SWM ISO DNS Registrar
by Ted Slater on 06/30/2008 at 12:59 PM
I own and maintain a number of Web sites, and on the recommendation of a friend have been using GoDaddy.com to register my domain names. A few days ago someone pointed out GoDaddy's questionable advertising practices (to put it mildly), as well as the founder's tasteless blog. As a result, I'm looking for a new domain name registrar.
I've looked into what other Christians are using, and while several are registering their sites through GoDaddy, most are registering them elsewhere.
So here's my question from one heartbroken SWM to those who've found DNS bliss: Which registrar should I pursue? I'm leaning toward either NameCheap or pairNIC. But should I consider Yahoo, BlueHost, Register.com, Dotster, 1&1 Hosting, DreamHost, Doteasy, Moniker ... or someone else?
1. Matt said the following at 1:48 PM on Jun 30:
The funny thing is that Bob Parsons, the CEO, used to own the company that made QuickVerse and other Church related software products.
Where do you draw the line on which companies you are willing to do business with? There are so many huge companies with some shady parts that they own along with "clean" parts.
2. Dave said the following at 2:12 PM on Jun 30:
I'm currently using 1&1 as it includes a private domain listing at no additional cost (which I've found cuts down the amount of spam that you get).
Before 1&1 I used Namecheap - it was slightly more expensive (but still pretty competitive) offered more control and had better customer service.
3. Derek Wong said the following at 2:12 PM on Jun 30:
I use namecheap for my blog's domain name registration, and my experience with them has been pretty good. No complaints to speak of.
As for my DNS, I use zoneedit.com.
4. mary kate said the following at 2:29 PM on Jun 30:
i like dotster. they're cheap, and you can always find coupons. just google 'dotster coupons' and you can always find a good one. plus, you can add any services you want, or just not use any services. oh, and my credentials; i'm a web designer at a large digital ad agency (not bragging, just saying). most of my techy colleagues use dotster.
5. silas_canada said the following at 3:03 PM on Jun 30:
i haven't looked at the other options but i've considered leaving godaddy for that reason too. I don't want to be promoting such a company. They seem to be cheaper than other options, although i'm willing to pay a little more for something i'm comfortable promoting.
i've been hosting my space on a friend's server (resold) at www.modernbyte.com , it offers stable service but maybe not all the space and bandwidth that you get with other companies.
6. Brian K said the following at 3:20 PM on Jun 30:
I've used Dotster in the past. They seem OK. They didn't give me any fuss when I transferred. Now, though, mine is "bundled" through my hosting company (it's technically through itsyourdomain). If possible, I would say that unless the domain is included in your hosting package (some include one with a hosting package), try to avoid a reseller (several years back, I went through a lot trying to transfer since the company I originally used was defunct. Straight resellers are prone to this.). I have had really good experience managing other domains (for other folks) through dreamhost.
7. whs said the following at 3:38 PM on Jun 30:
I use Dotster for mine though I did not analyze the decision very much.
8. Jo said the following at 3:54 PM on Jun 30:
i use domainmonster and i like them a lot, dunno if they operate in america though... but i had a couple of minor issues at the start and their support team were really good too. which always gets my vote.
9. April L. said the following at 5:21 PM on Jun 30:
I find it easier to register my sites with the same company I use for hosting. I've used startlogic for all my sites and it has worked really well for me. It was fun when I found out that my (very) successful cousin in Southern CA uses the same company!
10. Zach Thompson said the following at 5:27 PM on Jun 30:
There are a lot of good ones out there... I use 3Essentials.com
11. Chris Roberts said the following at 5:40 PM on Jun 30:
I am a new, reluctant godaddy user. I had previously used Joker.com and was quite pleased with their service but it was becoming more difficult to pay them since they are in Germany and something about an international payment to them required more verification.
So I switched to GoDaddy, trying my best to ignore their perverse ads and their hideous user interface.
I've used DreamHost for some things while I used them as my web host, but they had a few too many problems for me so I finally, reluctantly, had to switch. I'm with MediaLayer now and they have no in-house registrar.
12. Chris Roberts said the following at 5:42 PM on Jun 30:
An additional note - I generally wouldn't recommend registering domains through the webhost. Find an independent registrar and use them. That way if you eventually change webhosts you don't have to spend a bunch of extra money to transfer away domains.
13. Samuel PG said the following at 5:44 PM on Jun 30:
I recommend Christianwebhost.com They have excellent and friendly service, as well as good package deals.
14. James said the following at 5:51 PM on Jun 30:
I don't know if you are looking for just DNS hosting or web hosting as well, but I use Bluehost for my web hosting and have had supreme service - almost no downtime and quick resolution of any problems.
15. Brendan said the following at 6:37 PM on Jun 30:
I'm using InMotion Hosting for my site...They registered my domain name while hosting me. I've only been with them for a couple of months, but it's been good so far.
Though if you're just looking for the domain name and you're happy with your host, just go with Yahoo. Their price is decent and you know that they're not just going to disappear (yeah they're in trouble, but if they tank someone will pick up the reins). Since other web hosts tend to go bankrupt without notice, this is a good thing to consider.
