.MW Domain General FAQ Malawi FAQ - What is a domain name?
- A domain name is simply a textual address by which anyone can find your host machine on the Internet.
- Why does a domain name look the way it does?
- A domain name always contains a few components, i.e.labels, which are separated by a dot (period), thus: www.abc.com.my.
The structure of a domain name conforms to the DNS Internet naming hierarchy which follows a tree structure. This structure allows computers to find each other on the Internet.
At the very top of this hierarchy is the root (which does not appear in the domain name). The next level down of this hierarchy is the top level domain (TLD), the one after that being the second-level domain, and so on.
The TLD is what appears at the far right end of a domain name. In the example above, the TLD is .my. TLDs come either as country codes domain names like .uk, and .jp, or generic top-level domain names like .com, .net, or .gov.
- What is the difference between a domain name and a URL?
- URL stands for Uniform Resource Locator, a form of address that specifies the location of an object, usually a webpage or a website on the Internet. Here are some examples of URLs:
* http://www.abc.com.my/welcome.html
* http://abc.com.my
* http://abc.com/welcome/index.htm
* ftp://ftp.abc.com.my/something.gz
* mailto:someone@abc.com.my
A URL contains three parts, i.e.
* protocol (e.g. http, ftp, news, mailto)
* domain name of any Internet host (e.g. uww.abc.com.my, abc.com, abc.com.my)
* path or file name (e.g. welcome.html, welcome/index.html, something.gz)
Therefore, a domain name is used in a URL. When you use the web or send an e-mail message, a domain name is used. For example,
* the URL http://www.abc.com.my contains the domain name abc.com.my
* the e-mail address somebody@abc.com.my contains the domain name abc.com.my
- What is the difference between a domain name and an IP address?
- They are different forms of Internet addresses.
An IP address or network address is a numeric form of address that identifies every machine on the Internet. Therefore, every machine has a unique IP address. For example, the IP address of the abc company website could be 192.228.180.200.
A domain name is a textual form of address that is easier for humans to remember than the string of numbers that makes up an IP address. For example, the domain name of that same abc company could be http://www.abc.com.my. However, this domain name could have more than one IP address.
When you browse a particular web site, it is actually the IP address that determines the successful communication between your computer and the website. IP addresses could be said to be computer-friendly, while domain names are human user-friendly.
- What's a primary name server?
- * It contains the information of that domain name.
* Maintenance of the DNS records of a domain name is done at the primary name server level.
* If you choose to administer the primary name server yourself, you can make changes, additions and deletions at your own convenience.
- What's a secondary name server?
- * It contains the exact copy of the domain name information as the primary name server, which is downloaded from the primary name server periodically.
* It acts as the alternative server if the primary name server goes down.
* If you choose to administer a secondary name server only, you do not have to worry about the maintenance of a particular domain name.
- What must a domain name not include?
- Note the following prohibitions. Domain names must not:
* By themselves contain country or state names or well-known names such as Malaysia, Malacca, Johore, etc, or the Bahasa Malaysia equivalents such as Melaka, Johor, etc.
* These domain names may only be applied by the relevant State authority, or persons who have been duly authorised by the relevant State authority. All applications and/or letters of authorization must originate from the State Secretary's (Setiausaha Kerajaan Negeri) Office of the relevant State.
* By themselves contain words in either English or Bahasa Malaysia, that are sensitive to the main religions in Malaysia such as "Islam", "Buddha", "Hindu", "Christianity", etc.
* By themselves or as part of a label, be obscene, scandalous, indecent, offensive or contrary to Malaysian public norms.
* By themselves or as part of a label, contain the words "bank" or "finance company" (or any derivative of the words in any language). Only parties who have the written consent of the Minister of Finance (MOF) pursuant to Section 15 of the Banking and Financial Institutions Act of 1989 (BAFIA) may apply for these domain names.
Source: www.mynic.my
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