How is a word automatically routed to "whatever.com"?
OK I found that it is a realnames server thing.
'Internet Keywords' they're called, plugged into browsers and many search engines. $100 per word per year. So if your web site is called 'avacado.com', for example, and a client types 'avacado' the browser goes to the site who's owner has registered the internet keyword 'avacado' even if that doesn't happen to be you. So much for an objective way of finding things. Realnames puts the names through an "approval process" before registering them but that doesn't necessarily mean somebody won't get a name even if it's already a registered domain name. 
If you ask me this is a flawed technology as far as how it serves the public, because rather than keeping the Net the information resource its supposed to be its encouraging it to go the direction of becoming a huge marketing behemoth.
Adding the fact that there's only one company implementing this Net-wide brings it back to how NSI used to have a monoply on domain registrations.
PS. As far as I know Netscape isn't using these keywords but just cycling through top level domains on an 'open url' entry until it finds a live page. If it doesn't find one it routes to their search engine. Kudos.
[This message has been edited by Max (edited 22 March 2000).]
Max posted this at 11:28 — 22nd March 2000.
They have: 21 posts
Joined: Mar 2000
I was wondering what I have to do to get my domain name automatically route to the .com when only the first word is typed into the client browser.
I know to have both "http://yourdomain.com" and "www.yourdomain.com" you need your host to have the setup for it but what about the .com routing?
And when a host says you get your own IP address is that the same as getting the "http" and "www" or you need to request that in addition to the unique IP.
Excuse the questions if they're too simple, I'm on the learning path.
Anonymous posted this at 13:52 — 22nd March 2000.
They have: 5,633 posts
Joined: Jan 1970
Hi Max,
The "one word" thing is a feature of your browser. It depends on your browser and I am not 100% positive which versions now support it, but I know IE 5.0+ (and I am pretty sure 4.0+ has the feature as well - been a while since I used it) allows it. Basically, if there is one word, the browser is smart enough to assume it may be a domain. This is a setting that can be turned on or off somewhere - if someone has more specifics on this, please post.
In regards to your IP address question, there is one of two options:
1) IP based hosting
2) IPless hosting
And IP address is really what you get. You don't get a domain - you get an IP address. The domain simply overlays the IP address (an alias basically) to make it easy for people to remember your site. Your site is accessible via your IP address as well (given you are using option 1 above).
There are minor advantages and disadvantages to each of the above, but either one will make your site run in the same way.
Hope that made a little sense and answered your questions. If you want, you can contact me directly (info is in the profile) and I would be happy to help you out.
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Elm posted this at 15:07 — 22nd March 2000.
They have: 30 posts
Joined: Dec 1999
I may be wrong here, but isn't the keyword thing a RealNames(www.realnames.com) feature?
[This message has been edited by Elm (edited 22 March 2000).]
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Max posted this at 15:53 — 22nd March 2000.
They have: 21 posts
Joined: Mar 2000
I use Netsacpe 4.7
Some words I type into 'open URL' function bring up the top level domain for that word and other words bring up nothing. Sometimes a word that brings up nothing will bring up the domain when a '.com' or 'www' plus '.com' is added. I may be wrong but doesn't that rule out the browser feature on/off theory?
Thinking about it a bit more though, and not wanting to get lost in a bunch of knowledge base sites, I'm wondering if the browser searches some index on its company's site on the 'open URL' function and simply goes by that. ie. if a domain isn't in the index it doesn't complete the top domain. If this is so, it sure does that search fast! So... I may be wrong there.
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Anonymous posted this at 22:23 — 22nd March 2000.
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So my theory was *partially* correct? I didn't know about the whole realnames thing, but I thought it would just be a "smart browser" type of feature and I thought I had read something about it.
Anyway, great information to know!
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Anonymous posted this at 22:48 — 22nd March 2000.
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Well, wanted to correct myself... My theory was correct. Using IE 5.0, I can type "dids" and it will take me to our Web site (except it brings up that annoying MSN search box) and we aren't paying RealNames anything. I don't know what it is like in Netscape, but I know Microsoft IE doesn't use the RealNames thing.
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Neal_CJO posted this at 23:53 — 8th April 2000.
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Joined: Apr 2000
Actually you are both right.
Let's use my domain for example: (http://christianjobs.com)
In MSIE and NS I can just type christianjobs into the address line and the browser will automatically plug in the www. and the .com
With MSIE (I am not sure if NS does this) if there was no christianjobs.com in existance, it will try .edu, .org, etc.... before giving up and saying that it can't find anything. Also with MSIE you can set it to try a search on failure. So, when it can't find anything, it will then search the Internet for "christianjobs"
The RealNames thing is a keyword registration and you need to 1) Pay RealNames a fee to register a keyword. and 2) The user (translation: Joe Netizen) has to have installed a RealNames plug-in on their browser in order for it to work.
I don't use RealNames. I don't see the point in registering keywords for $$$$$$ and then in order for it to work, you have to have special software installed on your computer!
But, anyway let me stop my rambling and go back to the original point.....
So, let's say I registered the keyword "example". If someone without the RealNames plugin types "example" into their browser, the browser will try and find "example.com" or "example.edu" etc.........
If the user has the RealNames plugin installed and they type in "example" the user will then be taken to my website (http://christianjobs.com)
*** DISCLAIMER: I am not 100% positive on the workings of RealNames, because I don't use it. Of course you can just go to http://www.realnames.com and take a look. ***
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_______________________
Christian Jobs Online
"...bringing people and ministry together!"
http://christianjobs.com
_______________________
Christian Jobs Online
"...bringing people and ministry together!"
http://christianjobs.com
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