domain names? .....need help with info

when you register a domain name, it associates a web address with an ip, so people can enter in www.benisthecoolestguyintheworld.com and go to your site, instead of having to enter the ip address of your server.

not required, but you can find plenty of registers out there for less than $10 a year

 

the service provided is maintaining the tables of what ip the web addresses are associated with.

www.networksolutions.com 12.99/year been around forever.


Are you wanting to host this on your personal computer?

 

i think networksolutions also offer hosting, but i usually just get hosting elsewhere and transfer the domain name (very easy to do)

currently using 1 and 1 hosting, very cheap, pay about $60 every 6 months. Only had to deal with tech support once, was on hold less than two minutes.

 

You purchase a domain name. Network Solutions is fine; personally, I use GoDaddy. That will run you probably 10-15 bucks a year depending on the bells and whistles. *Just* the domain - a .com - is up to ~$11 I think at GoDaddy.

You will also need hosting. 1and1 was mentioned, Hostgator is good, Network Solutions is also probably fine for what you're looking for. All of those assume that you're on a "shared" web server - one server will host a lot of domains, all segmented off on a per customer basis. A shared server will cost ~$10 per month. A dedicated server that you run on your own, if you have a bunch of traffic and have someone who can manage it, will cost at least $100 per month. Shared is fine for 99% of the people out there.

After you secure hosting and a domain name, you need to set up the DNS record. Usually, this just means pointing the DNS server for your domain to the hosting company's DNS server. The hosting company does the rest of the actual entry when it creates your domain on the shared server. DNS is what maps yourdomain.com to the aa.bb.cc.dd server ip address.

 

www.bluehost.com
$10 to register the domain
$4.95 for unlimited hosting (as many domains as you register). Unlimited
bandwidth, virtually unlimited storage.

Jedi

 

At least the five years all of my domains have been there... great service,
never had an "outage".... never an issue of any sort, but CHEAP. That $4.95
a month for UNLIMITED hosting of as many domains as you can buy is
pretty cool. And having the hosting and registration linked is a HUGE save
in "hassle factor"

Jedi

 

If you're using Network Solutions for both the domain registration and the hosting, it's very possible you won't have to modify any DNS settings.

 

the DNS service is provided by the register (network solutions, etc) you just update the records with the ip address your hosting company provides.

 

1. Create a www.bluehost.com hosting account
2. Purchase domain name ($10)
3. Wait for it to distribute around the world (24 hours)

Done!

 

DNS will all be handled. Register domain + host domain = DONE. They do the rest.

Jedi

 

garnet...

You can buy the domain name anywhere and have it pointed to any server you want. (even in your home) personally I separate the purchase of the domain name and the hosting.... SOME HOSTS (the number is small and getting smaller every day) will swipe your domain name if you do not re-up it the exact day it expires. -- Using most all of them will make it more annoying to change hosts than if you buy from a regular registrar.

If you want domains cheap and reliable, you can buy from godaddy with a coupon and it is usually 7.49 a year (google godaddy promotion code and the first link is fatwallet.com. In that thread they always have the latest codes.)

As long as you keep the domain current, you own it forever. Where ever you buy the domain, you can set the 'dns' to your name server. (usually ns1.YourHostingCompany.com) This is sorta like a phone number or address for your server... it tells the internet what sever your website lives on.

Hosting is a different issue. You can pay 5 bucks a month to $50,000 depending on need. I have several VPSs that run about 50 bucks a month and each can host dozens of decent size sites. If you're a newbie buying the domain and hosting at Bluehost is probably not a horrible idea. They automagially handle the DNS for you. You can transfer the domain later but be aware it is a pain.

So the bottom line is, if you want a single domain or two and don't expect to be host hopping, bluehost makes your life easy. If you want more flexibility later in life, consider separating the two transactions.

Lastly, having owned a hosting company since ~1995, I'd recommend bluehost with no problem. (even though technically they are kinda sorta my competition ;-) Good bang for the buck.

BTW .coms now resolve basically instantly, no more waiting 24 hours to use your site.

 

Bluehost.com seconded ..... fantastic web hosting company with a ton of great services for novices and experienced users alike. I've been using them for about 5 years now and have always had a very easy time dealing with their customer service.

I have 4 domain names with them and pay for hosting. I pay about $100/yr all-in.