Question: What is a domain name?

Answer: A domain name is the computers name that is registered on the internet. 

The domain name is a unique name that identifies a device on the internet. Domain names always have 2 or more parts separated by dots - the first part is the specific machine and sub-network and the part on the right is the server and type of server.
 
 

domain name specific server type
www.usd.edu www usd edu
mail.usd.edu mail usd edu
hab.sss.usd.edu hab.sss usd edu

that last example has the specific information split into
a computer name and a subnetwork name

hab computer name sss sub-network

This is actually an old approach to naming. The new approach has added a 2 letter abbreviation of the country to the end of the url. For now there is no plan to re-assign all of the domain names that did not include this country code.

domain name specific server type country
www.wow.com.jp www wow com jp (japan)

It is possible for a single computer to have more than one domain name. This allows for serving several web sites - making each appear to be running on an individual machine.

Usually all of the computers, printer, and other devices on a given network have the same right-hand portion of their domain names. This helps the network administrator keep track of the machines and helps trace problems. Here at USD each department has a sub-network name. 

Question: What keeps track of the domain name?
 
 
    Answer: There is a program called a Domain Name Server (DNS) that runs on your ISP's computer. Each IP address on the network should have a DNS entry. This is basically a database that associates a name (DNS entry) to an IP address.
Question: How can I change my domain name?
 
 
    Answer: Your domain name is assigned by your ISP. The right part of the domain name is registered and it's not free. If you are on a network that has static (fixed) IP addresses, you may be able to request a change the left part of your domain name through your system administrator.
Question: What does the .com mean?
 
 
    Answer: Just a way to differentiate between different types of sites. Below is a list of some of the more common types of addresses.
     
     
    abbreviation % stands for   abbreviation % stands for
    .com 28 commercial   .gov 2 government
    .edu 12 educational   .mil 4 military
    .net 19 network provider   .org 2 organization
Question: What are some of the country codes?
 
 
    Answer: Here is a short javascript code that generates country codes and also some common extensions like edu.
    Country
    Codes
    in URL's

    Instructions: 
    Simply "click
    the letter of
    the first initial
    of the 2 letter country code
    or country
    name.
    Then "click"
    the Find
    button.

    		 A

    F

    K

    P

    U

    		 B

    G

    L

    Q

    V

    		 C

    H

    M

    R

    W

    Z

    		 D

    I

    N

    S

    X

    		 E

    J

    O

    T

    Y

    		 Country Code Results
    There are nearly 300 country codes assigned by the ISO (International Standards Organization)
Question: I just looked up .to and it says Tonga - why is that starting to appear so much? There aren't that many sites in Tonga are there?
 
 
    Answer: Well after someone came up with the country code - someone thought it would be cool to have a site called jump.to or surf.to etc. Tonga, being a relatively small place, thought they could sell a few rights to their domain name.
361
 
 
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