Registering a Domain

The Internet is only one example of a DNS namespace. You do not have to be connected to the Internet to use DNS. If you are not connected to the Internet, you do not have to worry about registering your domain names. However, organizations that want to use their own domain names (such as BuddysCars.com) must register that name with the proper registration authority.

ICANN oversees the task of domain name registration but delegates registration for particular TLDs to other groups. Registration services for a number of commonly used TLDs are listed here.

• .com, .org, and .net— A number of companies are authorized to provide domain name resolution services for the popular .com, .org, and .net TLDs. See the ICANN Web site at http://www.icann.com.

• .gov— The .gov domain is reserved for the U.S. federal government. State and local government names branch from the U.S. TLD. Registration services for the .gov domain are located at http://www.registration.fed.gov.

• .mil— The .mil domain is reserved for the United States military. Registration services are located at http://www.nic.mil.