Category: Domain Names

How a Domain Helps Students Build a Personal Brand

  • By Douglas Moore

Disclosure: Some links in this guide are affiliate links. We may get paid if you buy something or take an action after clicking one of these links, at no additional cost to you. It’s how we fund the work that it takes for us to create and maintain these guides.

 

Understanding how to create a personal brand is essential for students looking to differentiate themselves in competitive academic and professional environments. A well-crafted personal brand establishes credibility, highlights unique skills, and opens up career opportunities. One of the best ways to build and maintain this brand is to get a custom domain and have a personal website.

Developing personal branding for students and owning a domain name are two key activities that create a platform to showcase their work, articulate their expertise, and control their online presence in a way that social media can’t. For instance, if you have outstanding writing skills and decide to create a company that provides graduate essay writing services, you will definitely need to engage in the process of building a website and promoting your reputation. Therefore, let’s explore all the crucial aspects of personal branding and domain creation.

The Power of a Domain Name for Personal Branding

A domain name is a unique digital identity that sets students apart from others. It’s a professional online portfolio where students can showcase their work, share their achievements, and express their expertise in a particular field. Having a custom domain rather than relying on social media or free blogging sites has many advantages:

  • Professionalism – A custom domain (e.g., www.YourName.com) looks polished and professional.
  • Credibility – Employers and educators see a well-maintained website as a sign of commitment and expertise.
  • Control Over Content – Unlike social media, a personal website gives full control over how one’s brand is presented.
  • Search Engine Visibility – A domain optimized with SEO techniques increases online visibility and discoverability.
  • Long-term Investment – A domain is an asset for the duration of a student’s academic and professional journey.

How to Build a Personal Brand with a Domain

Step 1: Choose the Right Domain Name

  • Use your full name or a variation (e.g., JohnDoe.com or DoePortfolio.com).
  • Use an instant domain search tool to quickly find and register your chosen domain.
  • Keep it short, memorable, and professional.
  • Avoid numbers and hyphens as they can be confusing.
  • Choose a .com, .me, or .net extension for better recognition.

Step 2: Set Up Your Website

  • Use platforms like WordPress, Wix, or Squarespace for easy setup.
  • Select a clean and modern theme that fits your industry.
  • Ensure mobile responsiveness and fast loading speed.

Step 3: Create Valuable Content

  • Write an About Me section with your background and goals.
  • Include a resume page with work experience and education.
  • Showcase your portfolio with academic projects, internships, and certifications.* Add a blog to share industry insights and personal experiences.

Step 4: Search Engine Optimization

  • Use keyword-rich content related to your industry and skills.
  • Add meta titles and descriptions to each page.
  • Update content regularly to keep it fresh.

Step 5: Promotion

  • Share your website on LinkedIn, Twitter, and other professional networks.
  • Include your domain on business cards, resumes, and email signatures.
  • Engage with others by guest posting on industry blogs and forums.

Choosing the Right Domain Name

Picking the perfect domain name is a crucial step in building a personal brand. It should be:

  • Simple and Memorable – Avoid complicated words or long phrases.
  • Professional and Relevant – A name that represents one’s identity, such as first and last names or industry-specific terms.
  • Easy to Spell and Pronounce – Complicated names can make it hard for people to find the website.

Personal Website Ideas for Students

A domain name alone isn’t enough. To maximize its potential, students should build a personal website that has:

Homepage

This is the first impression visitors get. It should have a professional photo, a short bio, and a clear statement about one’s expertise or goals.

About Me

An About Me section should have the student’s academic background, interests, career aspirations and personal achievements.

Portfolio

Showcase projects, research, writing samples, or artwork in a portfolio section to demonstrate expertise and skills to recruiters and industry professionals.

Resume and Contact

Add a downloadable resume and clear contact information, such as an email or LinkedIn profile, for recruiters and potential collaborators to reach out.

Blog

Write and publish blog posts about industry trends, personal experiences, and academic insights to position students as thought leaders in their field.

SEO for Personal Domain

A domain name won’t attract visitors. It must be optimized for search engines to be visible. Here’s how:

Keywords

Using keywords in page titles, headings, and content can improve search rankings. For example, if you are a graphic designer, using keywords like “Graphic Design Portfolio” can help with searchability.

Content Creation

Publishing blog posts, case studies, and portfolio updates regularly increases website authority and attracts organic traffic.

Mobile Optimization

Make sure the website is mobile-friendly as search engines prioritise mobile-optimised sites.

Link Building

Getting backlinks from reputable websites, such as academic institutions, industry blogs, or LinkedIn profiles, can increase domain authority.

Speed

A slow-loading website can negatively impact SEO rankings. Use optimised images, caching, and fast hosting to improve site speed.

Promote Your Personal Website through Social Media

A personal domain is most effective when paired with strategic social media promotion. Students should integrate their website with platforms like LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram to amplify their reach. Here’s how:

  • Share Blog Content – Post links to blog articles on social media to drive traffic to the website.
  • Engage with Industry Leaders – Comment on and share relevant content to establish credibility and attract attention.
  • Add Website to Profiles – Include the domain in social media bios so it’s easily accessible to recruiters and potential collaborators.
  • Cross Promotion – Participate in relevant online communities and forums to increase visibility.

Email Signatures and Business Cards

A simple but effective way to increase website traffic and strengthen personal branding is through email signatures and business cards. Include the domain name in these tools so every communication is an opportunity to promote.

