[ffumarola]

Interesting, I actually posted this to someone 9 days ago: http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2292453

Here was my comment:

I'm not sure who doesn't do it. I just try to go to the domain and see if there is any server side activity (error page, holding page, etc).

From Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Domain_tasting

"By February 2007, the CEO of Go Daddy reported that of 55.1 million domain names registered, 51.5 million were canceled and refunded just before the 5 day grace period expired and only 3.6 million domain names were actually kept."

"In January 2008, Network Solutions was publicly accused of this practice when the company began reserving all domain names searched on their website for five days,[7] a practice known as domain name front running."

[imcqueen]

Does this mean you could feasibly write a script that searches for a specific domain on networksolutions every 5 days to hold onto it until you want to buy?

[bmelton]

As I just posted elsewhere in this thread -- the "go to the domain" idea is also flawed, in that ISPs sell that information to would-be domain squatters as well.

It's perhaps slower than losing it to a registrar, but it's no safer.

[ffumarola]

What is the safe way? I genuinely am interested so I know how to proceed in the future.

I've NEVER had a domain snagged from me by going directly to the domain (even when I wound up registering it a week or two later). I've had a domain taken from me multiple times by the domain registration sites... sometimes within a few hours.

[bricestacey]

If the domain is for sale, visiting the page will bump its value.

You should just query the WHOIS database. At least, that's what I do.

[bmelton]

I'm not saying that all registrars or evil, or that all ISPs are; but not knowing which to trust, I go with the one organization that has decried the practice as evil and sworn never to do it -- whois.sc.

I'm sure there are other ethical registrars / ISPs as well, I just don't know of any.