|
Canadian domain names ending in .ca or .ab.ca, etc for
resident Canadian companies can be registered via the CIRA
registration authority, currently about $40 CDN per year. Domain names ending
in .com, .net, and .org can be registered with US domain name registration
companies (e.g. Network
Solutions ) for $35 US per year invoiced directly to you. To keep your
domain name active, your payment must be received and processed by the
registration authority each year as billed. Failure to make these annual
payments will result in loss of name registration and potential
re-registration by other internet entities.
Why would you want your own domain name? Most professional
websites want a domain name (e.g. ssdirect.com)
to brand their corporate identity and maximize image. Selection of an
appropriate name will make it easy for your users to remember how to get to
your site and encourage new users to take a look. The domain name (or URL)
can be placed on all correspondence and advertising - but is most effective
if it is easy for the users to remember. Although many Internet Service
Providers (ISPs) provide some space for personal websites, these are not
usually appropriate for a business site, because:
-
these URLs are often long and hard for users to remember,
and prominently feature the ISP webname while reflecting your company name
only in your userid .. if at all (e.g. see www.telusplanet.net/public/ssdirect
.. the site where ssdirect.com was originally placed).
-
"commercial" sites are often discouraged or even
prohibited,
-
are limited in size and in supported features (e.g.
FrontPage extensions).
-
such sites do not get assigned a permanent IP address (e.g.
209.74.189.xxx) .. think of it as a kind of a "phone number" for
the internet associated with a given user domain name. Without this IP
address the internet name servers (URL) will have no place to point those
seeking to connect to your site. Therefore, a web host must provide you a
home for your domain name. For this service you can expect to pay a monthly
fee.
|
