The Basics of Owning a Website

Registering A Domain Name

You register a domain name with a Registrar.

You own a domain name in the same way you own a house with a mortgage. The moment you stop payments, the house ceases to belong to you. Unlike a mortgage on a house, you pay for your domain name indefinitely.

Always register the domain name yourself

Here's the typical horror story if you don't.

Client signs up with a Shady Hosting Company who tells him that they'll register the domain for them as part of the service. Shady Hosting Company registers the domain name www.theclientscompany.com under themselves as the domain name owners. Shady Hosting Company's email and name are on the registration effectively giving them ownership of that domain.

A few weeks later, Client realizes that Shady Hosting Company is shady and wants to move www.theclientscompany.com to Happy Clients Hosting Company. Shady Hosting Company won't relinquish the domain name because they didn't register the domain name under the Client's name even though they said they did.

Client spends a couple of years fighting this in court and trying to sort it out with the Registrar to get his domain name back.

Moral of the story: Register the domain name yourself.

Registrar Companies

I use two companies:

• Network Solutions ($25/year)
• Godaddy ($10/year)

Network Solutions is easier to navigate, but more expensive. Godaddy cost less but more confusing to use.

There are many other registrar companies, but these are the two most established.

Finding a domain name that isn't being used

Though both Network Solutions and Godaddy have a search function to find available names, I don't like using them.

The current rumor is that if you don't buy your domain name right away, that information is sent to a 3rd Party company that buys up your domain name and tries to sell it back to you at a higher price.

I use www.whois.sc instead.

Steps to Registering your domain name

1. Search Whois.sc until you find a domain name that isn't used
2. Go to the Registrar web site and fill out the sign up form
3. Fill out the register new domain form
4. Fill out the pay for purhase form