  • Professional Email Signature – Add the website link to an email signature to make it easy for recipients to explore your portfolio and achievements.
  • Custom Business Cards – Print business cards with the domain name to provide a tangible reminder of your personal brand, which is especially useful at networking events and conferences.

The Long-Term Benefits of Owning a Domain

Future-Proofing Your Career

A personal website evolves with your career, showcasing your journey and growth over time. It remains relevant regardless of job changes or career shifts.

Networking and Collaboration Opportunities

Having a domain makes it easier for potential employers, collaborators, and mentors to find and connect with you.

Monetization Potential

As you gain credibility, your domain can attract sponsorships, freelance opportunities, and partnerships, making it a potential income source.

To Sum Up

No matter what vocation you choose, having a personal brand and a powerful website can make your professional journey less overwhelming. Even though this process is time-consuming and requires your undivided attention, it is worth all the effort because it can skyrocket your career.

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Building a Digital Portfolio: Domain Name Ideas for Students

  • By Douglas Moore

Disclosure: Some links in this guide are affiliate links. We may get paid if you buy something or take an action after clicking one of these links, at no additional cost to you. It’s how we fund the work that it takes for us to create and maintain these guides.

With an academic portfolio, today, having it is no longer an option but a compulsion for any student to stand out on a global platform. It may range from academics and creative work to even extracurricular achievements. A well-kept portfolio would lead the way for job opportunities, internships, or even graduate programs. Underlying your portfolio will be a domain name, an easily remembered digital signature representing you, your aspirations, and your skill set. Below are some actionable tips on choosing the perfect domain name and creating a professional portfolio that will make an impact.

Why Your Domain Name Matters

Your domain name is the first impression of your digital brand. A strong one can enhance your visibility, establish credibility, and provide an easy-to-remember location for others, including potential employers or collaborators, to find you. Leveraging a capstone project maker can help you create polished projects that deserve a dedicated space on your website. For students in particular, a customized domain is remarkably powerful. It speaks to initiative, creativity, and professionalism, setting them apart in the competitive job market. If your portfolio is to show academic milestones such as capstone projects, your domain can be directly related to those.

How to Choose the Right Domain Name

Picking up a domain name might be challenging, but with a well-laid strategy, you will easily find the perfect one representing you. Below are tips to guide your decision-making process:

Keep It Simple

Your domain name should be short, simple to spell, and preferably remembered by your target audience. Avoid using long phrases, numbers, or special characters; this might confuse your visitors. A web address like johnsmithdesign.com would be far easier to remember and type than john-smiths-great-designs-2024.com.

Incorporate Your Name

Using your name for your domain creates personal branding. It is also timeless, as it doesn’t lock you into any particular career or project. If your name is taken, add your middle initial, profession, or year of graduation: johndoe2025.com, janedoeart.com.

Highlight Your Field or Skills

Include relevant keywords in your domain if your portfolio focuses on a specific field, such as marketing, engineering, or photography. For instance:

  • Marketing students: com
  • Engineers: com
  • Photographers: com

This approach helps your web address convey what you do at a glance, improving its relevance and searchability.

Consider Future Growth

As tempting as it may be, do not choose a domain name based on your current status, like janesophomoredesigns.com, because that might not apply later in your career. Instead, you want to use something tied to your long-term goals, such as janedesigns.com or janedoeportfolio.com.

Choose the Right Extension

Though .com remains the most popular domain extension, alternatives like .me, .online, or .design can make yours more unique. For example:

  • A computer science student might use tech.
  • A designer could opt for design.
  • A personal branding focus might use me.

When selecting an extension, prioritize professionalism and relevance to your field.

Creative Domain Name Ideas for Students

To spark your creativity, here are some examples tailored to various fields and goals:

  • Personal branding: com, yournameportfolio.com
  • Field-specific: com (for writers), annacodes.com (for coders)
  • Creative flair: com, designwithdavid.com
  • Catchy keywords: com, nextbigcreator.com

Experiment with combinations of your name, skills, and interests until you find a domain that feels right.

Steps to Register Your Domain

Once you’ve brainstormed some ideas, follow these steps to secure your domain:

  1. Check availability. Use domain registration platforms like GoDaddy, Namecheap, or Google Domains to see if your chosen name is available.
  2. Be flexible. If your first choice is taken, don’t be discouraged. Adjust by adding keywords or trying a different extension.
  3. Register your domain. When you’ve found the perfect domain, purchase it to claim ownership. According to Forbes, they typically cost $10–$20 per year, depending on the extension and provider.
  4. Set up hosting. If your domain provider doesn’t offer hosting, find a reliable service like Bluehost, SiteGround, or Wix to bring your portfolio to life.

Designing a Standout Digital Portfolio

With your domain secured, the next step is designing a professional and engaging portfolio. Here are the essential sections to include:    

●      About me. Introduce yourself with a brief overview of your background, skills, and goals. Use this section to share your story and explain what sets you apart.

●      Academic and creative projects. Showcase your best work, such as capstone projects, essays, design pieces, or research papers. Highlight any awards or recognition you’ve received.

●      Skills and resume. Include a concise list of your technical and soft skills, along with a downloadable resume. This makes it easy for recruiters to evaluate your qualifications.

●      Contact information. Provide a professional email address and links to your LinkedIn profile or other relevant social platforms.

●      Blog or updates (Optional). If you’re passionate about writing or want to share updates on your projects, consider adding a blog to your portfolio.

