 Domain Names
The major benefit of having your own domain name is independence. You can
move your web site from one computer or hosting service to another without
having to change your web site or email addresses. It is also possible to have
more than one domain name pointing to the same web site.
Choosing a domain
name
Many people will find your web site by following links from other pages or
search engines. When this happens, the domain name is not very important.
However...
Your choice of domain name will be important when:
- printed on your business card or press advertisements - will it fit and be
easier to read?
- spoken on the telephone - Try it. Is it easy to say clearly? How does it
sound?
- typed into a web browser - Try it to see if it is easy to type or if it
encourages typos. The longer the domain name the more chance of typing
mistakes
- used to restrict a search (e.g. searching for Australian sites on search
engines)
Rules regarding .com.au domain names (summary only)
New guidelines that took effect July 2002
are available here
- at least 2 characters long
- up to 26 characters including the .com.au
- only alphanumeric characters (i.e. a-z, A-Z, 0-9) and hyphens
- must not start or finish with a hyphen
- is usually derived from the legal name of the commercial entity.
- must not be an Australian place name with a postcode
Domain names are not case-sensitive
brisbanecitylife.com.au = BrisbaneCityLife.com.au = BRISBANECITYLIFE.COM.AU
Q. What about a subdomain?
A. A subdomain eg yourname.theirname.com.au belongs to theirname.com.au
Go to
Melbourne IT to see if your name is available now Try names of your
choice on the form. If the one you want is available, you can continue and
register the domain at the standard price.
Registering your
domain name
There are strict policies surrounding registration of .com.au domain names. You
must be an Australian commercial entity (ie. Company, Registered business,
Associations etc.) The domain name must be directly derived from the business
name or business activity. Domain name owners should be cautious of
unsolicited or misleading letters and faxes seeking payment for registering or
renewing domain names.
-
Melbourne IT
(was Internet Names Australia) You can check and/or register your .au
and other domains.
|
