1.0 Domain Names
In addition to writing web pages and sites it is useful to understand a little about the way in which the Internet works. A good place to start is with domain names.
In simple terms, a domain name is an address typed into a browser's address bar (at the top) to find a website online. For example, our domain name is: http://www.freewebtutorial.co.uk as shown below:
The http:// stands for Hyper Text Transfer Protocol (note it's unnecessary to type http:// into address bars these days as browsers will usually add it). HTTP is used for retrieving hypertext documents.
A domain name forms only part of a URL (Uniform Resource Locator), a full URL being the domain name itself followed by the relevant web page being viewed (e.g. http://www.freewebtutorial.co.uk/index.php/).
Caution! Take care when using sites where you may offer sensitive information (such as credit card details). Always ensure the site address begins with https:// (the s stands for secure). This ensures no one can eavesdrop on your details.
In more complex terms, a domain name is a name that identifies one or more IP addresses (Internet Protocol addresses). Every computer connected to the Internet has a unique IP address (including your PC). Although stored in binary, these are displayed in a readable format of 4 octets, such as: 216.147.60.52. A database called The Domain Name System (DNS) uses servers to translate domain names into IP addresses. You may have come across a DNS server error before when looking for a website that cannot be found.