Promoting Your Portfolio

A great portfolio is only useful if people see it. Here’s how to promote your digital presence:

  • Share on social media. Post links to your portfolio on LinkedIn, Twitter, or Instagram, depending on your audience.
  • Include it on resumes and applications. Add your domain to your resume, email signature, and cover letters to encourage recruiters to visit.
  • Leverage SEO. Optimize your portfolio’s content with keywords related to your field, such as “graphic design portfolio” or “student engineer projects.”

Common Mistakes to Avoid

When building your digital portfolio, steer clear of these common pitfalls:

  • Choosing overly complex domains. Simplicity is key. Don’t overcomplicate your domain with unnecessary words or symbols.
  • Neglecting mobile optimization. Ensure your site is mobile-friendly, as many recruiters browse on their phones.
  • Failing to update content. Keep your portfolio current by regularly adding new projects and achievements.

Final Thoughts

A digital portfolio can powerfully show a student’s skills, creativity, and achievements. By selecting the right domain name, you will lay the foundation for a professional online presence to grow with your career. Be an aspiring engineer, artist, or entrepreneur, your custom domain speaks volumes about you and your ambition.

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Stop Hunting For GoDaddy Domain Renewal Coupons & Save Here!

  • By Douglas Moore

Disclosure: Some links in this guide are affiliate links. We may get paid if you buy something or take an action after clicking one of these links, at no additional cost to you. It’s how we fund the work that it takes for us to create and maintain these guides.

Finding the right GoDaddy domain renewal coupon can feel like striking gold. With just a few clicks, you can secure significant discounts and ensure your domain remains active. In this article, you’ll discover how to find and use these valuable coupons to make the most of your domain renewal experience.

Renewing your domain name is crucial for maintaining your online presence, but it doesn’t have to break the bank. GoDaddy, a leading domain registrar, rarely provides renewal coupons that can help you save money, and they charge more for domain registration and renewal than we do, as well as charging extra for services that we include for free, like Domain Privacy.

A Better Alternative to searching for GoDaddy Coupons: Transfer to Domain Name Sanity

Rather than overpaying for your domain registration/renewal each year, you can save by transferring your domain to Domain Name Sanity.

When you transfer your domain registration, there’s no downtime. You don’t lose any of the prepaid time on your domain, and we renew it for 1 more year as part of the transfer fee.

You can Transfer Your Domain to us from GoDaddy (or any other registrar) at anytime.

Use coupon code “TRANSFER” during checkout to save $5 on your domain transfer which includes a 1 year renewal, and you will also get an ongoing $5 per year discount as well.

Discount applies to .com/.net/.org transfers and renewals on a 1 year term.

Understanding GoDaddy Domain Renewal Coupons

As you can see from the screenshot from GoDaddy’s web site below, they don’t offer renewal codes and you can’t find them anywhere.

 

 

What Are GoDaddy Renewal Coupons?

GoDaddy renewal coupons are specially designed discount codes for domain renewals. They allow you to get a percentage off or a specific dollar amount deducted from your total renewal cost. These coupons are typically offered through GoDaddy promotions, affiliated websites, or newsletters.

How Can You Use Them Effectively?

Effectively using GoDaddy renewal coupons involves a few key steps:

  1. Find Coupons: Look for legitimate sources, such as GoDaddy’s website, affiliated partners, or promotional emails.
  2. Check Validity: Ensure the coupon’s validity by checking the expiration date and any specified restrictions.
  3. Apply At Checkout: Enter the coupon code in the designated field during the checkout process for domain renewal.
  4. Verify Discount: Confirm that the discount has been applied before completing the transaction.

Using these steps helps you maximize savings and keep your domain active without overspending.

Benefits of Using GoDaddy Coupons

Using GoDaddy domain renewal coupons provides multiple advantages, making your online presence more affordable and sustainable.

Cost Savings on Renewals

GoDaddy domain renewal coupons significantly reduce the renewal fees. By applying these coupons, you save a substantial amount, making domain management more cost-effective. For instance, if your renewal fee is $20, a 15% coupon will save you $3 per domain.

Access to Additional Services

GoDaddy coupons often unlock access to supplementary services. These can include web hosting, email services, or SSL certificates, which enhance your domain capabilities. For example, a coupon might provide a discount on both domain renewal and web hosting, increasing the overall value.

Common Pitfalls in Using Renewal Coupons

Using GoDaddy renewal coupons promise significant savings, but some pitfalls can undermine those benefits.

Validity and Restrictions

Always check coupon validity; expiration dates often limit usage. Some coupons apply only to specific domain extensions (.com, .net). Verify restrictions before applying them. A coupon might not work for premium domains or renewals beyond one year. Read terms to ensure compliance and avoid last-minute surprises.

Risk of Overlooking Better Deals

Don’t use the first coupon found. Better deals might be available from other providers, like Domain Name Sanity. Compare multiple sources like RetailMeNot, Coupons.com, and user-shared offers on Reddit’s /r/goDaddy. Evaluate expiration dates and terms. Sometimes, bundled offers during sales like Black Friday or Cyber Monday provide more value. Always explore various options to maximize savings.

Conclusion

Renewing your domain name with GoDaddy renewal coupons can be a smart way to manage your online presence without breaking the bank. By leveraging these coupons, you can save money on your domain renewals. Always use trusted sources to find the best deals and consider timing your renewals around major sales events. Be mindful of the common pitfalls and always compare multiple sources to ensure you’re getting the best offer. With these strategies, you can keep your domain active and secure while maximizing your savings.

