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What is a domain name? Pick a Name, Any Name
!
A
domain name is a Web address, such as coolexample.com, that is linked
to an IP address (which represents a physical point on the Internet).
The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) is
the
governing body that coordinates links between IP addresses and domain
names across the Internet, so you can find Web sites by entering domain
names instead of IP addresses into your Web browser.
For
example, think of an IP address as an address for a house or business,
such as the White House. The address, 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue is
comparable to an IP address, and the name you know it as, the White
House, is comparable to a domain name.
A domain name consists of a top-level and a second-level domain. A
top-level domain (TLD), or domain extension, is the part of the domain
name located to the right of the dot (coolexample.com). The most common
domain extensions are .COM, .NET, and .ORG. Some other popular domain
extensions are .BIZ, .INFO, .NAME, and .WS. These common extensions
have certain guidelines, but are usually available to any registrant,
anywhere in the world.
There are also restricted top-level domains (rTLDs), like .AERO, .BIZ,
.EDU, .MIL, .MUSEUM, .NAME, and .PRO that require registrants to
represent a certain type of entity or to belong to a certain community.
For example, the .NAME domain extension is reserved for individuals,
while .EDU is reserved for educational entities.
Country-code
TLDs (ccTLDs) are for Web sites and registrants of a particular
geographic location, such as .BZ (Belize), .CA (Canada), .DK (Denmark), .EC (Ecuador), .IE (Republic of Ireland), .UK (United Kingdom), .US (United States), and .ZW (Zimbabwe).
The part of the domain name located to the left of the dot
(coolexample.com) is called the second-level domain (SLD) name. The
second-level domain name is the "readable" part of the address and
refers to the organization or entity behind the Internet address.
Second-level domain names must be unique on the Internet and registered
with an ICANN-accredited registrar.
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