Virtual Domain Name

A virtual domain name is a series of alphanumeric characters separated by one or more periods or dots. It is normally an easy-to-remember name or acronyms that people enter in the URL field of a web browser to retrieve a web page.

When a domain name is entered, the browser must first makes a request to a domain name server to obtain the physical address (i.e. IP address) of the website.  Using that IP address, a request for the web page is then sent across the network (e.g. Internet).

World Wide Web - Conceptual Overview

The target web server receives the requests and responds by returning the web page and any related files (e.g. image files).

Domain names often end in ".com", ".net" or ".org".  There are many other high level domains, including ones for each country. (e.g. ".ca", ".au") and others for special purposes (e.g. ".tv", ".pro")