What is a domain name?

A domain name, such as www.greatertechgroup.com is simply a way to uniquely identify your website from all the other sites in the Internet. Just as your mailing address is unique in the world, so is every domain name. If they were not unique it would be impossible to accurately deliver anything to its proper location. The name that you register is called a URL, which stands for Uniform Resource Locater. It is used by the Internet Name Servers to locate your web site.

The suffix you attach to your website usually indicates what type of site it is. The suffix '.com' usually means company, or commercial. The suffix '.org' usually means a
non-profit organization. The suffix '.net' usually means a network provider. There are other suffixes that are available, such as (.ws, .tv, .info, .biz, .us, and .name), and there are special suffixes you will not be dealing with (.mil, .gov, .edu).

How do I check the availability of a domain name?

You can check the availability of a domain name simply by going to the Go Daddy Whois page. It will tell you if a domain is already registered and to whom. If it is not already taken then you can also register it through Go Daddy

Why do I have to register a domain name?

Registration of a domain name causes it to be reserved for your use, and only for your use on the Internet. No one else can ever use that name on the Internet. When you hire a company to host your website, then the domain name is assigned a permanent unique IP number.

How do I register a domain name?

Registering has never been easier. You can ask us to register your domain name for you, and there will be no additional charge. Or you can go to the Go Daddy web site and register the domain name yourself.

Can you register my domain?

Yes we can register your domain name for you. We use the services of Go Daddy Software, and all the revenue goes to them. If you are interested in this service, please go to our Name Registration page.

How much does it cost to register a domain name?

The fee for two years registration is about $19 (US), and the fee for five years is about $42 (US). Please visit our Name Registration page for additional information on costs.

How long will it take for my domain to become active?

It generally takes 2 to 3 days for Go Daddy to setup and complete your domain registration. When the process is completed, Go Daddy will send the website Technical Contact an e-mail indicating they have finished.

Do I have to purchase web hosting when I register my domain?

No, you do not. If you choose to register your domain without purchasing web hosting, your domain will be registered, but it will not 'point' anywhere, it will be 'parked'. To have your domain 'point' to a web site you will need to have your web site 'hosted'.

Does Greater Technology Group build and maintain Web Pages?

Greater Technology Group hosts websites on our server, and we also design and build new web sites from scratch. We can also maintain existing web sites, on our server, or on other servers. Please see our Website Design page for further information.

How long will it take for my web site to be active?

Once your domain name registration is completed, you will be notified by Go Daddy. At that point we assign your domain name a unique IP number, and set up your site on our server. We also notify Go Daddy that your site is being hosted on our server, so they can update the Name Servers. We also notify the upstream Domain Name Server in the Internet (vnet.net) so they can insert your domain name and IP number into the network. All of this usually takes 2-3 days.

How often can I update my site?

You may update your site as many times as you wish, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. If you choose to update your website, then Greater Technology Group will NOT update your website. It has to be one or the other, not both, because of responsibility issues.

How long will it take to transfer my site to the Greater Technology Group server?

From the time the paperwork is finalized with us, it can take 2-5 days for the change to take effect. During that time we will set up your site on our server, and download all of your pages and images from your existing site. Then we will test your site on our server, to make sure everything is working perfectly before the site is disconnected from the existing server.

Can multiple URL's point to the same website home page?

Yes, multiple URL's can point to the same website. Each URL points to the same IP Address of the main site. This is called website Aliases. To request this setup, send an email request to: sales@greatertechgroup.com specifically stating the URL's you would like to point to which website. Greater Technology Group uses the alias of www.grtgr.com, so you can get to our website using this short version.

What is CGI?

CGI stands for "Common Gateway Interface" and is simply a way to transfer information from web pages to the web server, or vice versa. CGI scripts are programmed in C++ or Perl languages. They are usually interpreted at run time, when the user requests a service. The program objects must be located on the web server instead of on the client. We support CGI scripts on our server.

Is my website listed in any Search Engines?

If your website is hosted with us, we will submit your website to hundreds of search engines once every month. It will take 2-3 months for the search engines to update their data base so that your website starts showing up on searches. We will also supply your website with keywords to help find it on the Internet.

Multiple Listing Services.
Microsoft B-Central
Submit Wizard

Web Page Analyzers.
Superstats.com
Find Broken Links

Phone Book Listings.
BigBook.com
YellowPages.com
Big Yellow
Yahoo Yellow Pages

Search Engines.
Google
WebCrawler
Go
Lycos
Excite
Yahoo
AltaVista
Go2
MSN
HotBot
LookSmart
CNet
FastSearch
FindWhat
EuroSeek
SearchUK

Professional Web Listing Services.
Submit It Online
Spider Bait
Web-Ignite
Promote Your Website
Did-it.com

Professional Web Listing Software.
Submit Wolf
Exploit.com
Web Position
Search Engine Commando
Traffic Seeker
Internet Business Promoter

Other places to List your site.
Better Business Bureau
Chamber of Commerce