In 1991 the British physicist, IT expert and HTML inventor Tim Berners-Lee laid the foundations for the world wide web with the first website. Four years later, the total had increased to 2,738 websites. Today there are 349 million domains. Websites are no longer the exclusive preserve of companies and organizations – numerous private individuals now in possession of their own sites, whether it’s a blog, an online portfolio or simply a place to publish images, videos and texts. To help find a way out of the maze we have put together a check list outlining the main points that need to be taken into consideration. 

For companies and more and more private individuals, having their own website has become a matter of course. But what is still not always clear is how to differentiate between the domain name, the website content and all the necessary services such as a name service, web space and email address. The following article is intended to explain what you can use your domain for, and what you need in order to register it.

The name of a domain is an important part of the way a company, organisation or private individual portrays itself online. Whether it is part of an e-mail address or the website address itself: the domain is ever-present – so it makes sense that it should be selected carefully. While there are various online tools that suggest domain names to help users arrive at the right domain for them, the suggestions are often unusable and are more likely to add to the frustration than lead to a solution. But what trips these tools up, how can they be optimised and how can a little creativity and some good tips help people on their way to that perfect domain name? And what does the development process look like?

Alexander Mayrhofer has managed the R&D department since 2002 - this is, where the many innovative research projects, ideas and numbers that surround nic.at originate. Among other activities, he participates in the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) and often travels to speak at events, where both his talks and his eye-catching illustrations (see below) are always popular. In this interview, he also reveals on which projects he is currently working on, what awaits us in the future and how to keep yourself innovative.

Domain holders will now receive a link to a survey at marketagent.com in the email confirmation of each of their domain registrations, terminations, or registrar transfers. Together with Austria's leading online market research institute, nic.at is asking current (and former) domain holders about their domain usage, as well as their satisfaction with the domain transaction and their domain provider.

In the first week of July, .at domains reached the 10,000 mark for DNSSEC-signed domains. Although the security extension DNSSEC has been available for .at domains since 2012, it has enjoyed only moderate popularity – in contrast to other countries. Arsen Stasic, who is jointly responsible for the operation of the .at zone at the Vienna University Computer Center, explains why this is now changing.

The DNSheads Vienna is an informal group of people who are responsible for the operation and the software development of recursive and authoritative DNS servers. Founded by Head of nic.at R&D Alexander Mayrhofer, the group has already met 6 times to discuss the changing landscape of DNS. A review.

Exciting political times not only bring unusual hit rates to media, they also inspire internet users‘ creativity when it comes to domain name registrations. Quotes, word creations and election speculations: A look into the .at zone is a mirror of current events in Austrian internal polictics.

The General Data Protection Regulation is celebrating its one-year anniversary: On May 25 last year the European Union implemented the most extensive and attention-grabbing measure in the field of data protection law in Europe. What were the impacts the GDPR regulation had on us as the Austrian registry, which measures have been implemented, and how does our position compared internationally? Time to assess the situation with our legal department’s lawyers Barbara Schloßbauer and Bernhard Erler.

The nic.at research and development team focuses on topics relating to the future of the DNS and the internet. Two meetings are coming up this October: the informal DNSheads Vienna and a meet-up dedicated to blockchains. We talk to Alexander Mayrhofer, head of the nic.at R&D team.