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Domain Names FAQ's
What is a domain name?
A Domain
Name is a group of letters, numbers, and hyphens in the form "yourownname.com"
or "yourownname.net" where "yourownname" can be almost anything.
A Domain
Name should be relatively easy to remember. The domain can be used
as the address for your web site and/or can be used as your e-mail
address. 
Why do I need a domain name?
All Domain
Names are unique. It is your identity on the World Wide Web. For
businesses and organizations, a domain name can help brand your
products and services. For individuals and clubs, a domain can identify
your affiliations, relationships, or can just be your online personality.
What characters can you use in a domain name
and how long can it be?
The valid characters for domain names are the alphabet, numbers,
and hyphens. Domain names are not case sensitive, therefore YourOwnName.net
and yourownname.net are NOT different. A domain name cannot start
or end with a hyphen. Special characters such as exclamation marks
(!), question marks (?), and underscores (_) are not allowed and
there can be no spaces in a domain name.
A domain
name can only be 26 characters long, which includes the extension.
Therefore, if you are using the .com/.net/.org extensions, your
desired name can be 22 characters long.
What is DNS and how does it work?
DNS stands
for Domain Name System and is the system that the Internet uses
to find the information on the web. Domain names are registered
with a central organization in each country and each domain name
is associated with two DNS servers, a primary server and a backup
server. In the United States the registry is called InterNIC.
When
someone types in a Domain Name into a web browser their Internet
Service Provider's (ISPs) DNS computer looks into its cache for
an IP (Internet Protocol) address associated with that domain name.
If the ISP does not have an entry cached it sends a lookup query
to InterNIC's root servers which returns the DNS location associated
with the domain name back to the ISP. Once the ISP's computer finds
the IP address it can access the web site.
IP addresses
are typically 12 digit numbers which identify a computer on the
Internet. IP addresses are like street addresses. They refer to
specific servers and their physical location on the network. Domain
names are like the names on the mailboxes, they are associated with
people and with content.
What is InterNIC and what is Network Solutions Inc.?
InterNIC
stands for Internet Network Information Center and is the organization
in the United States that manages Internet domain names and the
DNS. Network Solutions Inc. is the company that has been contracted
by the US Government to administrate InterNIC. Register.com
is also an accredited registrar, and has an easier to use interface
when looking for available names.
For more
information on the future of the InterNIC you may want to read the
NTIA's white paper on the "Improvement of Technical Management of Internet Names and
Addresses" .
What is an IP address?
The Internet
Protocol address or IP Address is a numerical identifier for a computer
(server) attached to the Internet. An IP Address is four sets of
numbers separated with periods, and is typically a 12 digit number.
Do I need to have a server to register a domain name?
Yes.
As part of the application process InterNIC requires two domain
name servers to link to your domain name. When you sign up for service
with 3zWeb, we file an application on your behalf, and submit the
proper server information. We handle the registration for you, Free
of charge!
What are Top Level Domains (TLD) And what do they mean?
The Top
Level Domains (sometimes called Generic Top Level Domains) are the
last two or three letters in a domain name. Web sites outside of
the United States may have two letter country codes (for example:
.jp for Japan or .au for Australia).
Top
level domain signifiers
- .com
- .org
- Net
- .edu
- (educational institutions only)
- .gov
- (government institutions only)
- .mil
- (military use only)
- 2
letters - Denotes a country/region of the world
The .com,
.org and Net TLDs are available to the public.
How can I find out if a domain name is already registered?
Using
our domain search (at the top of this page) you can look up any
domain name instantly and find out if it has been taken in the .com,
Net, and .org domains.
Do I have to pay for domain name registration?
Yes:
Traditionally Network Solutions requires the $70 InterNIC fee to
keep track of your domain name and associated information. This
fee covers the first two years of domain name ownership. After that,
you would be charged $35 a year.
However,
as 3zWeb is starting to provide domain name registration as well,
you do not have to pay InterNIC's $70 any more. All you have to
pay is the registry fee charged by 3zWeb which is $10 per year lower
than Network Solutions, Register.com, etc. You will have full
domain name service including online business card, URL forwarding,
email forwarding etc. all with competitive price.
How do I pay the InterNIC fee?
You do
not have to pay for InterNIC if you have us register your domain
name. We will charge you the domain name registry fee instead. Our
price is only $25 a year! Since we get a volume discount, we can
save you $10 / yr.
How do I get an international domain?
3zWeb
can host international domain names with two letter country extension
codes, but we do not offer to register international domain names
for you. Here is the process:
The domain
owner is responsible for registering their domain with the country's
registry. Each country runs their registry differently, and therefore,
we cannot expedite the registration process. Each country will also
charge different amounts. The domain owner is reposible for making
all payments to the registry.
You will
most likely need information regarding DNS servers. If you desire
to host an international domain name through 3zWeb, we recommend
that you first find the registry of the country and examine their
application process.
How can I transfer my domain name to a different
web server?
We can do that for you Free, but first you will need to sign up
for one of our Web Hosting Plans.
To transfer
a domain name, you must go to your domain name registrar's website
and update the domain name server (DNS) with our name servers. After
you sign up with 3zWeb, we will send you the information you need
to update DNS.
Domain
name registrar will not transfer a domain without authorization
from the owner. 3zWeb cannot authorize the transfer - only the domain
owner can.
Why does my domain name still point to the site at my previous
host?
When
the DNS name server information is changed for a domain name, there
will be a period of time when someone trying to access the domain
name may be sent to your old site or another site altogether. This
period can last as little as a few days, or as long as a few weeks.
This initial confusing period is associated with the time it takes
for new nameserver entries to propagate to the entire Internet,
and may vary depending on the location the user is trying to access
your web site. This phenomena is due to what is known as "DNS caching".
Every
ISP (Internet Service Provider) and web hosting company operates
a Domain Name Service. The DNS server translates the domain name
into a numerical value that the computers on the Internet recognize.
The DNS server saves, or caches, previous translations, so that
later requests can be handled much more quickly (the name server
reads the stored information and does not have to perform a translation/search
each time the name is resolved). The cache of every DNS server is
deleted periodically. The length of time between purges is different
for everyone, though most hosts/ISP's clear DNS cache every seven
to ten days (some more frequently, some less frequently).
For example,
let's say your ISP clears their DNS cache every Saturday. If you
transfer your domain name to 3zWeb on Wednesday, any connection
to your site through your ISP will be using the old DNS information
for a few more days, so connections to your new site may fail during
that time. On the other hand, people visiting your site for the
first time will likely get right through. DNS caching is an unfortunate
fact of life on the Internet and cannot be avoided. To insure maximum
"up time" for your site, you may consider keeping the account at
your previous host active for the first month you're at 3zWeb. That
way, no one trying to find you will be sent to a nonexistent site.
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