I currently own 29 domain names. Here’s how I pick a good one that’s still available, even after millions of the best domains have already been taken:

• Long names - if you string together enough words, it’s probably not taken yet. Current rules allow domains up to 64 characters between the www. and the .com or other extension. You can use CamelCaps (capitalizing the first letter of each word) to make it clearer where each word begins - you don’t want GodIsNowHere being confused with GodIsNowhere.
  Examples from my collection: SeattleMetroChurch.com, BecomingLessStupid.com, UrbanMonastery.com, and this site.
  Downside:A lot of typing; hard to parse without the CamelCaps.
• Unusual extensions - the .coms always go first, of course. Then there’s .net, .org, .info, and .biz, then .us and other country codes. Many countries let anyone with money register one of their domains.
  Examples:: Quest.nu; Rodney Olsen’s blog is the-journey.tk - it’s cool, though I have no idea what or where TK is.
  Downside: Foreign domains are often expensive; may need to include the http:// every time so people know it’s a website; may need to live in the country.
• Odd punctuation - you can use only part of a word, and use the extension for the end of the word if it ends in something that’s available as a TLD. You can also add the beginning of the word as a subdomain.
  Examples:My favorite is del.icio.us. Another cool one, unused but taken, is www.cyb.org.
  Downside:Funky. But that’s not really a downside.
• Play on your name - this is probably the best way to get a good blog domain. Make up a pun based on your name or nickname. Bonus points if it has a unique spelling.
  Examples: Yournamehereathon. OK, I can’t think of any. Duh. Salguod.net. Sorry Doug! (edit at 8:06 PM)
  Downside: Spelling can be difficult if you’re telling someone the domain in a face-to-face or phone conversation. There may be alternate pronunciations that sound dumb.
• Make up a word - Lycos. Google. Xanga. Expedia. Travelocity. eBay. Not words, but very, very successful domain name choices.
  Examples:Yeah, I already did that part.
  Downside:You might end up with a permanently goofy company name; people might not know how to spell it.
• Buy a premium domain - If you have the cash, there are tons of cool domains for sale. A friend of mine owned ComedyWorld.com (not currently in use) and eventually sold it for $1500. If all you’re looking for is a blog site, though, forget about it.
  Downside: Expensive, depending on how cool the name is and who owns it.
• Snipe it - many domains are not in use, and their owners aren’t paying that much attention. Some services let you register to automatically purchase a domain if it expires. On the one hand, this is kind of a crappy thing to do to someone, but on the other hand, a lot of people aren’t interested in renewing, and besides, they had 60 days’ notice from their registrar.
  Examples: ComedyWorld.com was a .com-era company that went bust; my friend snatched it up when it expired, and netted about $1490 after selling it.
  Downside: Can take a long time; may not work.
• Hyphenate - do not do this unless you-really-really-need-to, or unless the words you’re using are usually hyphenated. Hyphenated domains are the bottom of the barrel, the domain (heh) of p0rn0 sites and e-pharmacies - yes, the very people who send us spam. The vast majority of hyphenated domains are dummy websites created to link to each other to improve their collective Google ranking, and ultimately funnel more search engine customers into their e-pharmacies or p0rn0 sites.
  Examples that work: Outward-bound.com (a Chinese site for who knows what)
  Downside: You have to pronounce the hyphens when you’re telling people the URL: “Cool hyphen emergent hyphen pastor dot com. Yeah, those are hyphens.” Risk of association with phentermine sites.

Leave your tips in the comments below.