My Domain names guide [2.] – Name registration

I do no see a lot of sense talking about the very basics and differences between domain names as they are really not that important. I will cover the most important basics in the next couple of points and move on to more important and fun stuff

• there are two different TLD groups as explained in the first article [generic tld's and country specific tld's]
• first level tld’s can not be registered by normal humans [you can not register a .your_tld ]
• second level domain names can be registered trough a domain registrar
• some TLD’s can only be registered under very specific circumstances
• prices between different tld’s are not the same and can vary really a lot

Domain name registration

If you want to register  a domain name you need to first find a domain name registrar. It’s a specialized company which sells domain names to its clients and can even provide them an interface to manage DNS settings for their client domain names. I would say it is very good to find a company offering full DNS management with a descent DNS control panel. The reason is you will mostly like to change your DNS settings from time to time. One simple example would be when moving between web hosting companies. You would need to point your name servers to the new web host.

First thing to do is to find a name registrar. You can use multiple domain name registrars, but it is very convenient to have all your domain names at one company. And thus it is very important to choose the right one. Some points to take into consideration when searching for the right registrar:

• pricing – different companies offer you different price for the same domain name tld!!! You can save a lot or you can loose if you do not read carefully. Be patient and look into all possibilities – it will pay big in the long run.
• privacy protection – if you feel like the Internet is a big and scary place or you do not feel like you want to get all the spam messages from the Internet it is good to use  a Privacy Guard or WhoIs Guard. Some companies offer it for free or a symbolic price. I would not recommend spending $10 on this feature as there is nothing really worth $10 and there are tons of companies offering it for very good prices
• addon services – some registrars offer you some add-ons you can use when you register the domain name with them. It can be a free basic hosting, place holder, email hosting, Google Apps and these are only some of them and there are many more out there…

What do you need to register a domain name?

You should know what is the name you want to register. Find the company you want to register the domain name at and register for an account. You will be asked to fill in your personal information. Name, address, phone number are just a few of the mandatory fields you will have to fill in. You do not need to register right away. You can perform a search for your desired domain name and if it’s free then just hit the “BUY” button and you will be asked to register.

If the domain name is not free you can still order it with a different TLD, but this is up to you to decide. You can even try to even buy an already registered domain name, but this is beyond this article and I will cover it in a future article.

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