By 1993, there was a definite need for the Internet community to be organized. InterNIC (the Internet Network Information Center) was created by the National Science Foundation to provide information, a directory and database, and registration services. Although InterNIC is the closest thing there is to an Internet administrative center, it doesn't dictate Internet policy or run any computer that 'controls' the Internet. InterNIC's soul purpose is to handle organizational and 'bookkeeping' functions, such as assigning Internet addresses.
All computers on the Internet are referenced using IP addresses. An IP address consists of four numbers separated by periods, called dots. Each number in the IP address is an integer from 0-255.
204.179.33.65.
Since numbers are more difficult for most humans to remember than names, in 1983 the University of Wisconsin developed the DNS (Domain Name Server). DNS automatically translates names composed of real words into their numeric IP addresses, which makes the Internet a whole lot more user-friendly. An example of a DNS address would be: quiltingpassion.com.
All domain names consist of two or more parts, separated by periods (called dots). A domain name or IP address is unique for each computer, but parts of the address will be the same, if the computers are located in the same site. For example, a site may have the domain name of quiltingpassion .com, but each computer there would have a different name. So, you might find lady.quiltingpassion.com, gent.quiltingpassion.com, and baby.quiltingpassion.com all at the same site (just different computers). One computer is named 'lady', another 'gent', and the last 'baby'. Of course, a computer can be named anything the owner wishes it to be.
Table 1 shows a variety of common extensions. This table is not all-inclusive, as new extensions are created to meet the demands of more people, world-wide, requesting Web sites.
|
EXTENSION |
MEANING |
.com |
Commercial site |
|---|---|
|
.edu |
Educational site |
|
.gov |
Government site |
.mil |
Military site |
|
.net |
Network service provider |
|
.org |
Organization |
| .biz | Business |
©