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There are literally millions of domain name extensions on the Internet. These extensions also called Top Level Domains (TLD), function similar to the postal/ZIP code in your mailing address. The domain names provide an IP address that identifies the website associated with them. The IP address is used to assist the World Wide Web in locating the host server for retrieval and delivery of web pages, e-mails, and other web material.

Country-code domain name extensions (ccTLD) are associated with specific countries. Examples of country-code extensions are .fr (France), .ca (Canada), and .us (United States). There are more than 200 country-code extensions on the Internet. Some countries restrict the use of their codes, allowing for use only by host websites with servers within that country's territory. Almost half of the countries that hold registered domain name extensions are unrestricted, allowing use of its country-code extensions by websites with host servers anywhere in the world. You can find a complete list of country-code domain name extensions at (www.domainit.com/domains).

Global domain name extensions (gTLD) are generic; they can be used in any Uniform Resource Locator (URL) address regardless of the location of the website's host server. Some of the more common examples of global domain name extensions are .com (commercial), .net (networking organizations), .org (not-for-profit-organization), and .edu (educational institutions). These domain name extensions are associated with the type of business the host website is involved. You can find a comprehensive listing of global domain name extensions at (www.techdictionary.com/domain list).

Some websites use both country-code and global extensions. This is normally done in cases where the "host-business" is a multinational operation. In such cases the dual extension is used to distinguish the business's different locations of its operations. For example, Honda uses both a ccTLD and a gTLD to distinguish its European operation (www.honda.co.uk) from its Singapore operation (www.honda.com.sg).

The most frequently used (sometimes misused) TLD is the .com extension. This extension is used by many different types of e-businesses. It is also conveniently used by e-businesses that do not fit neatly into a specific category; for example, those businesses that engage in multiple products. It is also used to describe things not directly related to the e-commerce industries, such as the dot-com bubble. In this instance .com was used to describe the overvaluing of e-businesses on the stock market during the late 1900's. The dot-com burst refers to the subsequent failure of many these e-businesses.

The primary purpose of domain name extensions is to categorize and organize the multitude of websites on the Internet. One needs to look closely at the website before drawing a conclusion of the exact meaning of the domain name extension, since it is the host business that determines the use or misuse of the particular domain name extension used.

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