'I get ideas, buy domains, and actually put them together from start to finish. I design pages, graphics, install CGI, advertise, get content... Then once everything is in place, I get fever to do a new one. So I sell old one and go at it again! I usually have several projects going on at once. So, I guess I'm not as addicted to registering names as I am building actual community from ground up.'

If domain buying is ever officially classified as an addiction, Shelley Pietras would qualify for treatment. As owner of YourDomainForFree.com < http://www.yourdomainforfree.com >, Pietras can feed her habit with ease. In course of one month, Pietras has tripled number of names in her collection to 'an even 90.' She says 'Four are in use right now, and rest - Well, we do plan to use them, sell them, give them away as gifts.'

'Each domain that was registered came from an actual business idea. When idea hit, domain was registered. Whether or not all these ideas will ever be put into action remains to be seen, but at least we've got first step out of way!'

Nita Jackson also feeds her habit by being a registrar < http://www.PCMindToday.com >. Like Price, she started buying names that were related to her site, OrganizeTips.com, because she did not want competitors getting them first. She spends about $500 each year on a total of 16 domains (two of which are actually operating as websites).

'I plan to develop rest and work my fingers to bone,' she says.

With so many names already registered, finding a good one these days is hard. Price offers this advice:

"Take your time coming up with a good name. You should probably check to see that it's not a trademarked term. Then, when you go to register domain, also buy common variations (hyphenated, pluralized, etc.). Finally, don't talk to anyone about your plans until you have domain name on record!"

Some other registration sites with good prices are:

http://www.budgetregister.com 14.99 per year http://www.dnscentral.com 15.00 per year http://www.123domains.com 13.99 per year http://www.000domains.com 13.50 per year http://www.domaininvestigator.com 20.00 per year http://www.joker.com 12.00 per year

For a complete list of alternatives go to http://www.newregistrars.com/registrars.html

If you have someone else register name for you, like your host, make your name is put down as owner and administrative contact. The only place host's name should go is under "technical contact." If they set themselves up as owner they will then have complete control of your domain, which could be a nightmare down road if you ever decide to change hosts. Trust me on this, I've seen it happen.

For help choosing a name try NameBoy http://www.nameboy.com It works great for generating new ideas.

Registering a domain is not difficult. When you're ready to do it, make sure you shop around and compare prices and features. You'll be glad you did!