Domains Names Explained | How to register a Domain Name

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Domain Names Explained

Some common questions about domains

What is a Domain Name ?

A domain name is a human friendly way to locate/define something on the internet.

Domains are translated by DNS (Domain Name Services) to their IP Address like 111.222.333.444 (ipv4) or 1111:3333:5555:7777:9999:BBBB:DDDD:FFFF (ipv6)

As you can see astutium.com is much easier to remember and type than 2001:4bf0:1:0:100:0:10:10 !

Most commonly, domain names are registered to provide an easy way to find a website or for use as an email address.

How do I buy (register) a Domain Name ?

To register a domain name you need a domain registrar - there are two types: accredited domain registrars and domain name resellers.

We advise you always register your domain names with an Accredited Domain Registrar like Astutium.com

Before you can register (buy) a domain name, it has to be available - search for yours now ...

What can I use a Domain for ?

A domain name (with DNS) can be used for email addresses, as an address for your new or existing website, as names for your servers or simply to protect your intellectual property/brand/online identity.

What are the different Domain Name Extensions ?

There are thousands of different TLDs (Top Level Domains / Domain Extensions):

  • country specific (ccTLD) - such as .co.uk .ie .me .fr .so .gr .cx .com.mx
  • generic / global (gTLD) - such as .com .net .org .biz .info .travel .pro .xxx
  • regional (rTLD) - such as .eu .africa .paris .london
  • new (newGTLD) - such as .bike .photo .sucks .xyz .luxury .horse .blog

For details on each domain extension (part right of the ast dot) see our Domain Extensions Wiki

What are the new GTLDs ?

From 2013 through to 2016 there are a lot of new domain extensions (known as the newGTLDs) being launched, many with massive hype. For a list of proposed, actual, existing and forthcoming newGTLDs see our List of newGTLDs

Which Domain is best for me ?

The very best domain names are:

  • Short
  • Memorable/Clever
  • Meaningful
  • An appropriate extension

For your new domain name to be of any use, it has to be advertised - on your business cards, letterheads, sale-brochures - for this, shorter is better (as a general rule), so keep it easy to type and under 18 characters long.

Clever domain names (called domain 'hacks') are very popular, where the extension form part of the name like Astuti.UM.

Otherwise stick to your local ccTLD (.co.uk for UK companies, .ca for Canadians etc) and the main gTLDs like .com and .org.

If your brand/business/name includes multiple 'words' you should register both the hyphenated and abbreviated versions.

If you are registering a business domain, you should also register a .tel domain which is your online contact page to help your customers find your business quickly and easily.

Now you know the details about domains and how to register a domain name, get started now and register yours before it's taken....