I get that some instances use the domain + TLD to make a word, like lemm.ee or to an extent, sh.itjust.works. But I’ve seen so many TLDs I had no idea existed, like .world, .zone, .social, and yes .works as well.
Is there any real reason for that? Trying to look cool or kinda underground-y? Cheaper and more varied domain options? Something actually kinda functional?
Interestingly, I started on vlemmy.net because I was a scared Reddit refugee and the .net TLD gave me comfort. Then it vanished a few days later without a trace. So here I am on lemmy.world
FOSS people have…weird taste in naming stuff. See: GIMP, GNU, et al.,
FLOSS
FIFY
Cost of domain name tends to be cheaper with more obscure Top Level Domains (TLDs). .com .org .net TLDs are expensive because they are popular and high in demand. You have to rent them out most of the time. Many are already claimed so you either have to buy the owner out or wait till they stop paying and it expires if you really want it, .xyz is very cheap and uncommon on the other hand thus pennies on the dime per year to rent. Also depending on where you live and your occupation you can actually get a domain name for free through registering with specific services that actually for real own the Top Level Domains. If you are a citizen of a certain country you can get a .us or .cad or .eu .ml domain ect either for free or very very cheap.
Check out this list for all TLDs and if you qualify for one for free. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Internet_top-level_domains
Heres a free domain name registar thats quite promising from the looks of it, most likely the one that lemmy.ml uses https://www.freenom.com/en/index.html?lang=en
Do not use Freenom. They notoriously revoke domain names on high traffic sites and without notice.
http://www.freenom.com/en/doc_tcpaid_freenom_v0100.pdf https://www.reddit.com/r/freenom/comments/107qzn1/freenom_is_out_of_order_and_it_made_my_domains/
And ICANN let’s them?
Why does ICANN allow so many weird domains to begin with? Domains used to be a good way to tell if you were going to the legit website.
.com - commercial entity .gov - government only .edu - educational entities only .net - network providers (ISP) only .org - non profit only
Those days are gone.
Now there’s Startrek.website and Startrek.com — how does the user know which one is owned by Paramount/Star Trek?
For me, it’s the .zip domain. (recently added at the request of google)
That one in particular is a bomb waiting to blow. Is this link to a webpage or to a malicious download? Who knows! Guess we’ll just have to click on it and see if anything starts downloading.
Using file extensions for your TLD should be a big no-no for a lot of reasons, that being one of them.
.com was a common file extension for MS-DOS executables, which was still in common use when the Internet started taking off.
That’s the best thing ever - next let’s do .exe.
Hasn’t .com always been the commerce/business. Would a Google search for Star Trek actually bring you to Startrek.website? It seems like anyone with half a brain would know the difference. Legit companies/entities are going to stick to known domains.
Most TLDs have no requirements. .gov is special.
Well one is a forum with a little mouse at the top and the other one is a website with official logos, branding, a shop, and news.
You’re not gonna get recommended startrek.website unless you’re specifically looking for it or a star trek lemmy instance in general.
i own a .xyz domain, the .com equivalent was 50 times more expensive
more potential answers here: https://a.lemmy.world/lemmy.world/post/2010270
