Does it Matter Who You Buy Your Domain From?

[Radtech1]

I finally thought of a "blablabla.com" that I want to register. But that just leads me to lots of stuff I don't know.

Does it matter if I get it through GoDaddy, NetworkSolutions, or any of the other million sources? Pros, cons, likes, hates?

Rad

[Skrim17]

I find it easier to get it thru the company you are using to host the domain as well, then you don't have to transfer the name once you find a hosting plan. I am pretty sure godaddy will register, park and host a site.

I host with 1 and 1 and really like it, but I registered with register.com and so had to then release the name to 1 and 1 for hosting and it took some time, would have been less of a hassle to register it with 1 and 1 to begin with.

[tim]

Makes no difference. I hate the godaddy site, it's busy, confusing, and it's main aim seems to be to confuse and sell people things they don't need. When I find out about another registrar that does a good job of the basics i'll change to them.

[tim]

I find it easier to get it thru the company you are using to host the domain as well, then you don't have to transfer the name once you find a hosting plan. I am pretty sure godaddy will register, park and host a site.

I host with 1 and 1 and really like it, but I registered with register.com and so had to then release the name to 1 and 1 for hosting and it took some time, would have been less of a hassle to register it with 1 and 1 to begin with.

It's often cheaper to use a dedicated registrar. You don't need to release a domain if you want it hosted elsewhere, you just point the DNS entries for the domain to your web host. It's really trivial. Sounds like you did it the hard way.

[rmitcho]

Because of my lack of experience I used "register.com". It seemed relatively inexpensive at first. But then they called and told me for more money they would keep all my personal data private (like my name, address, etc...) Of course I paid the extra money. Then I realized their advertisement was a banner at the bottom of my website which required viewers to scroll down to see a full photograph. When I called to complain, they explained that for more money they could make that go away! So I'm letting my domain name with them lapse..... lesson learned.

[DDCSD]

Just be careful. I know that Yahoo wanted like $35 for a 1 year renewal of a .org domain I registered with them. Be sure to find out what they charge for renewals. Really ticked me off after they lure you in with a $1.99 initial registration.

[tim]

Godaddy at least are honest, even though they do try to trick or coerce you into buying things you don't need, and often require you to contact customer support to get rid of them (eg keeping your registration data private).

[Bubble]

GoDaddy is the choice. i register more than 50 domains with them in the last few years (for clients and myself). Their rate is cheap and most importaint, the renewal rate is reasonable.

[dreamcatcher23]

i actually thought you'd called yourself blablabla at first!

[egordon99]

+1 for 1and1 for both domain registration and hosting. I have a bunch of sites/domains with them :)

[Box Brownie]

My rule of thumb is:-

1) How much is the domain and for how long a period
2) If I wish to transfer away do they charge a fee? If so how much?
3) If they host, are they offering competitive packages.

For the record I have been burned in the past re #2

I have the few domains I have registered (transfered in as needed) but host them elsewhere. The reg iste has a control panel where I can redirect emails as needed and for the hosting I have control over the DNS redirector and the "A" (sorry without checking again I forget the full title for this redirector) but basically I keep control. And if in future I need to transfer away I do not have to pay a fee.

HTH maybe :)

[hypertech]

I use 1and1 for registration as well.

[wyofizz]

Not all registration services will allow you to do site forwarding etc. unless you
purchase their site hosting service. Make sure their hosting is what you want.

Dave

[James Robert Gratiot]

Godaddy at least are honest, even though they do try to trick or coerce you into buying things you don't need, and often require you to contact customer support to get rid of them (eg keeping your registration data private).
This is true. But just yesterday they automatically billed me for a site I no longer needed... and it took less than 90 seconds on the phone for me to get my money back.

I've been using them for years and have been quite satisfied, but like Tim says, make sure you know what you want before you buy... 'cause they will try to sell you some things you don't need.

[Jon Foster]

Make sure the company you choose doesn't actually register your domain as their own then let you use it. That was a fairly common scam a few years back for the really cheap places.

You'd be better off using a company that is common. GoDaddy is a pain for me but I have lots of domains registered through them. Dotster is another one I use for a bunch of sites with good results.

Jon.

[Triptoph]

I like to keep the registrar and hosting separate, allowing you to easily update the DNS when you change hosting companies, which you sometimes need to do unexpectedly. I once went with Livehost.net whose servers were infected with a virus that was affecting clients. They charged me for a full year hosting at a few hundred dollars well after i requested them to cancel my account, disputed my claim against them with paypal (and they won, because paypal refused to take action. Reason? because there was no physical product exchanged so therefore they can do nothing. go figure)

Anyways, the point is I was glad that i had my domain registered elsewhere so i could simply change where my hosting plan without consulting them at all to change anything, so at least i could get my clients on a new server while i dealt with Livehost's complete incompetence.

[snakekid]

make sure they are icann affiliated

[alohabob]

I hate the godaddy site, it's busy, confusing, and it's main aim seems to be to confuse and sell people things they don't need.
I agree!!!! Stay away from godaddy. What a nightmare! Just a big scam from what I experienced, I'm still dealing with them months after I should have my domain!. Netfirms seems pretty good.