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How Long Does It Take for DNS to Update?

  • By Douglas Moore

As we’ve talked about before, DNS is a global online protocol and one of the core technologies through which the internet functions. Working through multiple tiers of servers, it allows for the translation of domain names into IP addresses. In other words, it allows computers to understand requests made in human-readable language. 

This process is usually lightning-fast, but there are certain aspects that can still take some time. One of these is DNS propagation, which can take anywhere from a few hours to three days to be completed. In this article, we’ll explore what exactly DNS propagation is, and why it can potentially take a while to be fully completed.

What Is DNS Propagation?

DNS propagation, or DNS updating, refers to the period of time between making a change to your domain name and seeing that change reflected in DNS across the internet. Propagation occurs after a few different types of actions, including making a change to your DNS records, or changing your domain name’s WHOIS information. 

Making a Change to Your DNS Records

As mentioned above, DNS is a system that allows for the translation of domain names to IP addresses. Information about which domain name corresponds to which IP address is held inside DNS in a type of software called a nameserver. Nameservers act as a sort of library catalog, allowing for quick matching and retrieval of the information your web browser needs to complete a web search. 

In other words, if you have a website, then your website’s information is stored in DNS. So, why would you make a change in your DNS records? This could be necessary for many reasons, including any changes made to your domain name or your web hosting provider. 

Look at it this way: if the information a person enters when searching for your website doesn’t match the information stored in a nameserver, they won’t be able to find or access your website. The procedure for making a change in your DNS records will depend on your web hosting provider. Once a change has been made, it can take a while for that change to be reflected throughout the entire DNS network globally. We’ll discuss this more in a bit. 

Making a Change in WHOIS

WHOIS is a widespread internet database system that lists to whom a particular domain name belongs, the contact information associated with the person or group that has registered that specific domain name, and other background information such as when the domain name was registered and when it will expire. It’s a helpful tool if you want to know who owns a domain name or website. Any changes you make to your WHOIS information, including contact information changes, will need to be reflected in DNS.

After making a change at either of these levels, DNS propagation technically requires up to 72 hours. However, in reality, this process usually takes about 3 hours. 

So, what does that mean for you? Let’s say you’ve changed your domain name, and recorded the changes in DNS. If someone across the globe performs a DNS query (searches for your website) and their search is directed to a DNS server that has not yet been updated, they will be directed to the old address.

Why Does It Take So Long?

Even though DNS propagation is usually completed within a few short hours, there are a couple of reasons why it could theoretically take up to three days to fully update. Let’s explore a few of these.

Domain Name Registry

Certain types of changes may take longer to register throughout all DNS servers. For example, if you change the authoritative nameserver – the nameserver that holds the official, authoritative information on your domain name and web address – this change will need to be registered with the Top Level Domain nameserver. 

The Top Level Domain nameserver is a root nameserver. This is a type of DNS nameserver that returns the IP addresses of the top-level domain – the ‘.com’ or ‘.org’ part of a web address. Any changes made in this zone can take a lot longer to register – even up to 48 hours. 

Time To Live (TTL)

Every time you make a web search for a domain name, its DNS information will be stored in the records of every cache for a specific period of time. A cache is a temporary storage space for data that allows devices, apps, and web browsers to run quicker and more smoothly. 

When you enter a domain name into a web browser, the browser initiates a DNS search process that takes place on multiple levels. First it contacts a DNS server, which may refer it to other DNS servers in search of the IP address that corresponds with the domain name entered. It has to locate the authoritative nameserver – the nameserver that holds the indisputably correct information about the IP address – and then send those results back to the browser. 

At every stage of this process, different systems can retain information in their cache. Your computer’s operating system has a local cache that stores DNS information. So does your internet service provider – we’ll discuss that shortly. The primary function of a cache is to improve the performance of DNS queries, largely by making them faster. 

The period of time that data is stored in a cache is called a Time to Live (TTL) value. Because of this, even when a record is changed, DNS will continue working with its previous information – the information stored in the cache – until the time is up and the cache clears and updates. 

There are different types of records with different TTL values. In general, records that are expected to change very rarely have longer TTL values to prevent unnecessary searches. 

If the TTL value for a cache containing information about your domain name is long (say, more than two hours, which is the average), then the propagation of your changes throughout the DNS system will take longer. 

Internet Service Providers (ISPs)

Internet service providers all around the world also store information about domain names in caches. This allows them to perform a DNS search once, and then use the same DNS lookup results for any other users searching for the same website. It helps make internet traffic faster and is generally a good thing from a user-experience perspective. 

However, these cached records are often held even longer than the TTL settings in DNS caches. This can significantly slow down the propagation process because as long as even one cache in the enormous global network of DNS servers holds onto the old DNS information, your changes won’t be fully propagated.

How to Speed up DNS Propagation

While most of these processes are out of your hands, there are a few methods you can try to speed up the propagation of your changes in DNS. 

Clearing Your Local Cache

The first method is to try clearing your local DNS cache (the DNS cache on your computer’s operating system). The specific steps to do this will depend on which operating system your computer uses. The specific steps for each different operating system can be easily found online. 

Pro tip: make sure you have an updated backup of all of your files before clearing your cache, in case something gets lost.

Lowering Your DNS Record’s TTL

You can also lower your DNS record’s TTL. This should be done a few days before making any changes to your domain name or web address. That way your old records will expire more quickly, and your changes will be reflected sooner in the system. Much like the previous method, the specifics of how to lower your DNS record’s TTL will depend on your web host. 

