish for a small additional charge. URL Masking is where your actual web site address is hidden. That is, your domain name will stay displayed in your browsers' address bar. Again this is more professional as it doesn't show who is hosting your site.

Check to see if your Domain is still available

www. 

Name      

Address  



City      

County

Post Code
 
Telephone    			

Fax
 

E-Mail
 

We will check this on your behalf and send you the results by e-mail.

A domain name can contain a letter, number or hyphen, or minus sign. A hyphen must not appear at the start or end of the domain name.

.com, .net and .org domain names must be three characters or more wide. The maximum length of a .com, .net or .org domain name is 63 characters. This excludes the "." and the "com".

.uk domains must be at least three characters wide. Historically two-letter domain names have been issued by Nominet but this is no longer the case. uk domains can be extremely long, in excess of 50 digits. In most practical cases this limit is never reached.

.ltd.uk domains must exactly match the Companies House listing. For example if you have "Joes Window Cleaners Limited" you can apply only for joeswindowcleaners.ltd.uk or joes-window-cleaners.ltd.uk. This cannot be shortened. All applications for .ltd.uk domains must be accompanied by your Companies House registration number.

.net.uk domains are issued to Internet Service Providers only.