Show HN: Browse recently expired, pronounceable domain names (opens in new tab)

(domaininferno.com)

87 pointsTheMask0111y ago31 comments

31 comments

Nice. I wonder what methods and tools did you use for defining pronouncability. Care to share some tips? Just curious about language-oriented programming.

BjoernKW11y ago

Off the cuff I'd use a phonetic algorithm such as Soundex or Metaphone for mapping strings to abstract phonetic representations. These could then be run through simple regular expression pattern matching. There's a fairly limited set of syllable structures in English that make for pronounceable words.

As with many linguistic algorithms this approach is not language-agnostic though. If you wanted to predict the pronounceability for a language other than English you'd need different algorithms and patterns.

A much more sophisticated approach (as opposed to the heuristic one above) would involve training a Markov model (with characters as states). More probable words (i.e. those containing a likely sequence of characters) are more likely to be easily pronounceable.

davman11y ago

I'm not entirely sure it is functioning correctly, I'm struggling to pronounce:

100% thlla.com 100% sohyw.com

etc. I like the idea though.

iopq11y ago

sohyw I would imagine would be pronounced "so hew" so according to the algorithm it's pronounceable

but really the domain name I want is one that is SPELLABLE, not pronounceable

1 more reply

giarc11y ago

ryjof.com

100% pronounceable.

timothya11y ago

It appears to me (from my quick glance through it) that all of the domains follow the pattern of alternating consonants and vowels (with an additional rule which is that it allows for two identical consonants in a row, e.g. "mm" or "ll"). Combinations of letters which alternate between vowels and consonants are typically at least somewhat pronounceable.

JosephRedfern11y ago

I also wonder what differences there are between a word that is, say 80% pronounceable, and one that is 60% pronounceable. Is it not a binary thing?

s_kilk11y ago

> Your daily usage limit has been reached. > Signup now to continue searching - or try again tomorrow!

Wat. I just clicked the link from HN. You may want to take a look at this :)

impostervt11y ago

+ password can't be longer than 20 chars :\ Signing up gets you "limited access". Full access is $19/month.

kgrin11y ago

Err... what's a plausible reason passwords would be restricted to 20 chars, other than being stored in plaintext in a char(20) field?

1 more reply

eastCoastAlan11y ago

I've recently compromised and started using a hyphen in my domains. Any ideas on the potential downsides for this? It certainly helps with finding reasonable .coms without resorting to dropping vowels or weird spelling combinations.

majc211y ago

The guys on the fizzle show recently opined that you shouldn't use hyphens. From memory, the reasoning was mainly based on the domain being slightly harder to share (try saying your thing with the hyphen in it).

Source (c. 41mins in): http://fizzle.co/sparkline/pick-right-domain-name-11-domain-...

driverdan11y ago

I like the phone test. You should be able to tell someone your domain over the phone and they should understand what it is without any clarification. Hyphens and misspellings fail this test.

Fuzzwah11y ago

ex-ample.com

"eee ex hyphen ample.com"

Does this fail your test?

olalonde11y ago

I recall reading that hyphenated domains were penalised on Google but I have no idea if this is still true.

pennyallan11y ago

if only the root cause of these issues could be solved. The domain squatting problem is a real one. My understanding is that 15 years ago when it became obvious to some that this internet thing might take off, many shady characters (oops i mean entrepreneurs!) set up shell companies as registrars for the sole purpose of bulk registering domains as quickly as possible.

I don't know what the solution could have been and the point is moot any way since we cant go back in time to fix things :(

Freeboots11y ago

baxys.com - Premium hand made shoes for men

etagy.com - The latest tracking device for your pet / lost items. Fund us on Kickstarter!

duula.com - The greatest open source project management system ever!

paazu.com - Its like Duula for CRM!

ebawy.com - Totally not trying to rip of ebay

vivvy.com - The sassiest, hippest new startup on the block

gitmy.com - Something you absolutely need to get the most out of Github!

hohub.com - A hub for... wait hold on

Recently accepted into YC 2015:

gigiy.com

fidzy.com

piqqa.com

qappo.com

quexy.com

bulte-rs11y ago

Thanks. Was looking for a nice name. Got myself a nice 5 letter - pronouncable - .com.

kevinwang11y ago

syrupysex.com... I wonder who registered that domain name...

spiritplumber11y ago

http://www.reddit.com/r/xkcd/comments/2iyz0v/what_happened_t... WetRiffs actually was a thing for a bit.

Domain names are less important lately, I guess. I just want something short so it's easy to type on a soft keyboard and put in a QR code.

weavie11y ago

You may be interested in this one : http://shortdomainsearch.com/

(nothing to do with me, I've just found it useful in the past.)

alphydan11y ago

bribedates.com ... sound pretty dodgy too

andrewrice11y ago

Why does it only limit you to 500 results per search?

andrewrice11y ago

Ah, I see. There are usage limits on free/guest users.

hoopism11y ago

gitmy.com is surprising. Easily pronounceable and contains a popular source control name... tempting...

vxNsr11y ago

I have so many uses for this. Thanks.

kapsteur11y ago

pronouceable => wqyry.com ??

j / k navigate · click thread line to collapse

31 comments

runnel11y ago

Nice. I wonder what methods and tools did you use for defining pronouncability. Care to share some tips? Just curious about language-oriented programming.

BjoernKW11y ago

davman11y ago

I'm not entirely sure it is functioning correctly, I'm struggling to pronounce:

100% thlla.com 100% sohyw.com

etc. I like the idea though.

iopq11y ago

sohyw I would imagine would be pronounced "so hew" so according to the algorithm it's pronounceable

but really the domain name I want is one that is SPELLABLE, not pronounceable

1 more reply

giarc11y ago

ryjof.com

100% pronounceable.

timothya11y ago

JosephRedfern11y ago

I also wonder what differences there are between a word that is, say 80% pronounceable, and one that is 60% pronounceable. Is it not a binary thing?

s_kilk11y ago

> Your daily usage limit has been reached. > Signup now to continue searching - or try again tomorrow!

Wat. I just clicked the link from HN. You may want to take a look at this :)

impostervt11y ago

+ password can't be longer than 20 chars :\ Signing up gets you "limited access". Full access is $19/month.

kgrin11y ago

Err... what's a plausible reason passwords would be restricted to 20 chars, other than being stored in plaintext in a char(20) field?

1 more reply

eastCoastAlan11y ago

majc211y ago

Source (c. 41mins in): http://fizzle.co/sparkline/pick-right-domain-name-11-domain-...

driverdan11y ago

I like the phone test. You should be able to tell someone your domain over the phone and they should understand what it is without any clarification. Hyphens and misspellings fail this test.

Fuzzwah11y ago

ex-ample.com

"eee ex hyphen ample.com"

Does this fail your test?

olalonde11y ago

I recall reading that hyphenated domains were penalised on Google but I have no idea if this is still true.

pennyallan11y ago

I don't know what the solution could have been and the point is moot any way since we cant go back in time to fix things :(

Freeboots11y ago

baxys.com - Premium hand made shoes for men

etagy.com - The latest tracking device for your pet / lost items. Fund us on Kickstarter!

duula.com - The greatest open source project management system ever!