What Is A Domain Name

A domain name is essentially a signpost that is used to identify computers on the Internet. It consists of two parts:

1.    The unique name of a “thing” being described. For example “domainerincome”.
2.    The extension. For example .com

The most well known extension is .com – it was originally intended to be used for commercial business purposes, however its been adopted as the defacto standard for domain names worldwide.

There are three different categories of domain names (although only two are commonly used)

1.    Generic Top-Level Domains – also known as gTLD’s.
2.    Country-Code Top-Level Domains – also known as ccTLD’s.
3.    Infrastructure Top-Level Domains – also known as iTLD’s.

Generic Top-Level Domains

There are many different types of extensions. The following are known as “generic top-level domains” (gTLD’s):

•    .com – Commercial businesses
•    .net – Network organizations
•    .org – Organizations
•    .edu – Educational (post secondary) institutions
•    .gov – Government agencies (US)
•    .mil – Military (US)
•    .aero – Aviation industry
•    .asia – A regional domain for Asia
•    .cat – Catalan language/culture
•    .biz – Business usage
•    .coop – Cooperatives
•    .info – Informational sites
•    .int – International organizations
•    .jobs – Employment
•    .mobi – Mobile devices
•    .museum – Museums
•    .name – Families and individuals
•    .pro – Specific professions
•    .tel – Telephone connectivity
•    .travel – Travel industry