| June 1998 Archived at Pineapplesoft |  | |||
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The Pineapplesoft Link newsletter covered a wide range of technical topics, see the archived issues. The newsletter was first emailed in 1998. In 2001 Benoît discontinued it in favour of professional writing for magazines. The “June 1998” page was archived in 2003 to preserve the original content of June 1998. | ||||
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Welcome to the sixth issue of Pineapplesoft Link. This month features a discussion on domain names. This issue is therefore of a less technical nature than earlier discussions on CORBA or XML. Still I hope you will find it interesting. More than ever, I'd like to hear from you. Are you interested in similar discussions or do you prefer the "regular" topics for Pineapplesoft Link? Please send your comments or suggestions to [address removed, the newsletter is no longer published thank you for your support]. Pineapplesoft Link, June 98: Naming the Web This month I'd like to share with you some thoughts on domain names. If, after reading this issue, you feel like you want to register your own domain, check the "box" entitled "How to claim your name". Some Thoughts When I first joined the Internet, domain names where a non-issue. The Internet was a research network with relatively few hosts. Although registering domain names was free on those days, I don't remember any disputes over a name. Of course it is possible there were some. IBM had ibm.com, digital had digital.com and CompuServe had compuserve.com. No fuss. As the Internet grew in popularity, interest for domain names grew as well. Increasingly, Internet addresses are part of the identity of a company and are used in promotion, for stationery, etc. No wonder everybody wants good names. What's in a Name Let's pause to consider the distinction between an address and a domain name. Addresses are of the form http://www.pineapplesoft.com or bmarchal0@pineapplesoft.com. The domain name is just a part of it: "pineapplesoft.com" in this example. There's an important difference between a domain name and an address. The domain name must be registered with an authority to ensure there is no duplicate. Because of this registration step, one cannot do what one wants with domain names. For example, it is not possible to register names that are already in use. But organizations rule their domain(s). One is free to create any syntactically correct address based on one's own domain name. Pineapplesoft can create all these addresses bmarchal0@pineapplesoft.com, info0@pineapplesoft.com, webmaster0@pineapplesoft.com and many more. The very last part of the domain name (".com" in this case) is known as the Top Level Domain (TLD in short). The TLD identifies the authority that assigned the domain name. InterNIC is the authority for most so-called generic TLDs: ".com" (commercial), ".net" (ISPs), ".org" (non-profit). They are generic because they are open to organizations (or individuals) world-wide. Furthermore there are also country-specific TLDs. Belgian organizations can register in the ".be" TLD, American in the ".us" TLD, Canadian in ".ca", Japanese in ".jp", etc. Of course Belgian, American, Canadian and Japanese organizations can also register from the generic TLDs. What's a Good Name What makes a good domain name? Ideally it is short, descriptive and easy to remember. Unfortunately, these objectives are somewhat contradictory. For example, cheap-robust-furniture.com is very clear and descriptive but it's not exactly short! It may prove too long for practical usage. Imagine printing an email address like john.doe@cheap-robust-furniture.com on a business card! On the other hand, a very short name like crf.com (the initials of Cheap Robust Furniture) is too cryptic! The best domain names are based on a recognized brand or a descriptive short word or a well-known acronym. A good way to ensure a short, descriptive and easy to remember name is to register not one but several names. One for each possible applications. After all, domain names are relatively cheap (InterNIC charges $70 for two years, other registration authorities have different pricing), especially when compared to other forms of promotion. My own domains, are a good example. PINEAPPLESOFT.COM is a good domain name because it matches exactly the company name but it is already 17 characters long. Therefore I registered another domain for software development: PSOL.COM, short for Pineapplesoft Object Library. Beam Me Up ".com" is the most popular TLD because it stands for commercial entities which fits the definition of most activities! Yet, ".com" is so popular that finding good names is becoming increasingly difficult. Everybody seems to agree that more TLDs are required. The most advanced proposal at