I don’t care who John McCain has relationships with…that’s not the point of this post.

So, I learn about John McCain’s “relationship” with Vicki Iseman on Twitter slightly before 5PM Pacific Time. Immediately, I go to my domain registrar of choice and check to see whether vickiiseman.com is available (something I’ve trained myself to do in similar situations even if I’m not interested in purchasing the domain).

I see the following:

Without getting overly political, I don’t think the great American tax rebate will do much to stimulate our economy. Most people will use it to pay already existing debt such as credit card bills or mortgages and I don’t think overall consumer spending will increase that much.

However, this is a simple way to change this…to use your tax rebate money to stimulate “The” economy and “Your” economy.

Use your tax rebate to buy a premium domain name.

Google’s Toolbar 5 has an interesting feature guaranteed to draw the ire of the domaining community.

From the features page:

Address Bar Browse by Name
Browse by Name helps you find a site even when you don’t know its URL. Just type the site name into your browser address bar, and Toolbar will take you there automatically. For instance, try typing “oxford” into the address bar to go directly to the university’s home page at www.ox.ac.uk.

Not that anyone we know uses Network solutions as a registrar, but it seems that Network Solutions is immediately registering and holding any domain name you search for if you don’t buy it from them right then, basically holding it hostage so you can’t buy it anywhere else. (according to this report)

So I tried it myself…
I just went through the process at Netsol - (Logged in) and looked for this domain - netsol-is-within-their-rights.com

Excellent article by SEMpdx member Scott Fish…glad to give him some link love.

“I was recently asked by a fellow domainer how I felt about the current prices of domain names in general. Here’s my take on Generic Domain Names, International Domain Names, Typo Domain Names, and other factors such as financing and the dissemination of knowledge.”

Read The Full Blog Post

“Because something is happening here…But you don’t know what it is…Do you, Mister Jones?” Bob Dylan, Ballad of a Thin Man

The phone rang at the appointed time.

“Mitch, it’s Denny Fowles…I’m the person who emailed you about purchasing your domain forecasttheyears.com.”

“Hello Denny. You know, I’m quite puzzled by your interest in my domain. I purchased it name for its sentimental value and to get a total stranger to offer me $500 for it out of the blue is somewhat suspicious to me. Can you explain to me your sudden interest?”

Until about a week ago, I had never knew that the city of Maywood Park, Oregon (750 people located in a small part of East Portland) existed. When I first heard of it, I immediately checked to see if the domain had been taken…and since it hadn’t, I took it.

Another reminder as you learn new facts and ideas to train your mind to check if a relevant domain name is available…and to grab it if you can.

Most internet marketers know to purchase their own name as a dot com domain name if it is available. However, many don’t think to purchase the names of their spouses & children and that is a mistake for several reasons:

• Once it’s gone, it’s likely gone forever.
• It’s becoming more and more clear that the dot com domain name of a person’s full name will be a major part of their digital identity. A digital identity will be much harder to establish on a dot net or dot org domain.

Will people ever be able to put domains into a 529 College Plan?

Will governments ever try to tax domains based on their real or perceived “book” value?

Will governments ever use the power of “eminent domain” to take custody of a domain?

Will every bank trustee ever need to know domain optimization as part of their job description?

Would domains ever need to pass through probate?

When you think about APP.com, what images come to mind?

Hot Steamy Nights Parking on the Jersey Shore?

Or, perhaps Hot Rock & Roll at the Stone Pony listening to Springsteen & Southside Johnny?

Are these pictures kindled in your head? Me neither.

When I think of App.com, I think of computer “apps”. I’m probably not alone in that thought. However, App.com is the website that hosts the local Asbury Park, New Jersey newspaper.

…or whatever the distance is between your eyes and your computer monitor.

Let me tell you about a name I bought this week…

We all know about the subprime mortgage market meltdown and the collateral damage in the real estate market. One major consequence that I’ve seen is that many condo developments / condo conversions are collapsing with only a fraction of the units sold and the rest either vacant or occupied by renters. The new “coined” term that I just heard for the first time is “fractured condominiums” and I immediately registered fracturedcondominiums.com. The better name fracturedcondos.com had already been grabbed by a real estate firm. A good $9 purchase.

Another case where a domain holder attempts to overstep its rights and assert authority that it doesn’t possess.

Read More

No self-respecting Portlander would drink that mass-produced East Coast swill anyway with so many great Northwest Microbrews to choose from.

Boycott Sam Adams (the beer) !!!

So, every day I get emails from both SnapNames and Pool trying to get me interested in their auctions or their drops. I actually like the formatting and messaging of Pool’s email quite a bit more than the SnapNames one. However, I am definitely bothered by many of the names that Pool chooses to feature in its email to me.

Here’s a sample from the last two weeks:

edmontonoilerscountry.com
coccast.net
cartoonnetwokgames.com
disneychenal.com
nordictrac.com
guitarhero2.com
mictosoft.com
dineycannel.com
daysinns.us
googlefoto.com

Todd Mintz Interview

“Way down yonder on the Chattahoochee
It gets hotter than a hoochie coochie
We laid rubber on the georgie asphalt
We got a little crazy but we never got caught”… Alan Jackson, Chattahoochee

Another in a series of my “Kiss and Tell” Domaining posts…

My position at S.R. Clarke gives me the opportunity to read extensively in the areas of real estate and construction. Every story gets read with “domainer radar” on and occasionally, my reading has led me to purchase domains that I perceive to have future value.

I (along with fellow SEO´s John Andrews, Dustin Woodard, Aaron Wall, Chuck Price & Dave Bascom) attended the 2007 Domain Roundtable in Seattle . There has been a lot written about domaining recently by SEO´s…some of it complimentary, and some of it misinformed. I find domaining to be fascinating because I view it as an online extension of old-school business that just so also happens to reasonably immune from the shifting search engine algorithms. Even more compelling, the amount of money that successful domainers earn from their investments is downright scary.

I will be attending the Domain Roundtable in Seattle between August 12th and August 15th.

Thinking about how I could have fun at this event, I realize I can accomplish the following three goals with one action:

1) Generate quality content for the SEMpdx blog.
2) Draw publicity to myself and my organization.
3) Have other people pay for my drinks.

The convergence of SEO and Domaining is very much underway. Seattle will host a tremendous domaining conference from August 13th thru 15th and SEMpdx can save $100 off the registration fee for 10 lucky registrants. Just enter SEMPDX101 as your “discount code” when you register. The total price for the conference will be $895 once the discount is applied.

More Information / Register Now

“If the doors of perception were cleansed every thing would appear to man as it is, infinite. For man has closed himself up, till he sees all things through narrow chinks of his cavern.”   William Blake