What is a domain name?

Put simply a domain name is the address that people use to find you or your company online; it's what you type in the browser's address bar to go to a specific website.

For example, our domain name is: http://www.ecotelnetworks.com (in today's browsers, it's not necessary to type the symbols http:// ). So you want a domain name, your very own place on the net, and you'd like it now but you don't know where to start. Registering domain names is what we do, so getting the name that you want really is as easy.

How do I buy a domain name?

Think of a name

Try and choose a name that is easy to remember, short, and if possible one that describes your website. For instance, an online coffee company may use a domain name like www.easycoffee.com

Check availability

You can do this using our domain checker tool. Simply type the name you want into the search box and away you go!

Many of the popular domains will already be registered, so be prepared to use your imagination and consider alternative domain endings (like: .eu, .biz, .uk.com).

Register

Your search results will be displayed on the page and you can choose which name or names you would like to buy. It's worth noting that your new domain name may take up to 48 hours to be available.

What can I do with a domain name?

Besides setting up your website, there are lots of things that you can do with your domain name, such as email or blogging:

• Send mail - use your email address as a webmail account or forward email to another address.
• Start blogging - publish your photos, ideas and thoughts on your own personalised blog.
• Publish a webpage instantly - create your free homepage or get a unique website effortlessly in minutes using our fantastic easy to use InstantSite builder tool.
• Park it - maybe you haven't decided what to do with your new domain name. Don’t worry there's no rush, you can leave it parked with us for the length of your registration.
• Tell the world - announce your new online identity to everyone you know.

More about webmail

Webmail is a great way to access your mail when you're away from your personal computer. It's very similar to your regular email program, all you need is internet access and a web browser.

How to setup your webmail

• Log in to your ecotel networks control panel (select accounts login from the navigation bar on the right).
• Go to the webmail link & click on edit preferences.
• Then follow the on-screen prompts.

What is a domain extension?

A domain extension describes the ending of a domain name, these can also be referred to as the tld (top level domain), suffix, or domain root.

.com, .org, .co.uk & .name are all examples of a domain extension.

It is common for websites to register the same domain name with multiple domain extensions; increasing the likelihood of a visitor finding the way to your site, and protecting your brand.

Domain Security and Theft Protection

Our top priority is to ensure that your domain names are protected from unauthorized changes and domain theft at all times. Our domain management system is designed to offer the highest level security features available in the domain industry. We have implemented a five step domain theft protection process and as a result, Our network  has never lost a domain name to theft since our existence in 1999. However, a domain is only as secure as the administrator that’s maintaining the domain, so we’ve included some tips on how to protect your domain names:

Domain Account Number, Login Name & Password

Keep your domain account number, login name, and password secret at all times. The domain account password is between 6 -16 characters and is set by the domain owner at the time the account is created. If you forgot your password and would like to have your password sent to you via e-mail then click here to retrieve your domain account password. To increase domain security log into your domain account and update the account password on a regular basis in the customer settings area of your account control panel. Moniker is a secure site and all critical account security information is encrypted, including credit card information

Additionally, choose a hard to guess password that is at least 8 characters long using both alpha and numeric characters. Do not use the domain account number or any personal information as a part of the password. Use upper case and lower case letters as well as numbers. Ecotel recommends that you change your password on a regular basis to further enhance the domain security of your account.

Domain Account Contact’s E-mail Address

The domain account contact’s e-mail address is very important since this e-mail address has control over all the domain names in the account, including changing the ownership. Don't allow others to be the admin contact for your domain names in your account (such as your web hosting company). Don't use an insecure e-mail account (the e-mail account should also have a “strong” password). Don't use insecure free e-mail services such as Hotmail.