What is a Domain Name ?

A Domain name is your Internet address and is used to find your website on the Internet. www.imcwebdesign is the domain name we use for people to find this website. There are many extensions to choose from and may confuse some people. We have outlined below what the domain extensions are used for. As part of the web design process we will organize the registration of your Domain name. The following extensions you can choose from. .com .ie .net .co.uk .org .biz .info

.com.  This is a top level domain name extension and sells the best out of all the extensions, it is also the most valuable domain extension. You should always where possible register the .com domain name. This domain extension can be registered for upto 10 years.

.net   This is a very good extension, it is used to say we are on the Internet. And, for most serious companies this domain name extension would also be registered.

.org   A worldwide organization domain extension that doesn't carry many restrictions.

.info   Stands for information. This domain name extension can be very useful, and as a new comer it's doing well. Reasonably priced and very few restrictions.

.biz   A newer extension on the Internet. This domain name extension has been warmly welcomed and is doing very well. It doesn't have many restrictions and it generally refers to a business online. Reasonably priced and can be extended for up to ten years.

.ie   The Irish Domain extension and is used for Irish companies and Irish websites. Requirements to register a .ie name

.co.uk   Registration of this domain extension is the most popular in the UK. It has almost No restrictions and is very competitively priced. All .co.uk domains can only be registered for 2 years.

Registration of domain names is relatively cheap and can be bought for 1 year or for a number of years, depending on your choice. Domain names require renewal at the end of the relevant period.

What is web hosting and can you provide this service ?

Once your domain name is sorted out and the website is designed it needs to be placed on the internet, this is Web Hosting. Your site is uploaded to a web server that connects to the world wide web. Web hosting will also contain your E-mail addresses. The cost of web hosting can vary greatly depending on your requirements. We can provide web hosting packages and as part of the web design process. If required we can organise your web hosting package and take care of the technical side.

Q - What annual costs should I expect in running a website ?

This will depend on what type of website you are running. The costs involved are

        -   Annual Web Hosting / business e-mail accounts.

        -   Your domain name renewal , e.g. www.YourName.com or www.YourName.ie

If you require IMC Webdesign to make major changes to your site after completion the cost will be based on the number of hours it will take to complete the work.