A domain name is the name that identifies a web site. For example, “google.com” is the domain name of Google’s Web site. A single Web server can serve Web sites for multiple domain names, but a single domain name can point to only one machine. For example, Apple Computer has Web sites at www.apple.com, www.info.apple.com, and store.apple.com. Each of these sites could be served on different machines.
Then there are domain names that have been registered, but are not connected to a Web server. The most common reason for this is to have e-mail addresses at a certain domain name without having to maintain a Web site. In these cases, the domain name must be connected to a machine that is running a mail server.
To register a domain name, I recommend 1&1 or GoDaddy, but any service like this will usually have similar pricing and offers. Use the search box below to see what domain names are available.