Your Internet Consultant - The FAQs of Life Online

7.41. Is Microsoft on the Internet?

Questions of this nature hearken back to the whois command that we used earlier to look up a specific hostname to find out where it is and what it's all about. The same command can search by company name too, though the output is a bit more confusing! Here's what I found when I searched for microsoft by typing whois microsoft. 
Microsoft - Bldg 11 (NET-MSOFT-1) MSOFT-1
198.105.232.0
Microsoft - Bldg 11 (NET-MSOFT-2) MSOFT-2
198.105.233.0
Microsoft - Bldg 11 (NET-MSOFT-3) MSOFT-3
198.105.234.0
Microsoft - Bldg 11 (NET-MSOFT-4) MSOFT-4
198.105.235.0
Microsoft - Bldg 11 (NETBLK-MSOFT-NET) NETBLK-MSOFT-NET
                                                 198.105.232.0 -
198.105.235.0
Microsoft Corporation (NET-MICROSOFT) MICROSOFT
131.107.0.0
Microsoft Corporation (MICROSOFT-DOM)
MICROSOFT.COM
Microsoft Corporation (ATBD-HST)ATBD.MICROSOFT.COM
131.107.1.7
Microsoft Workgroup Canada (NET-MGCNET) MGCNET
199.60.28.0
Microsoft Workgroup Canada (GATEWAY17-HST) GATEWAY.MSWORKGROUP.BC.CA

199.60.28.253
From here, I can see that their domain appears to be microsoft.com, so now I can search for whois microsoft.com to see what's recorded. 
Microsoft Corporation (MICROSOFT-DOM)
   3635 157th Avenue
   Building 11
   Redmond, WA 98052

   Domain Name: MICROSOFT.COM

   Administrative Contact:
      Kearns, Paul  (PK47)  postmaster@MICROSOFT.COM
      (206) 882-8080
   Technical Contact, Zone Contact:
      NorthWestNet Network Operations Center  (NWNET-NOC)  noc@nwnet.net
      (206) 685-4444

   Record last updated on 11-Apr-94.

   Domain servers in listed order:

   DNS1.NWNET.NET               192.220.250.1
   DNS2.NWNET.NET               192.220.251.1
   NS1.BARRNET.NET              131.119.250.10
Here's another example: How about the National Broadcasting Company (NBC)? I'll try whois NBC. Bingo! 
NBC News (NBCNEWS-DOM)
   30 Rockefeller Plaza
   New York, NY 10112

   Domain Name: NBCNEWS.COM

   Administrative Contact, Technical Contact, Zone Contact:
      Shearer, James C.  (JCS3)  shearer@THOMAS.GE.COM
      (609) 987-7611

   Record last updated on 04-Mar-94.

   Domain servers in listed order:

   NS.GE.COM                    192.35.39.24
   CRDNNS.GE.COM                192.35.44.6

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