Once again, this must be done before making changes to your domain name. Doing it retroactively won’t help you at all.  

Can You Verify That Propagation Is Complete?

In short, it’s difficult to know with 100% accuracy. Verifying that all servers have updated to include your new information would require you to check every DNS server in the world – a slightly impractical goal. 


However, there are a few software programs that can check propagation with decently accurate results. dnsresults.com is a free online option. There are different types of DNS records (they have names like A, CNAME, etc. – you can see them in the tools above), and you should check all of them individually to verify that your changes have been propagated.

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What Is a Nameserver?

  • By Douglas Moore

If you’ve ever tried to build your own website, chances are you’ve come across the term nameserver. There are countless computer blogs and online guides that approach the subject a bit cryptically, using technical terminology that may not be accessible to those who are just starting out on their website-building journey. It can get confusing, so here’s a basic guide to what nameservers are and what purpose they serve. 

When you type a search term into your browser and hit ‘enter’, you set in motion a lightning-fast process of communication and data retrieval. Nameservers are at the center of the action: a nameserver facilitated your access to this very web page, as well as any other browser search you’ve conducted today. 

Nameservers are a crucial part of DNS (Domain Name System) software. DNS moves traffic smoothly around the internet, and nameservers play an integral role in this process: they translate between IP addresses and domain names. But what does that mean? 

Namespaces

To really understand what nameservers do, we first have to understand what namespaces are. The internet has two principal namespaces: the domain name hierarchy and the IP address system. 

Domain names are the part of web addresses that consists of a website name and the top-level domain (these are usually three letters, such as .com, .org, or .gov). For example, the domain name of this website is domainnamesanity.com. IP addresses, on the other hand, are long strings of numbers. 

Every website has both a domain name and an IP address. But domain names, which are user-friendly for humans, are difficult for computers to understand. Similarly, IP addresses are impractical for humans to use but are readable by computers.

For internet traffic to flow – that is, for web browsers to connect with web servers – these two principal namespaces have to ‘talk’ to each other. DNS software solves this problem by acting as a translator between the two. 

Nameservers vs. DNS

Although often confused or used interchangeably, DNS and nameservers are not technically the same thing. Rather, DNS software is made up of nameservers. They are an organizing tool, similar to a library catalog, that contains the DNS records connecting a domain name to an IP address. 

Or, if library analogies aren’t your thing, you can think of a nameserver as an old-school phone book, with phone numbers categorized according to their corresponding owners’ names. Without nameservers to act as a directory, it would be nearly impossible to find what you’re looking for on the internet without knowing the IP address. Consider the number of websites you visit every day: could you keep track of that many IP numbers in your head? Probably not. Enter an incorrect IP address, and who knows where you’ll end up. Thankfully, nameservers are there to do the hard work for us.

When you type a domain name into a search bar or browser, your computer uses DNS to find out which nameservers it should contact. This turns up a list of nameservers, which look a bit like a cross between a domain name and an IP address.

Although there’s technically no limit to the number of nameservers a website can have, most websites have two: a primary, which does most of the work, and a secondary, which is there as a backup in case something goes wrong with the primary. When your computer contacts one, it translates the domain name you entered and finds its corresponding IP address. Once it has found the IP address in the nameserver, your browser will download the data and connect you to the corresponding website. 

Why Do I Need to Know My Website’s Nameservers?

Strictly speaking, you don’t have to know your website’s nameservers. Your domain registrar (or the web hosting service you’ve chosen for your website) will generally set up a default name server, and you won’t have to worry about it. However, issues can arise if you’re trying to transfer your domain name to a different web host, or if you’ve registered your domain name separately from your current hosting company. Then you’ll need to know your nameservers in order to change your web host. Here’s a helpful resource if you need to find the host of a website.

Where Can I Find My Website’s Nameservers?

There are a few different ways to find your website’s nameservers. Online resources such as https://dnsresults.com/ allow you to easily enter a domain name and find the associated name servers. Just make sure you change the settings on the search tool to “DNS Check” mode. A similar search can also be performed locally, although it works differently on Windows and Mac. 

For Mac or Linux, go to the Terminal and type in “dig domainname.com” (using the domain name of the website whose nameserver you’re searching for, of course). This command will turn up the nameservers of the website you’ve entered. 

For Windows, first go to PowerShell. Then, type in “nslookup” and hit ‘enter’. Type in “set q=ns”, hit ‘enter’ again, and type in the domain name you want to find the nameservers for. Hit ‘enter’ again, and you should see all the nameservers for the domain name you entered.

Customizing Your Nameserver

It’s also possible to customize your nameserver. These are called vanity nameservers, and they’re a good option if you’re trying to establish a more professional look for your clients. Customizing your nameserver means that you don’t have to ask your clients to point their domain to another company’s nameserver, and thus is a popular option for resellers and hosting providers. 

With a vanity nameserver, you’re not technically creating a new nameserver, but rather concealing the name of the public nameserver your domain name is pointed towards. To put it simply, vanity nameservers allow you to create nameservers based on your domain name, while still using the IP address of your web host’s nameservers.  

Of course, in order to customize your nameservers, you’ll first need to have a registered domain name from a reputable registrar.

Long Story Short

Nameservers are a fundamental part of how DNS works. They facilitate the translation between domain names and IP addresses by acting as a sort of reference book. When you type a web address into a browser and hit enter, your request hits a nameserver, which matches the domain name to the correct IP address and allows your computer to understand what you’re looking for. 