the time of writing, is being developed by CORE (http://www.corenic.org). CORE propose to add 7 new TLDs (".firm", ".shop", ".web", ".arts", ".rec", ".info", ".nom"). Unfortunately the debate is highly political and progress is slow. Others have decided not to wait and to open new TLDs today. The trick is to use country-TLDs that were approved years ago but were never used. The Coco Islands is a good example. Chances are you had never heard of the Coco Islands but it has country-specific TLD! Coco Islands never bothered managing it until a some business offered to take care of the infrastructure in exchange for a share of the fee. The argument goes: if you can't find the name of choice in ".com", why not try ".cc" (http://www.ccdomains.cc/joinnow)? It's a virgin territory for domain names, it is managed like a generic TLD (even though it is not one) and it's available today. I have mixed feelings over these new TLDs. ".com" is still the most popular TLD by far. People expect addresses in the ".com" TLD. An address like mycompany.cc or, later, mycompany.firm is unusual. On the other hand ".com" is so overcrowded that new TLDs must be introduced! As country TLDs are gaining ground and as new generic TLDs open, we will grow more familiar with such addresses. It may pay to be one of the first to explore uncharted territories. What about the Future Domain names are being used in ways they were never intended for. But that's true for the rest of the Internet as well. "Real Name" (http://go.centraal.com) is trying to build a radically different system. With "Real Name", you simply type a name (no "www", no "com") and you're taken to the company web site. That's the theory behind it anyway. In practice, it works if the company registered with "Real Name" otherwise it fails back to a search engine like Infoseek or Excite. It is rumored that Netscape want to build a similar product in the next version of Communicator. I have great doubts over the viability of such a solution. If it turns into a smash success, the name space will quickly fill up and it will be as difficult to find a good name with "Real Name" as it is to find a good name in ".com". Furthermore "Real Name" is not a general service. It works only for home pages and relies on domain names for hyperlinks. Organizations still need domain names for email and linking. The Final Words Clearly the original Internet name service (the domain name) is under a lot of pressure. The ".com" TLD is the perfect example of a domain on the verge of collapsing under its own popularity. However the Internet has proved very resilient to pressure. Solutions may come from new TLDs or from alternatives like "Real Name". One thing is sure: domain names are an important part of a professional web presence and the competition for good names is hotting up.
Self-promotion department Two new papers and one old one in this "Self-promotion department". As well as news from the XML/EDI presentation last month in Norway. As promised in the May issue, developer.com published an article
on XML, entitled "The Two Faces of XML". It's available at Also Netscape View Source published "Migrating to E-Commerce" (http://developer.netscape.com/viewsource/marchal_ecom.html), an article that will interest anybody who is considering a move to E-Commerce. As you will see good domain name is just the beginning! The first issue of Pineapplesoft Link (http://www.psol.be/old/1/newsletter/19980101_3tier.html) was reproduced in the May 11 issue of "Computing Canada" (http://www.plesman.com). The conference on "XML/EDI" last month in Norway was a success with roughly 100 attendants. Thanks to Gard, Siri and Per for their work organizing it. This was also the month for the first European meeting on XML/EDI. It was held in Paris and co-chaired by yours truly. The momentum behind XML/EDI is growing. If you are interested by this high-flying topic, join us at CEN on the 4th-5th of June or at EDIFrance towards the end of the month. About Pineapplesoft Link Pineapplesoft Link is published freely, every month via email. The focus is on Internet technology in its broadest sense: distributed and mobile computing, e-commerce, Java, XML, etc. The articles target people interested or concerned about technology either personally or professionally. This issue of Pineapplesoft Link may be distributed freely for noncommercial purposes as long as attribution (including the URL: www.psol.be) is given. . Editor: Benoit Marchal Acknowledgements: thanks to Sean McLoughlin MBA for helping me with this issue. Back issues are available at http://www.psol.be/old/1/newsletter/. Although the editor and the publisher have used reasonable endeavors to ensure accuracy of the contents, they assume no responsibility for any error or omission that may appear in the document. Last update: June 1998. |