How domain name registration works

By Kim Komando
Komando.com

Q.   I’d like to start my own Web site. I’ve looked into registering a domain name. I was looking at sites like GoDaddy.com. But I’ve heard you don’t actually own the domain name. The registrar owns it. You simply lease it from the registrar. Is this true? I want to own my domain name outright. Can I do this?
- John, listening in Denver on KHOW 630 AM

A.   Starting a Web site can be confusing. There’s plenty of information on how to build a pretty site. But the behind-the-scenes administration is rarely discussed. Let me start with that.

To have a site, you need both a domain name and Web host. The host is the company that actually houses your site. The actual data is put on its servers. The host also gives your site a unique IP (Internet Protocol) address. This address lets others find your site on the Web. It’s something like 198.168.245.255.

The problem is, no one is going to remember that address. It’s just a string of numbers and dots. You need something more recognizable, like words. That’s where the domain name comes in.

FOR THE COMPLETE STORY:    http://www.komando.com/tips/index.aspx?id=5605&page=1

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***NOTE:  I AM NOT AFFILIATED WITH KOMANDO.COM IN ANY WAY, NOR AM I BEING PAID FOR THIS POST.***

~Sandy G.

By RANDALL STROSS
New York Times

LOGGING on to Gmail or other e-mail service has become a routine of daily life, completed without a thought. What would you do, however, if you woke up tomorrow, plugged in your user name and password as you always do, but then received an unfamiliar message: “User name and password do not match”?

If you’re a Gmail user, what you’ll want to do after a few more unsuccessful, increasingly frantic attempts is to speak with a Google customer support representative, post haste. But that’s not an option. Google doesn’t offer a toll-free number and a live person to resolve the ordinary user’s problems.

Discussion forums abound with tales of woe from Gmail customers who have found themselves locked out of their account for days or even weeks. They were innocent victims of security measures, which automatically suspend access if someone tries unsuccessfully to log on repeatedly to an account. The customers express frustration that they can’t speak with anyone at Google after filling out the company’s online forms and waiting in vain for Google to restore access to their accounts.

FOR THE COMPLETE STORY: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/05/business/05digi.html?th&emc=th  

~Sandy G.