In late April, a free downloadable toolkit that ensures the validity of all top-level domain (TLD) names added to the Internet naming system since 2001—like .biz, .coop, and .info—was released by ICANN. The toolkit consists of a small piece of code available in C++, Java, Perl, and Python that eliminates the need for enterprises, service providers, and other organizations to do additional programming when new TLDs are established.
"Some users of these new domains have had problems using e-commerce and other Web sites that don’t recognize some new top-level domains," says Kim Davies, technical liaison for an affiliate of ICANN, which developed the toolkit. "That means email and Web site addresses from some of these TLDs get rejected as invalid."
The code can be inserted into existing programs or applications and will automatically check the validity of an email address or URL entered against the authoritative domain name system (DNS) data, known as the "root-zone," according to ICANN. No additional updates are necessary since any changes to the root-zone will automatically be noted by using the code, ICANN says.
"The toolkit helps fix that problem for Internet users by making sure software developers and application providers have the most up-to-date information about the Internet’s DNS," Davies says. "In the long run, this will ensure that the addition of new TLDs will be as smooth as possible and make sure all Internet users get full usability of their domains."
ICANN, also known as the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers, has released this DNS validation code under an open source license. The program is now in its third beta version and will be further improved based on feedback from users, according to ICANN. Additional TLD resources are also available online at ICANN.
About the DNS
The domain name system helps users find their way around the Internet.
Every computer on the Internet has a unique address called its "IP
address" (Internet Protocol address). Because IP addresses (which are
strings of numbers) are hard to remember, the DNS allows a familiar
string of letters (the "domain name") to be used instead. So rather
than typing "192.0.34.163," users can type www.icann.org. The last portion of the domain name (in this case, .org) is known as the top-level domain.
About ICANN
ICANN is an internationally organized, public-benefit nonprofit
responsible for coordinating Internet Protocol (IP) address space
allocation, protocol identifier assignment, generic (gTLD) and country
code (ccTLD) top-level domain name system management, and root server
system management functions.