### Snazz It Up A Notch
Steem has quite a few decentralized applications (dApps) up and running now. Most of them have taken some kind of popular social media platform and tokenized them.

You've no doubt noticed that the names of these dApps have been, for the most part, falling into three categories: those that use a "D" in front—Dtube, dlike, DSound, dpoll, dClick—or something with STEEM in it—Steemit, Steem Monsters, Steemhunt, SteemPeak, SteemPress (Wordpress plugin), etc.

Then, of course, there are those that come up with something that doesn't refer to decentralization or STEEM, like Busy, Utopian, Actifit and Musing.

Being someone who is fond of words, and play on words, as well as someone who has chosen a name or two for a business/product, I thought it might be fun to run through some exciting opportunities as well as potential pitfalls new startup blockchain businesses face when really trying to knock their names out of the park. After all, part of being a killer app or business is having an easy to remember name that doesn't just simply tell you what it might do, but is also creative, and catchy.

So, after doing some pondering (more than two seconds, so deep thought here), I figured I'd offer some suggestions, not only for names, but for potential businesses on the blockchain—ones that aren't purely social media, too, since at some point, we should be moving on to many other types of industries.

In this post, I will focus solely on names that would integrate the "D" as a prefix.

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![letter-d-1431230_640.jpg](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmd2LyZ9WGht9f2VoCZFcG5Vczzhb8Q2GsgVQGKPLpdyT4/letter-d-1431230_640.jpg)
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#### The Thing About D
When you place a "D" in front of a word, like Dtube, it sounds like dee-Tube. Which is great, but there's much more fun to be had than just taking a word and slapping a "D" in front of it. It just so happens that there are plenty of words in the English language that start out with the de- prefix.

Now, using the de- as I will do here is a tricky proposition, because a word with de- in front of it can mean the opposite of what the word means by itself. You can see how this might complicate things. For example, dFace might be an idea for a beauty consultant or a cosmetic company, but the name dFace sounds like deface, which means "to spoil the surface or appearance of something." You can see how that might not be very popular. In today's world, some might even be afraid of losing their face all together.

So, with all that in mind, I've compiled a list below of possibilities, and divided them up into categories, most likely to work; possible, but risky, and ones that should be avoided. I've provided possible business ideas (you're welcome), and what Internet domain suffixes—.com, .net., .us, and the ever popular .io—might be available.

### Most Likely To Work
The following are a sampling of "D" fronted businesses names and what they offer that I think have good potential. That doesn't mean they will, so no guarantees. I throw them out there for your possible review and entertainment.

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![fishing-2669218_1280.jpg](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmUQYeVRYkXEwzaAXv5Vzsh5hBwCmtdNfc7P5vwSRRu3tR/fishing-2669218_1280.jpg)
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#### dBait
Obvious use: An all things fishing online shop.

Sounds like: Debate, so the site should feature a lively forum where such angler-centric questions like what's best for catching [fill in your favorite fish] depending on climate, season, region, water speed and whatever other variables might be in play. *Engagement for days.*

Another use: A fishing game, with in-game purchases that will help catch and land the biggest fish.

Possible, but not suggested use: A site where people could volunteer or get paid to help law enforcement catch bad guys. A little dangerous, and probably a no-go as far as many on STEEM are concerned, but a possibility nonetheless.

Availability: dbait.com—$3,895, dbait.io—$44.95, dbait.us—$1 (first year).

#### dBug
Obvious use: Outsourcing code inspection site, which includes a full blown testnet.

Sounds like: Debug, which makes this a no-brainer.

Secondary use: Pest control service, another no-brainer.

Bonus use: An online shop for discounted audio spyware.

Availability: This might be a problem if you don't have some capital or decent negotiation skills. The .com is listed at $15,000! The rest, .io, .us, .org. and .net are taken. All is not lost, however. If you change the name to dBugit, .io is available.

#### dDuct

Obvious use: A Turbo Tax or H & R Block killer.

Sounds like: Deduct, which is really, really good.

Potential issues: Americans might only want to use the site between late January to mid-April, unless they're really in trouble, but they're not the only ones in the world who get taxed, and of course, businesses might want help year round.

Alternative use: A bid site for contractors specializing in heating and cooling installation.

Availability: .com is taken, but .io isn't, and neither is .us, which might be the best, all things considered.

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![lights-1285893_1280.jpg](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmVWJWSLN5Rr5odym6jVxNRfmZAUYb7yy6NUc6RF9JUgGF/lights-1285893_1280.jpg)
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#### dLight
Obvious use: A site for indoor and outdoor light fixtures.

Sounds like: Delight, which is a happy word, don't you think?

Alternative uses: A site for donations for a religious organization, a weight lost center, or a site that offers freemium downloadable software (the kind that has some functionality as is, but really, you need to pay for the add ons in order for it to do what you want it to do).

Availability:  Nothing for dlight, but an acceptable substitute name, dlite, could be used. dlite.us is available, and so is dlite.net, for nearly $3,000! dLite.us is cooler, anyway.

#### dPlane
An online airline reservation site. Potential Priceline killer.

Sounds like: Deplane, which means to get off a plane, which works great, especially if departure and arrival information is available, and maybe even inflight tracking.

Possible issues: Those old enough to remember the late 70s to mid-80s television show might have sudden flashbacks of *Fantasy Island*, which isn't all bad if kept under control.

Availability: .com is taken, but .io and .us are both available.

