What is domain?

A domain name is your website name. A domain name is the address where Internet users can access your website. A domain name is used for finding and identifying computers on the Internet. Computers use IP addresses, which are a series of number. However, it is difficult for humans to remember strings of numbers. Because of this, domain names were developed and used to identify entities on the Internet rather than using IP addresses.

A domain name can be any combination of letters and numbers, and it can be used in combination of the various domain name extensions, such as .com, .net and more.

History

The Domain Name System was introduced on ARPANET, a project under the U.S. Advanced Research Projects Agency.

ARPANET was originally published in 1967 and introduced a concept for the network that was essentially the foundation for the Internet. In 1969, the idea was put into practice with the interconnection of four computers. Much later, the Domain Name System was introduced on the ARPANET. It was published by the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF).

To simplify, a domain name allows you to access whatever it is you need to access that exists within the Internet. Domain names first came to use in through the Domain Name System in 1983, with general public registration not being available until February 24, 1986.

Types of Domain

Choosing a domain name is vital for anyone who’s building a new website. 

Your domain name will be the face of your brand, and if you want to increase the chances of your website succeeding, then you’ll take the time to find a brandable and memorable domain name.

But, there’s a lot more that goes into a domain name than you might think. In fact, there are five different types of domain names you’ll have to choose between.

• TLDs -Top Level Domains

These are at the highest level in the DNS structure of the Internet. There are several different types of TLD’s being:

.mil– Military
.eu– Educational Institutions
.gov– Government
.org– Organizations
.net – Networking companies (technology)
.com – Commercial Entities (with restrictions)

• ccTLD -country code Top Level Domains

A country code top-level domain (ccTLD) is a top-level domain name that is used to define the domain for a particular country or a geographical area. Every country has a domain name reserved for it; this is generally denoted by a ccTLD, which is generally two letters long.

• gTLD – generic Top Level Domain

is an internet domain name extension with three or more characters. It is one of the categories of the Top Level domain (TLD) in the Domain Name System (DNS) maintained by the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority.

• IDN ccTLD – internationalized country code top-level domains

IDN ccTLD’s are specially encoded domain names that are displayed in an end user application, such as a web browser, in their language-native script or alphabet, such as the Arabic alphabet, or a non-alphabetic writing system, such as Chinese characters.

Other Domain name type

• Second-Level Domain (SLD)

A second-level domain is the part of a domain name or website address that comes before the top-level domain.

• Third-Level Domain

A third-level domain name is the part of a domain name or website address that comes before the second-level domain name. Third-level domains are also called “sub-domains” as they sometimes refer to specific sections or pages of a website.

• Premium Domain.

A premium domain  is a domain that already has an owner, but is being resold at a higher value to a potential end user. These domains tend to be short, keyword rich, and come with a hefty price tag. they included the likes of insurance.com, hotels.com, and casinos.com etc.

How Do Domain Names Work?

Domain names are crucial, as they enable computers to find the server where your website is hosted. Website files can then be retrieved from that server, allowing users to access your site on their browsers.

How Much Does a Domain Cost?

Domain names vary in price dramatically. Some domain names literally cost millions, yet some you can get for free. However, on average, a regular domain name will cost you from around $10-15 a year.