Domain Name System

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Domain Name System
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DNS. Short for Domain Name System (or Service),
an Internet service that translates domain names
into IP addresses. Because domain names are
alphabetic, theyre easier to remember. The
Internet however, is really based on IP
addresses. Every time you use a domain name,
therefore, a DNS service must translate the name
into the corresponding IP address. For example,
the domain name www.example.com might translate
to 198.105.232.4. The DNS system is, in fact,
its own network. If one DNS server doesnt know
how to translate a particular domain name, it
asks another one, and so on, until the correct IP
address is returned.
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ICANN (Internet Corporation for Assigned Names
and Numbers at http//www.icann.org/) is the body
that coordinates the assignment of Internet
domain names and IP address numbers. Domain
naming is associated with IP addressing in that
domain names are translated into IP addresses.
Domain names are typically broken down into three
different levels - Top levelincludes common
top-level domain names such as .com, .net, .gov,
.edu, .mil, and .org - Second levelincludes
unique names (unlike the top-level domain
names) - Third level typically www or www2
not required For example, in the domain name
www.id4theweb.com, .com is the top level,
id4theweb is the second level, and www is the
third level.Note Seven additional top-level
domains were added by the International Ad Hoc
Committee (IAHC) in 1997. They include .firm,
.store, .web, .arts, .rec, .info, and .nom. As
the Internet continues to grow, additional
top-level domains are expected.
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Registering a domain name is a fairly easy
process, but it does require some careful
consideration before beginning the process. For
instance, the first thing you do is to come up
with a name for the domain and then decide what
top-level domain(s) you want to register. For
example
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a Identify the desired domain name. It is
important to select a domain name that reflects
the overall purpose of your site. Your domain
name might be your company name, your family
name, or related to the service you plan to
provide. It can be up to 26 characters long
(including the four characters used to identify
the top-level domain) and must be unique. A
domain name currently in use cannot be used by
another party.
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b Visit a domain registration website (such as
the Network Solutions website at
http//www.netsol.com/). This will provide the
opportunity to find out whether the domain name
you are interested in is available. Simply enter
the desired domain name in the field provided,
choose the top-level domain you want, andsearch
to see if that domain name is currently
available.
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c Choose the options you want. Most registration
services offer various options, such as domain
name only, domain with email, and so on. d
Complete paperwork and payment. The paperwork
necessary depends on the company you are
registering your domain name with (for example, a
registration service, your ISP, a hosting
service, and so on). This paperwork might include
such information as the IP address of the server
to which the domain name will be associated.
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e Post your web pages. Web pages can be posted to
an IP address, but your posted web pages wont
show up on your domain name until the domain name
and the IP addresses have been properly
associated (propagated).
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Brainstorm two domain names that you might want
to register. You should explain why you chose the
two names. Visit the Network Solutions website
(http//www.netsol.com/) and determine whether
those domain names are available. Answer these
questions What top level domains are available
for the name(s) entered? If the domain names
entered are not available, what are the closest
matches? Would the closest match be suitable
based on your original purpose? Use the form at
http//cghs.dadeschools.net/apple_web_design/DNS_f
iles/form.rtf to write your results and turn it
in on Wednesday, 9/3.