Most websites have two nameservers, a primary and a secondary, but there’s no limit to how many a website could theoretically have. While it’s unnecessary for most people to know their website’s nameservers, there are a few situations in which you’d need to be able to find them. For example, if you’ve registered your domain name separately from the company hosting your website or if you’ve decided to change to a different web host but want to keep your domain name.

You might also need to know your nameservers if you want to customize them, but this is mostly for hosting providers or resellers who are trying to present a more professional image for their clients.

You can find your website’s nameservers by using an online tool. They can also be found locally, although how this can be done depends on what system your computer uses.

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What Is a Web Address?

  • By Douglas Moore

If you’ve used a web browser such as Google Chrome or Firefox before, you’ve likely come across a web address. Also known as a URL (a Universal Resource Locator), they’re generally located in the search bar across the top of the browser page. 

Just like most physical locations, any website, image, file, or other object on the internet has an address to specify its location. When you want to search for a specific site or resource on the internet, the web browser you use to perform the search has to connect with the web server that hosts the site you’re looking for. Then it has to locate the specific source within that server. By providing the details about which server to connect to, where to look within that server, and what specifically to look for, a web address enables a web browser to find what you’re looking for.

“Vague but Exciting”: A Quick History of the Web Address

In the late 1980s, a British computer scientist and software engineer named Tim Berners-Lee was working at CERN in Switzerland, the famous site of the particle accelerator. Scientists at the facility were working on exciting research, but Berners-Lee noted that they were having difficulty compiling and sharing their findings. His solution, completed in March of 1989, was presented to his boss in a paper titled “Information Management: A Proposal”. Ultimately, this was to become the first outline of the three fundamental technologies that make up what we now call the web: HTML, HTTP, and URI. 

  • HTML (HyperText Markup Language) is the formatting language of the web, used to create the underlying structure of a web page and determine how it will look to users. 
  • HTTP (HyperText Transfer Protocol) is the underlying protocol, or foundation, of any exchange of data on the web. The protocol makes it possible to access resources from across the web. Put simply, it’s the structure that allows us to access, post, and share content. 
  • And URI (Uniform Resource Identifier), now generally known as URL, is the modern-day web address. 

Surprisingly, his proposal was not immediately accepted by his boss, who tepidly wrote on the cover page that the idea was “Vague but exciting…”. Still, he approved Berners-Lee’s work on the subject, and by the fall of 1990, Berners-Lee had created not only these three technologies but also the first web browser, called WorldWideWeb.app. 

Interest grew, and people outside of CERN began requesting to use the web. Finally, in 1993, Berners-Lee and others decided that the true potential of the web could only be realized if it were made open for free use by the general public. Twenty-eight years after that groundbreaking decision, it’s difficult to imagine a world without a decentralized, open-access internet to facilitate the flow of information and connection across the globe.  

Fun fact: Although Berners-Lee has referred to the URL as “the most fundamental specification of web architecture,” he also said that, in hindsight, he wishes he’d used slashes instead of dots entirely to separate the distinct parts of a web address. 

So How Is a Web Address Structured?

Just like a street address, a web address tells you where you are and gets you to where you need to go. It does so by arranging this information in a clear, standardized way. A web address has several distinct parts, each of which specifies a different location. 

This diagram from Welcome To The Jungle is a helpful visualization: 

Source: WelcomeToTheJungle 

The Scheme

The scheme tells your web browser how to communicate with the web server by specifying which protocol to use. This is the nearly-ubiquitous ‘http:’ at the beginning of every web address. One of Berners-Lee’s inventions, the reason why it’s essentially universal in web addresses is because most websites today use HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol) as their underlying protocol, or structure. HTTPS (Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure), another protocol, is increasingly becoming the standard protocol as it allows for encryption of communication, authentication of the website being accessed, and a higher level of security overall.

The Host (Website)

The second part of a web address is the address for the host, or the website itself. A website is a web page or set of interconnected web pages that can be accessed through the same address. Also known as the domain name, it’s generally the most recognizable part of a web address. The classic ‘www.’ at the beginning stands for ‘World Wide Web’ and is no longer strictly necessary to include in a web address. Nevertheless, it’s still used as a matter of stylistic convention. 

After the ‘www’ comes the domain name, or the name of the host website. Although computers identify locations through long chains of numbers (called IP addresses), the human mind doesn’t work like that. Imagine trying to access an online retailer such as Amazon or eBay, only rather than searching for their common name, you had to remember and enter a long, cryptic string of numbers. 

Early internet searches worked this way, but it was impractical and became even more so as the number of websites on the internet grew. The computers in our heads work much better with short, easy-to-remember names. Thus, the domain name was invented as a way for people to easily search for and access resources on the internet. DNS, a system invented by Dr. Paul Mockapetris, works as a sort of translator between domain names and IP addresses. 

The host name is followed by the top-level domain. The most common top-level domains for businesses are .com and .org. Another easily recognizable top-level domain is .gov, which is used for government websites. The top-level domain tells you about the type of website you’re visiting, and can give details about the owner and/or purpose of the website. 

The Port

The host is then sometimes followed by the port number. This tells the browser which gateway to access on the web server, and is not necessary to include if the web server uses one of the standard ports (HTTP always uses port 80, for example, and thus including this information in the web address is unnecessary). Because the most widely used web servers use standardized ports, the port number is not specified in most web addresses.

