Tips on domain registration

What are the issues

[aspdaddy]

Over the past 18 months I have registered various domains for myself & some for clients, but this area still puzzles me! I have used various companies & had various problems... lack of control, incorrect details, no certificates (.co.uk), unable to change details, bad dns lookup times, domain kidnapping!.... u know when you have a dispute with the hosting co and they steal 'em till you pay.

I have also read to avoid network solutions/verisign, why?

So if I am registering domains tonite for projects that I hope will get buzy & make me some money in 6-12 months, who should i be using , what should I looking out for

any tips?
thanks
aspdaddy

[Shakil]

I am not sure if in this instance posting the name of a reputable company is against board rules, if so I apologise in advance.

If you are UK based I strongly suggest:

www.easily.co.uk or www.123reg.co.uk

Having registered over 10,000 domains over the last few years (clients and Own portfolio) and also being a Nominet member myself, I have yet to see better than Easily.co.uk

lately I have been using 123reg.co.uk for .com etc purely because it gives you so much control, even to the extent of modifying Owner Details.

hope it helps

shak

[korkus2000]

The reason everyone is adverse to netsol is their track record. Terrible customer support and control of a domain. They are also one of the most expensive games in town. I have a couple legacy domains that i keep there because I think they will stop people from fraudulent transfers. They won't let me switch let alone a thief.

Bottom line is that there are a lot of services out there with a lot cheaper prices. Most people here like godaddy. You need to stake one out and see how there support/control/price all mix together.

[edited by: korkus2000 at 7:19 pm (utc) on Aug. 19, 2002]

[aspdaddy]

Thanx for the advice.

[ukgimp]

And you have no problems transfering them after to your host. I want to avoid UK2 woes as it is a name I have in mind for the long term

Cheers

[CHC]

Many people blame their registrar for the delay in receiving .co.uk domain registration certificates but it is at Nominet where the problem lies. It is currently taking a good few months from the time of registration to the receipt of the certificate by the registrant. There is nothing that the registrar can do to speed up or in fact delay this process. On registering a domain with Nominet we supply the registrant's address and it is up to Nominet to send out the certificate.

123reg.co.uk is ok but UKREG.com is better. 123reg.co.uk over the past few months have been starting to "nickel and dime" their members by adding "stealth" charges. £5 to transfer in a .co.uk domain (with UKREG it is free). £20 to transfer in a .com (half the price with the others.

Before I became a Nominet member I regularly used both services and preferred UKREG. One word of warning though, UKREG do not provide any telephone support and if you try and phone Fasthosts, the parent company and probably the worst hosting ISP in the UK, they will actually put the phone down on you!

A little tip if you do insist on using 123reg; sign up as an affiliate and put their banner on your site. When registering domains go to 123reg via your own click through link and you will save 10% on their already low prices.

If you register any sort of volume though it is far easier just to join Nominet and then you can register domains directly with Nominet for just £5 for 2 years.