Although DNS can be a bit of a tech subject, there are a few key bits of terminology that will get you by even if you don't know (or want to know) too much technical detail:
DNS stands for Domain Name System. It's the system that allows a human-readable URL such as "example.com" to be translated to an IP address such as 208.10.291.3. Because IP addresses change sometimes, it's important to make sure your domain's DNS set-up is pointed to the right place, or else typing the address into a browser won't take you anywhere.
In most instances you personally won't actually point the domain name to a specific IP address. Instead your hosting provider will give you a pair of name servers (see below) that you set with your domain registrar. Once you have these set, the hosting company can then set the actual IP address, and make any necessary changes when their internal set-up changes.
It can take a bit of time for records about your domain name location to spread around the world. This process is called delegation and can be the cause of some lag in setting up.
Most hosting companies will give you a pair of name server addresses such as ns1.dreamhost.com and ns2.dreamhost. com, which you then add to your domain's details at the domain registrar. This lets the registrar point the domain name to the hosting company's name servers. These servers then provide the correct routing information to make sure your server is called when someone types in your domain name.
Please note in most instances you won't need to know anything about records. If you do, you can usually find very specific instructions about what record to set, or get a developer to help you with anything complex.
Every domain name has a set of records kept by the domain registrar. When you set the name servers for the domain, you are in fact setting the NS Records. Other types of records include MX Records for mail exchange, CNAME Records for aliases such as subdomains, and A Records for direct IP address mapping.
When you register a new domain name most registrars will encourage you to register related domain names. This is generally a good practice to make sure you keep the name as unique as possible. It's best to at least get the .com, .net, and .org.
You can also consider registering various types of misspellings. For example a common misspelling is to leave out the "." between "www" and the domain name. So you could register wwwdomainname.com. Generally speaking this can get a bit expensive if you try to register every possibility, so you probably would not bother until your site gets off the ground and you're sure it's going to be a big success!
When you register a domain name the registration details are available publicly. You can find out a domain name's registration details by running a WhoIs request through a site like DomainTools. This is how you can try contacting a domain owner privately if you want to negotiate a sale without using a broker.
When you are registering your own domain name, you should therefore use registration details that include a PO Box number or a business address of some sort, as well as a non-home phone number. When starting out you might be inclined just to put your home address, however you need to keep in mind that this information will be public and if your site is successful, you may receive unwanted interest in your address and phone number.
Many domain registrars offer privacy packages where they will substitute their own special registrant details so your details don't show up publicly. They then forward any mail to you. This is not a bad option except that spam services almost always use these settings.
Consequently, it can look bad if your customers decide to look you up and instead find sites saying things like "Any domain name with these details is fraudulent and spammy!" Overall it's probably better just to use your own business address and phone so long as it's unrelated to any private details.
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Note: This article was sent to us by: Sharon Reed at 02152011
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