The Path

Usually separated by a series of slashes, the path specifies a particular location or folder within the domain (the website). Though not every website has folders or subfolders, their location comes chronologically after the domain. If we think of the domain name as the address of a house, then the path is instructions to particular rooms in the house. 

Query

Queries are used for dynamic web pages or web pages that allow you to interact with them by providing more details about what you’re looking for. Facebook is a good example of this. When we search within the site for a specific person or group page, this search shows up in the web address as a query. It’s always preceded by a question mark and followed by something known as a key/value pair, which simply allows the web server to find the requested content and send it to the browser.

Fragment

This is the final, optional part of a web address. As its name suggests, a fragment is used to identify and access a specific piece of a web page or document. Preceded by a ‘#’ symbol, it allows you to jump ahead to a particular part of a document without scrolling or manually searching for it. 

I Want to Build a Website. How Do I Get a Web Address?

You can obtain a web address through any web hosting provider, as long as they are an accredited ICANN (Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers) registrar. However, it should be noted that it’s impossible to buy a web address permanently. The address that leads users to your website will only be yours for as long as the site is active (and as long as you remember to renew the lease).

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All About the .blog Domain Extension

  • By Douglas Moore

Now, here we have an enticing domain extension that will pique the interest of bloggers, reviewers & YouTubers, gamers, opinion-makers and -sharers, and anyone looking to share their thoughts online.

.blog is one of the most recently introduced gTLDs (generic top-level domain), and has quickly gained a sizable popularity. Well, we can’t blame people searching to register the best .blog domain, since it signals immediately that the website would be about blogging or news-sharing.

Should you register a .blog domain for yourself or your business? What are the advantages when compared to the classic gTLDs such as .com, .net, or .org? Let’s find out.

What is .blog? When Did It Launch?

.blog is a recently-released gTLD. It was made available in 2016 with the recent release of new domain extensions by ICANN, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers.

In contrast to ccTLDs (country code top-level domains), .blog has no limitation regarding which persons or organizations can register a domain. However, their intended use should be blogging or news-sharing sites, which is not an issue anyway since virtually all registrations are for this purpose.

Who Administers the .blog Domain?

The .blog gTLD is currently administered by Automattic, through its subsidiary of Knock Knock WHOIS There. A fun fact: Automattic has a rich portfolio of online businesses, which also includes WordPress and JetPack. 

However, you can’t register a .blog domain directly with Automattic. You need to register it via a domain registration company, like Domain Name Sanity.

Why Should You Register a .blog Domain? What is it Used For?

If you are interested in sharing your thoughts and opinions in a blogging or microblogging way, create and curate news, do reviews on products or services in a particular niche, or create the next personal knowledge management system, the .blog domain is perfect for the task. 

Blogging is nothing new. In the past, however, bloggers were restricted to the will of big blogging providers (e.g. Google’s Blogger or WordPress.com) that can decide to stop supporting their service, cut the power, or even ban your content if it doesn’t comply with their ‘community standards’ which are increasingly characterized as censorship.

However, this cannot happen if you register your own .blog domain.

How Popular is the .blog gTLD?

ICANNWiki states that currently there are over 190 thousand .blog registrations. This puts it at the 23rd place on nTLDStats’ list for new gTLDs. Of these about 30% are parked, meaning that they are reserved but not connected to a website and don’t lead anywhere at the moment.

How Do You Get a .blog Domain?

Registering a .blog domain would be a great choice if you aim to develop a blogging, thoughts-sharing or news-sharing website. If you have plenty to write about a particular topic or domain, this domain will be the right choice for you by providing instant recognizability and attracting visitors that are interested in what you have to say.

Pricing starts at $12.95 (plus taxes) for first year registration, and renews at $34.95 (plus taxes). Here at Domain Name Sanity, we can help you register the best .blog domain for you. Search and register your .blog domain now.

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Free Email Forwarding on Domain Name Sanity

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All About the .art Domain Extension

  • By Douglas Moore

Are you one of the creative souls that make our life picturesque with their beautiful art? Well then, do we have a treat for you! We are talking about the .art domain, aimed at artists—and also at their art works.

.art is one of the most recently introduced domain extensions. Even though other new gTLDs, such as .blog or .tech are more popular, this gTLD fills up the need of a particular niche of creative people and their followers and consumers.

The reason for this is that having a .art domain gestures to everyone that your website is about art. This can help straighten and fortify your brand image.

Is registering a .art domain for you, your business, or your artwork something that you should do? Or are you better off with a classic gTLD, such as a .com, .net, .org? We’ll help you decide.

What is .art? When Did It Launch?

.art is one of the most recent gTLDs made available for the public. It was released in 2017, with the intended use for the creative community. 

This domain was originally aimed for websites that have art somehow in their focus. Today, it is mostly used by artists, and companies & organizations that promote or somehow otherwise focus on art.

Who Administers the .art Domain?

.art’s operator currently is UK Creative Ideas Limited, a company founded by the London-based investor and art collector Ulvi Kasimov. 

To register your .art domain, you’ll need to use a domain registration company, like Domain Name Sanity.

Why Should You Register a .art Domain? What is it Used For?

We already mentioned this, but it bears repeating. 

.art is a domain aimed at the creative community. If you believe that you, your company and/or organization belongs to this community, or has art as the major focus point, then registering a .art domain is definitely the right choice.

.art has another peculiar property not found with other new gTLDs. When UK Creative Ideas Limited negotiated .art’s agreement with ICANN, it asked to start with the unique Digital Twin service. This service allows you to assign a .art domain to a particular piece of art and record the ownership of that on the Ethereum Blockchain. 

