Get a Free Internet Domain Name
Now that you've got all of your clients running off of your server via Windows 98 Internet Connection Sharing, you'll probably want to run a FTP and/or HTTP server via your High Speed Internet Connection. Instead of telling all your friends your IP address ever time it changes, it would be much easier just to tell them a domain name. There are many ways to get a free domain name, but here I will cover two of which I feel are the most popular.
The first way, is the totally free way: DNS2Go. DNS2Go is a dynamic domain naming service from Deerfield.com, the makers of the ever-popular Serv-U FTP Server program. This way, you'll get a free third level domain name that maps to the public IP address of the computer that is running the client software. A third level domain name is something such as mdockter.d2g.com (my personal domain name from DNS2Go). The advantage of this system is that it is totally free and dynamic. The bad news is that it's not a second level domain name, such as pcmech.com or maximum3d.com.
The first thing you'll need to go is head over to http://www.dns2go.com and register for your own domain name. They should show you and/or email you a special key that will unlock the DNS2Go client. (To read my review of the DNS2Go software, go here) You can enter in different kinds of information to keep your connection alive if need by, as well as where to direct the user if the client if "off-line."
By the use of this client software, every time your computer is online, you can access your computer by typing "yourdomain.d2g.com" or whatever other domain you specify at DNS2Go. This is much easier than typing in a numerical IP address, especially if if changes every time you connect to your service.
The second way is free, depending on how you do it. The first step is getting your own REAL Domain name. www.register.com is a good place to get a .com, .net, or .org domain name for a small fee every year. Most places on the internet charge $35 per year for a .com, .net, and .org domain name. Using this process, you can have your own domain to the tune of www.yourname.com, ftp.yourname.com, and anythingyouwant.yourname.com.
A free way to get your own domain name is by enrolling with www.nic.us. This way, you can get your own free domain name such that anyname.city.state.us. For example, I might want to use mdockter.onalaska.wi.us. John Doe from Chicago Illinois would want to use johndoe.chicago.il.us.
When you buy a domain name, that's only half the ordeal. You have to tell DNS Servers out on the internet what IP is equal to that domain name. DNS2Go will do this automatically via the use of their client for a small fee. I urge you to check their site out if you haven't already.
www.granitecanyon.com is a Public DNS Server. They have three domain servers that will tell other DNS servers what IP is equal to your domain name. Using this method, you must have a Static IP which costs extra from your ISP...usually, A LOT extra. Because it's so expensive to have a static IP, I will not go in depth on how to use granitecanyon.com, because I feel their site covers itself very well.