Why does everyone need a domain?

Dan Gillmore is a renowned American writer and technology journalist. He holds positions at two universities, including Harvard. But most know him as a popular veteran blogger: he started his first blog back in 1999 while working as a journalist. Back then, few people even knew what a "blog" was, and even fewer were blogging. Gillmore's blog quickly gained popularity, and Dan himself became a recognized authority in the world of blogging and online media. He has also written several books, the most famous of which are "We Are the Media" and "Mediactive."

Except own blog, Dan writes, for example, forThe Guardianand gives frequent lectures. His favorite topic is the freedom of journalism from large corporations. He sees this as the main value of new media for journalists.

Here's one of his Guardian articles, written in May of this year, where Dan discusses the importance of having your own domain. Do people really need their own domains and websites when convenient third-party platforms and services are increasingly appearing?

Dan's opinion is below. What do you think?

Why does everyone need a domain?

We've all become avid social media users, but it's great to have a place on the internet that's controlled by you, not by corporations.

When my students can demonstrate that they've registered their own domain, they earn extra points. And in the future, this requirement will become mandatory for them.

We are, in part, what others say about us. Therefore, everyone should have their own . And it's better if it's . In any case, we live a social life. Whether we like it or not, it's becoming increasingly difficult not to be at least somewhat public. Every adult tomorrow will need an online home they can control. A place where they can tell the world who they are and what they've accomplished, a place where they can showcase their work—at least some of it.

Of course, students and most of their parents are already on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Google+, Tumblr, Flickr, and various other platforms. The ability to communicate and share information is very valuable, and social media offers great convenience in this regard. But handing over your entire online presence, and even some of your individuality, to these services seems like a mistake to me.

Of course, social networks are unlikely to change what you've written in your profile or posts. Besides, these services are convenient, and entire teams of people work on them to ensure security. However, we mustn't forget that someone is in charge of these social networks. To them, we are simply users, content providers from whom they seek to make money.

We've already seen what happens when "all your eggs are in one corporate basket." "Free" always comes at a price—whether it's the exploitation of our content for profit, an invasion of privacy, or even the disappearance of a service at the whim of its owner. Not long ago, Google decided to shut down the Reader project, which helped countless people (including me) organize their information consumption. And this is just one recent example of such a corporate move.

Getting your own domain is easy and inexpensive. You can register one for the price of a few cups of coffee. It's unlikely that a .COM domain with your last name will be available (unless it's very rare). But you can certainly get a domain like FirstnameLastname.com—I have dangillmor.com, for example. And even if that doesn't work out, you can search for the name you want on other domains or find another suitable name for your domain. Keep in mind that most people find websites through search engines, so don't worry if you can't register your exact name.

So, you've got your own domain. How do you build an online presence there? Most registrars will help you create one or two editable pages. But I recommend doing something even better: start a blog. One of the easiest ways is to create an account at WordPress.com and use its powerful blogging tools. This company offers its software as open source so anyone can download, use, and modify it, demonstrating its strong commitment to the open web. For a reasonable fee, your WordPress blog will point to your own domain.

You can also install your own blogging software. This will give you more flexibility, but will require a bit more experience. However, there are many inexpensive hosting companies that will help you set up a blog. My host has a web app that makes creating new sites easy.

I don't update my personal blog very often, but I've decided to become more active there than I was before. Like many who have embraced social media, I've reduced my activity on personal sites and increased my activity on social media, especially Twitter and Google+. (I no longer use Facebook for public purposes.)

Again, I'm willing to compromise. The sheer size of social media makes it incredibly easy to get your ideas across to thousands of people without having to lure them to your blog. And there's another point: while I need to update my blog's software myself (even though it's not difficult), online giants do it for me.

I suspect the further I go, the harder the choice will be. But there's one thing I'm never willing to give up: handing over control of who I am and what I believe to people who might no longer be on my side in the coming years. I will maintain control of my own destiny as long as I can. And I recommend you do the same.

Original article onThe Guardian.