After two years of giving out www.samathieson.com for both my email and website address, paying £19.98 to renew the domain name on May 21 seemed an easy decision.
The cash was immediately accepted by US-based firm ActiveBytes Software, which trades as Freeparking.co.uk. But from May 30 - the expiry date I'd paid to avoid - email and web-page requests dropped into a digital black hole.
For a freelance journalist, a comatose domain name was irritating and embarrassing. But for a shop or hotel relying on web and email for custom, it could have been disastrous.
ActiveBytes restored the name on June 27. My bank refunded the credit card-paid fee, but that would not have been much compensation for a month's lost earnings. Given such problems, it might be tempting for a small business to stick with the name provided by their internet service provider. Freeserve is typical, in giving customers email addresses in the format mail@[yourchoice].fsnet.co.uk, with a website at www.[yourchoice].fsnet.co.uk. Spending more just to use www.[yourchoice].co.uk might seem a waste of money.
But, as Guardian Online reported on August 1, Freeserve is considering switching to its parent company's name, Wanadoo. This could include changing customers' email and web addresses, although Freeserve has not yet decided on this.
If it does, it won't be the first time. Tiscali, the Italian buyer of LineOne, changed its customers' addresses from "lineone.net" to "tiscali.co.uk".
David Bishop, spokesman for the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB), says a domain name change would, initially, be extremely disruptive. "Many small businesses have very limited advertising budgets, relying on word of mouth and repeat business. Any change in email address would make this more difficult."
Your ISP-given email address is also vulnerable if a service closes, and it can't be taken with you if you want to move as a result of rotten service. Owning your own domain name is prudent, then, and looks professional, but you must check out the firm that will manage it.
The problem with ActiveBytes resulted from an attempt to move registrar (see below) from Joker, in Germany, to one in Australia. Joker required my permission and sought this by emailing only the address used when registering the name in 2000, since abandoned, rather than my current email held by ActiveBytes.
Emails to Joker went unanswered or came back with a blank reply, and its DËsseldorf phone number connected to a recorded message - telling me to email. Emails to Freeparking went unanswered for days and then produced replies saying it was "working on it". Its US 1-800 phone number cannot be called from outside that country. Eventually, ActiveBytes settled its row with Joker. But regardless of who was in the right, it would be better to avoid such a mess in the first place.
It is safer, and usually cheaper, to use a UK domain name such as .co.uk. The single UK registrar, Nominet, provides a certificate of ownership. Furthermore, it provides ways of maintaining or transferring your domain if you have problems with the third-party name manager.
Dr Willy Black, executive chairman of Nominet, says a UK name suggests a local link. "UK consumers feel more comfortable with a .co.uk," he says, quoting internal research. The .co.uk, .org.uk and .me.uk domains can be bought by anyone, although they are designed for UK commercial concerns, organisations and individuals respectively.
A non-European firm may be slightly cheaper due to not charging VAT, but that is little compensation when your domain name is down and its phone number doesn't work.
For .co.uk, .org.uk and .me.uk, Nominet charges £5 plus VAT for two years. Registrars for the most common international domains tend to charge about £20 for the same period, although it is cheaper if you buy for longer periods. You will pay more, as the name manager has to run systems for forwarding your email and web-traffic.
The biggest brands can be the least competitive. Freeserve charges £44.99 plus VAT for two years.
London-based UK2 charges just a penny a month on top of the registrar's fee, but only when you buy at least 10 names; any fewer cost 16p a month, which, plus Nominet's charge, comes to £8.84 for two years including VAT. Furthermore, UK2 places a small advert for itself on your web pages. Removing this pushes the VAT-inclusive price to £32.84. However, UK2 does offer free extras, such as data on website visitors and e-commerce services.
Hertfordshire firm Advantage Interactive (LowCostNames.co.uk) charges £7.50 plus VAT (£8.81 inclusive) for a basic but advertising-free email and web-forwarding service. It also provides an 0870 helpline, costing 8p a minute in business hours - rather cheaper than the 50p or £1 a minute helplines elsewhere.
Some ISPs throw in domain names for free, such as Sheffield-based PlusNet. Its £19.99-a-month unlimited use package for small businesses includes two free UK domain names, Nominet charge included, as long as you stay with them for a year.
Check how much a name manager will charge to renew the name or to release it to another firm. If either charge is substantial - some firms charge nothing extra for these services - avoid.
How domain names work
The last element in any domain name is its top-level domain (TLD), of which there are two kinds. Generic international domains (gTLDs) include ".com" ".org", ".net", ".info" and ".biz". The US government and military use ".gov" and ".mil", a legacy of their one-time management of the name system.
The second kind are country code top-level domains (ccTLDs). Each country controls its code, although use of such a code does not guarantee that a website is based there.
The element before the ".uk", such as ".co", is a second-level domain. In the UK, Nominet makes some available to anyone, but controls the sale of ".ltd.uk" and ".plc.uk" for limited companies, ".sch.uk" for schools and ".net.uk" for ISPs. Other second-level domains, such as ".gov.uk" and ".nhs.uk", are managed by the state and are not on general sale.
Further help
How to stay in control of your domain
· Domain names apply to both the web and email. If you own the domain theguardian.com, you control the web pages at www.theguardian.com and the email sent to anything ending with @theguardian.com.
· Small businesses will normally deal with a domain name manager. However, the ownership is held through a registrar, which for UK names is Nominet.
· There are several registrars for the commercially available international domain names such as .com.
· UK domain names are purchased in two-year blocks. International names can be normally be bought in two- to 10-year periods.
· You tell your domain name manager where to redirect email and web page requests. This allows you to stay with your current ISP, switch, or divert email if you are travelling, without having to reprint the stationery.
· Some services divert all email to a single address, others allow you several, so that "sales@[name].co.uk" and "support@[name].co.uk" can go to different places. Some place an advert on your web pages, most don't. Check before you buy.
