How do you know...

[Strice]

How do you know when someone's domain registration expires? Is there something that tells you in the Whois? (And while I'm at it, what is the most complete detailed whois available? When I use "whois.net" it doesn't give me the whole record, i.e. people's names, etc.)

Thanks!
ST

[pridetech]

Use http://whois.networksolutions.com for obtaining more detailed information. There are a number of whois servers (whois.corenic.net, rs.internic.net, etc.) and you may have to try more than one. I will be posting a freeware whois client for Windows in a couple of days at http://www.softwaretools.org (using this you will be able to use different whois servers to make a domain query)

To find out if a domain is likely to be free go to NS and enter the domain name in the payment area (for NS registered domains)and see if any payment is pending. I am not sure about domains registered with other registrars.

You can also check the date of creation and date of last updation. This will give you an idea about the payment status. Normally the payment due date is one month after creation.

Before doing all these remember to check if the site is alive and kicking. If the site doesnt exist the chances of the owner abandoning it are far better.

[Strice]

Thanks! FYI, I did find a really good whois lookup at:
http://www.swhois.com

--Sara