In a sense, this means assigning a unique and durable identifier (a ‘digital twin’) to your art piece. This can be particularly advantageous with copyright and other IP rights claims, for example. 

How Popular is the .art gTLD?

We cannot say that .art is among the most popular gTLDs, but surely is among the most popular new gTLDs that were released with ICANN’s liberalization efforts during the past decade.

According to nTLDStats, .art is the 29th most sought after new gTLD, with more than 130 thousand current registrations.

How Do You Get a .art Domain?

Obtaining a .art domain is as easy as one-two-three! Or, in other words, we at Domain Name Sanity can help you find the best .art domain today. Pricing starts at $12.95/year (plus taxes), and renews at $19.95/year (plus taxes). 

That’s a negligible price to pay to have the best .art domain for yourself or your work of art. Register your .art domain today.

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All About the .life Domain Extension

  • By Douglas Moore

Now this might be the right domain for clever marketing wizards to leverage in their brand building. While on the first sight the .life domain extension might not be particularly attractive, wait until you realize that it is great for “domain hacks”, where all parts of  your web address combine to create whole sentences. https://thethug.life, anybody?

Should you register a .life domain for yourself or your business? What will be the advantages when compared to the classic gTLDs such as .com, .net, or .org? Keep reading to find out more.

What Is .life? When Did It Launch?

.life is a gTLD that was launched in 2014 by ICANN, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers. 

The classic gTLDs (i.e. .com, .net, .org and the like) started to get increasingly harder for companies to find and register their business name. For example, workplace communications software Slack was using SlackHQ.com for a long time, and even Elon Musk had to use TeslaMotors.com for a period of time before he was able to negotiate the purchase of Tesla.com . As a reult, new domain extensions were needed to make it easier for companies to explain their offering or include their full brand in their domain. The .life domain was the result of a wave of new domain extensions released by ICANN.

Who Administers the .life Domain?

This gTLD is administered by Donuts. 

Donuts is a company specialized in the discovery, use and monetization of domain names. They have a wise portfolio of new and interesting gTLDs, such as .world, .rocks, .life — in total, 242 unique and fresh domain extensions that cater for just about every type of business.

Why Should You Register a .life Domain? What Is It Used For?

We already said that first sight might be deceiving with this gTLD. .life works great when combined with other words to form a sentence, where life is the last word. Some examples:

  • https://improveyour.life
  • https://thecreative.life
  • https://rightto.life 

As you can see, .life can work great if your content and branding focus on lifestyle, or anything connected to a manner of living. Just find the right word combo and you are good to go.

How Popular Is the .life gTLD?

According to nTLDStats, .life currently takes the 20th place from all newly-released gTLDs. In numbers, this translates to more than 233,000 unique domain name registrations.

We can say that .life is fairly popular, especially considering its peculiarity.

How Do You Get a .life Domain?

If you are aiming at upgrading your branding to focus on lifestyle or something related to manner of living, getting a .life domain can prove the right choice for you. 

Pricing starts at $12.95 (plus taxes) for first year registration, and renews at $32.95 (plus taxes). Here at Domain Name Sanity, we can help you register the best .life domain for you. Search and register your .life domain now.

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All About the .one Domain Extension

  • By Douglas Moore

Are you thinking of purchasing a new domain name for your business? ICANN (Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers), the non-profit organization in charge of running the global Domain Name System (DNS), launched a campaign to release new domain extensnions, with the main goal to be more descriptive than .com and other original extensions. The .one gTLD came along as one of these new domain name extensions.

If you’re interested in buying a .one domain for your website, stay with us, since this article will clear out all the common questions you might have. In sections below, we’ll talk about when was the .one gTLD introduced, who administers it, what’s the price for it and what kind of sites is it intended for.

What Is .one and When Did It Launch?

Until 2013, the .com, .org, .info and .net domain name extensions were the most commonly used gTLDs out there. Around that time, ICANN started an initiative to introduce new gTLDs (domain extensions) to the Internet. Their main goal being to allow businesses to state their purpose in an easier way, and create new options for companies to pick their perfect domain name.

Lots of Domain Registries entered their bids to manage new domain extensions. The .one domain name add-on was introduced on February 22nd of 2015, and it was made public on May 20th of the same year.

Who Administers the .one Domain?

The .one domain extension is owned and administered by One Registry and ARI Registry Services. The .one domains are registered and sold through more than 100 domain registration companies, such as Domain Name Sanity.

Why Should You Register a .one Domain? What Is It Used For?

This domain extension is great since it’s easy to remember, and everyone wants a catchy domain name. From the visual perspective, the .one domain extension contains 3 letters, just like .com, .org, or .net. Keep in mind that .one can offer a way bigger number of available domain names, since it’s way younger than the standard domain name add-ons, such as .com, .net or .edu.

Another important thing to underline here is that, since .one is a gTLD, all sites registered to .one domain will appear in Google searches all around the globe.The .one domain extension is a great and reliable solution for any type of site, so if you’re running a humanitarian organization, a small business, or simply need a site which will represent yourself, we warmly recommend going for the .one domain name extension.

How Popular Is the .one gTLD?

As of August 2020, there were about 108,000 .one domain names registered.

How Do You Get a .one Domain?

Purchasing a .one domain isn’t really expensive, with first year registration from $12.95 and renewals at the same price (plus taxes). You can register your .one domain with us, here at Domain Name Sanity. Find your new .one domain name right away!

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