16. Colette said the following at 7:45 PM on Jun 30:
I used 1and1.com recently. I chose not to use GoDaddy because of their advertising as well. I was horrified at the slutty commercial shown during the Super Bowl a couple years ago.
17. Claire said the following at 8:32 PM on Jun 30:
I have no idea what you're talking about. I'm just happy I know how to post a comment on here :) Hope the search goes well!
18. Marc said the following at 9:25 PM on Jun 30:
Wow, I think this is the highest percentage of commenters with links to their websites that I've ever seen.
Well done, folks.
19. Joey said the following at 9:59 PM on Jun 30:
I've used Dreamhost for several years now, both as my registrar and hosting company. I have had some experience with other registrars (including GoDaddy, though never with my domains) and have been quite happy with DH. Obviously the fact that they're my host too makes it easy to manage, but as a techie I'm also happy with the control I have over custom DNS records.
DH has made some headlines for a few outages/issues hosting-wise, but I've never found them to affect me that much, and I've been very happy with their support. I've contacted support several times regarding DNS questions.
Saw one person mentioned zoneedit.com - that's another great resource for custom DNS, especially if you don't have the flexibility of DH.
20. Bryan said the following at 7:44 AM on Jul 1:
I have used eDataRack.com for the past six years for both my domain and hosting services. Prices seem reasonable. Although, customer service can be a little slow.
21. Matt from DC said the following at 7:44 AM on Jul 1:
Does Ashleigh know you're a SWM now? ;)
22. Ted Slater said the following at 9:27 AM on Jul 1:
WHOA! Matt, I was on cleverness autopilot with that headline. Yikes!
Um, maybe SWM means "Spoused White Male." ;-)
23. Ted Slater said the following at 9:35 AM on Jul 1:
I do appreciate all the advice, folks. I switched one of my domains over to Namecheap.com last night, and will see how it goes. I'm especially interested in custom DNS configuration (e.g., configuring a CNAME record for domain mapping in TypePad), though there are other things I'd like to have control over (e-mail, etc.).
Please note that this is but my personal quest for a domain registrar that works for my needs, and not an endorsement of any particular company. :-)
FWIW, I use MediaTemple.net to host most of my sites, just like my geeky friend Tim Challies. Again, not an endorsement, just a bit of info that some of you may find interesting. :-)
24. Tami said the following at 9:41 AM on Jul 1:
At least it isn't DWM...
So what is an "SWM" anyway? I know the "Personals" lingo, but not the techy jargon. :)
25. Chris Roberts said the following at 1:40 PM on Jul 1:
Ted,
When I went searching for a new home after leaving DreamHost, I gave a long hard look at MediaTemple. I was very interested in them but saw a lot of bad reports about downtime and such. Has your experience with them been better? So far I'm happy with MediaLayer but I'm still keeping my options open.
Tami,
I think SWM was just a joke using personals lingo. The only techy term in the title is DNS.
26. Christina (in green) said the following at 2:18 PM on Jul 1:
Tami (#24),
I've never heard it before either, but there's two possibilities in the context of this post:
System Web-based Management
Smart Web Move
for other possibilities, you can find some here
If I'm wrong on the above two, please feel free to correct =p I'm not claiming to actuall KNOW...
27. Tami said the following at 3:37 PM on Jul 1:
Thanks, all -- I was maybe thinking "Smart Web Master" or something. ;)
28. James said the following at 8:18 PM on Jul 1:
SWM: Savy White Male =p
Ted, your geek is showing ;).
~A fellow geek (of the engi-nerd variety)
29. scfc said the following at 7:37 AM on Jul 2:
My church uses 1&1 and seem to be pretty happy with it.
30. John said the following at 9:11 AM on Jul 2:
Now I know why this blog isn't done as well as it could be.
Why don't you focus your time and talent on this blog to make it the best it can be, instead of spending so much time with so many other projects?
31. Ted Slater said the following at 9:43 AM on Jul 2:
Chris Roberts -- MediaTemple.net has gone down just a couple of times. Their server either reboots automatically, or I can log into my control panel and manually reboot the server. Fixes the problem right away.
I love how much bandwidth and server space I'm given, how cheap it is, how I can set up accounts for my various clients and give them different permissions, the various applications I can easily install, and so on. And if it's good enough for Tim, it's good enough for Ted. :-)
32. Trevor said the following at 12:11 AM on Jul 13:
I agree that it's advisable to keep hosting and domain registration separate.
I'm currently using 1&1's registrar service, and I wouldn't recommend them. They're geared more toward hosting, and it's a bit convoluted setting things up with them to point to a different host. Now that I'm with them I'm satisfied enough to stay, but if I were shopping for a transfer or new domain I would rule them out. (There's probably nothing wrong with their hosting services, though I've never tried them.)
I'm also currently using namecheap, which I'd recommend. And in the past I've used dotster, which I also recommend, and expertsrs, which I wouldn't recommend.