### Highest Pot-ential
This one is a bonus. It's one I would avoid personally, but I know someone is bound to use it, and since it has multiple uses, could probably be very successful.

#### dPot
Obvious use: An online shop for cookware.

Other obvious uses: An online cannabis retailer, and an indoor toilet store or an outdoor port-o-potty rental shop.

Sounds like: Depot, which is pronounced de-poe, but looks like De-pot, a bonus. Just make sure you have lots of whatever it is you're selling.

Availability: Good luck, most of the dots are taken. If you can make it work, .org is available.

### Possible, But Risky
Now that you've got a taste of what I'm doing here, let's move on to ones with good potential, but quite a bit of downside, too. They could work really well, or they could epic fail. Not for the faint of heart.

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![doodle-barking-2965983_1280.jpg](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmajNA95EZkMq2pzg9R12dHRp26yvydgiH6AvizqkQHpbD/doodle-barking-2965983_1280.jpg)
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#### dBark
Obvious use: An online social site for dogs and their human companions.

Sounds like: Debark, which could mean leave a ship or aircraft, or stripping bark off a tree.

Problem: Some human companions (and computer savvy canines) might misconstrue dBark as a place where a particularly yappy kind of dog is silenced. Or mellowed out.

Availability: dbark.io and dbark.us are available, dbark.com is via auction only.

#### dBrief
Obvious use: An online store specializing in Men's underwear.

Sounds like: Debrief, which is what a spy or soldier (maybe a police or security officer) usually has happen after a mission or altercation takes place. Can't think of a practical use here.

Avoid: Creating a site for a male strip club. That would be tacky.

Availability: dbrief.com is nearly $8,000, dbrief.io is taken but not in use, and dbrief.us is cheap, but would only make things worse.

#### dCon
Obvious use: A site for reintegrating criminals into society by partnering with businesses, housing authorities and other social or volunteer organizations.

Sounds like: d-CON, which is poison for rodents.

Problems, there might be copyright or trademark issues, which would make it a non-starter.

Availability: .io, .com and .us are all taken. So, is .net and .org, so another problem. Alternate spelling like dKhan will either get confused with medieval Mongolian warlords, or attract Trekkies/Trekkers. You have been warned.

#### dCipher
Obvious use: A place where developers can test their security code, where professional hackers turned security experts could be put to good use.

Sounds like: Decipher, which works, since it's essentially decoding text, or in this case, security protocols.

Caution: You better have some pretty decent security yourself before you go inviting hackers to the party. And you'll need to make it doubly clear that it's not your site's security protocols (or the STEEM blockchain) that are possible targets.

Availability: .com and .io are taken, but .us is available, which would be cool.

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![pen-162124_640.png](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmdZm4WevkoP3TqhPdnjLRjhNfFsG7xQ1fdpcTMdSQLx9T/pen-162124_640.png)
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#### dGrade
Obvious use: A site where overworked, underpaid teachers can outsource correcting their student's homework.

Sounds like: Degrade, which is to treat someone with disrespect or contempt. It can also mean deteriorate. None of that sounds good, and could create bad PR from the start.

Other problem: Making sure the graders hired by the site know that "D" isn't the only grade they can give out.

Secondary uses: A site with online interactive maps of all the upgrades and downgrades along a selected route. It could also be a recruitment site for road crews.

Availability: .com is taken, but .io is available. So is .us, but I would suggest avoiding that one, for obvious reasons.

### Avoid These
And finally, some examples of word usage and businesses that should be avoided, for reasons which I hope are self-evident. Just don't. We'll all be happier.

#### dCouples
Obvious use: Online dating site, where the user who upvotes the highest before the payout period gets the date. The member getting the upvotes gets to keep them all.

Sounds like: Decouples, which means to separate—the exact opposite of what you want.

Problems: This is just fraught with danger. Use your imagination, so I don't have to.

#### dEvil
This isn't one of those strictly de- type words, but I'm throwing it in simply because someone's bound to be "tempted" to use this one, even though it's avoidance should be obvious. No help here from me. Remember, I told you not to.

Bonus avoidance: dMon, dMonic, and dAblo.

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![abundance-1868573_1280.jpg](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmRBWepFxkwoafHgPQ8TAEkwUDtxPH1c7SBBSrYTaxV9fq/abundance-1868573_1280.jpg)
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#### dLish
Obvious use: An online bakery or restaurant of some sort.

Sounds like: Delish, which is not a word, but a common shortening of delicious.

Problems: Tacky, if not full blown cringeworthy. Might work with hipsters, but even that's debatable.

#### dSieve
Obvious use: All about them strainers, yo.

Sounds like: Dee-siv, which isn't a word.

Problem: Some people might think it's supposed to be deceive, thus attracting the wrong clientele, and putting off the rest.

#### That's It
If you enjoy these, maybe I'll do some more. If not, well, maybe I'll do more, anyway, just to entertain myself.

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![divider_victorian_thinned.png](https://cdn.steemitimages.com/DQmUKYegGoQkn4MbaWfVD5ieJdf4Gx7LPbaC1hvtt8vL8aE/divider_victorian_thinned.png)
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### <center>About This Post</center>
**DISCLAIMER:** *This post is meant as a fun exercise in words and "D" names for businesses, so please, take it as such. If anyone decides to try any of these 'suggestions', they do so at their own discretion and risk.*

*All images from Pixabay.*