domain name registration and hosting
 

I'm trying to help my girlfriend register a domain name and get it hosted for a new business she's creating. Recommendations?

I went to godaddy and they say the domain name she wants is a premium name and want $849. WTF? Does doing a search cause some websites to grab the name and squat on it? How do I find out if a domain is really available and move forward to register and host it?

use Whois Lookup & IP | Whois.net to look up names to see if they are available

I buy thru godaddy (inexpensive, easy to do) but self-host my website on my own server. I can host your GF for a bit if needed, or if she'll use lots of resources I'll be happy to configure an Amazon EC2 cloud machine or a linode.com machine for cheap...

Thanks. I thought godaddy would be good. Your link shows the name she wanted, peachsoup, was registered by FabulousDomains, some cyber squatter in Australia. So she took peach-soup, which is just as good through godaddy. She won't need much of a website, so she's hosting it with them.

Have had no issues using GoDaddy, and yes the original domain name she wanted is being sat on by a squatter/reseller hoping to make a quick buck.

We were paying $400+ a month to ATT, Went with Go daddy Paid $1000 for 5 years with 4 domain names That comes to $16 a month and we are happy.

Wow... I need to raise my rates. I typically charge $200 to do a full setup on a linode.com virtual machine ($21/mo) and include control panel software. Apache, extensions for Apache (PHP, etc), mysql or mariadb, email setup for virtual users and virtual domains. Register and host as many domains as you want on your 'node - just add resources as needed.

I don't think $895 is outlandish for a domain like peachsoup.com

I use godaddy. They try and upsell you at every turn, but they're customer service is pretty good. Problems have been rare, and I've been able to get on the phone with a real person when they have occurred. I hate supporting the 800 lbs gorilla, but they're good.

Stay away from Go Daddy.. it's aimed for people who don't want control over their settings..

Web Hosting Services, Reseller Hosting, VPS Hosting, and Dedicated Servers by HostGator is in the top 5 rankings. I've been using them for years..