In this article, you will find a brief guide through the terminology jungle of URLs, domains, subdomains, hosts, etc.

From a technical perspective, a URL is the entire path to a so-called "directory" or "file" on a web server. As a user, you usually only need to enter the hostname in the browser's address bar to reach the desired destination. Upon reaching the destination, the entire URL is displayed in the address bar.

But what exactly is a URL and how is it structured?

The abbreviation “URL” stands for “Uniform Resource Locator”. A URL consists of various parts, which we describe below using the URL http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QhcwLyyEjOA:

The structure and components of this URL:

1. Protocol: The protocol used, in this case: HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol). The most common protocol nowadays is HTTPS, but there are also others like FTP, etc.
   
2. Host or Hostname: www.youtube.com
   
3. Subdomain (part of the host): www. (or the "live." in "live.invitario.com")
   
4. Domain Name (part of the host): youtube.com
   
5. Top-Level Domain (part of the host): .com (also referred to as "TLD")
   
6. Path: /watch
   A path typically points to a file or directory on the web server (e.g., “/folder/file.html”)
7. Parameter and value: v (parameter), QhcwLyyEjOA (parameter value)
   Parameters are initialized with a “?” within the URL.