SCOTLAND will be independent by this summer - but only virtually.
After a battle of nearly a decade-and-a-half, the country is to get its own dotSCOT domain name on the world wide web just in time for the Commonwealth Games.
The SNP-led Holyrood administration is expected to be among the first to use the new online handle in the run-up to September's referendum.
The long wait for the dotScot domain is finally over
Its current website may use both its existing name, www.scotland.gov.uk, and www.gov.scot, meaning civil servants and politicians could all have dotSCOT email addresses by the time of the vote.
A spokeswoman said: "We anticipate that t he Scottish Government will adopt a number of dotSCOT web addresses, alongside our existing domains. We're currently assessing the best ways to make use of dotSCOT."
The campaign for a dotSCOT domain name, however, long pre-dates the current Government or its big vote later this year. Business, cultural and sporting groups believe it is a long-overdue asset for marketing the Scottish brand online and worldwide.
First Minister Alex Salmond said: "2014 is an exciting year for Scotland, and I'm delighted that this distinct online identity for the nation, and all who take an interest in Scotland, will become available this summer.
"The dotSCOT domain is long overdue in this digital age, and the worldwide family of Scots who have been waiting patiently since it was first proposed, will soon be able to have this marvellously expressive domain as their online identity of choice."
High-profile supporters of dotSCOT have included Scottish Chambers of Commerce and the old Scottish Football League, many of whom hope to tap in to overseas interest in Scotland, especially among the diaspora.
The new domain name has been made possible by a deal between Dot Scot Registry (DSR), a Glasgow-based not-for-profit company, and the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers or Icann. Some had feared the name may have only been recognised next year.
Gavin McCutcheon, director of Dot Scot Registry, said he hoped DotSCOT would "become first choice for the worldwide family of Scots".
He added: "Scotland and Scottishness conveys a whole range of positive connotations, which could not really be portrayed on the web before, but with a dotSCOT domain there will be a new option anyone involved in Scottish business, arts and culture and others to identify themselves more clearly as Scottish to the online world.
"We aim to make dotSCOT domains as affordable as possible and our not-for-profit structure means we will be able to do so."
E-businesses have been lobbying for a distinct Scottish name online from around 2000, but quickly lost their initial preference, ".sc", to the Seychelles.
Catalonia, the nation within Spain facing its own independence referendum this year, won its own dotCAT internet domain name nearly a decade ago. This has supplemented rather than replaced ".es", which signifies Spain, and is widely used by those with Catalan cultural affinities way beyond the current autonomous region of Catalonia.
The dotCAT name is also used by Catalonia's pro-independence government, the Generalitat, its biggest football team, Barcelona FC; and any online media using Catalan rather than Spanish language.
Microstates Gibraltar and Jersey and the devolved Aaland Islands of Finland have all beaten Scotland to develop their own online domain names.
Technology journalist Iain S Bruce is one of many internet experts who believe the country has taken too long to get its own domain name.
He said: "It's better late than never, but given the potential economic boost the internet offers geographically challenged countries like our own, it seems staggering that a top-level domain - a prerequisite of online national identity - has been so long in arriving."
Scotland is one of a wave of nations and regions, including London, Wales and Berlin, to get new "top-level" domain names approved by Icann.
The new dotSCOT deal will be announced by Icann today and the name will go on sale by the summer.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article