The Hindu News Update Service News Update Service Thursday, December 18, 2008 : 1045 Hrs
Sci. & Tech. Top sites for 2009 GUARDIAN NEWS SERVICE The online world has changed dramatically even since we last drew up a list of 100 useful sites in December 2006 (http://bit.ly/websites). In the interim, there has been a revival of the browser wars - with Google's Chrome and Apple's Safari making surprising inroads into the Windows monopoly, and offering a new vision of what browsing can be like. Many of the sites listed here were not available when we did our last list; although longevity is a mark of pride online, it is difficult for companies set up in the 1990s to reinvent themselves quickly enough to take advantage of new technologies. Although of course rapid change brings casualties too: it's possible that with all the economic turbulence going on that some of the sites here won't be around in a year from now, or that their now free services will have become paid-for. That doesn't diminish their usefulness, though; it just underlines their determination to survive. The biggest changes since 2006 have been in the fields of collaborative online services that let people in different locations work simultaneously on projects. Collaboration in 2006 was very much focused on words, but now you can create presentations that look as though they were made with expensive packages. And then you can share those presentations, or look at other work that people have done - and even download them. You can convert files without needing expensive systems. Collaborative working has never been easier, even across different platorms. The web really is becoming the operating system, as the rise of the "netbooks" (aka ultraportables, aka Liliputers) emphasises. The growth of location-based services - particularly those which you can choose to log yourself in and out of, thus protecting your privacy - has been rapid. A parallel growth has come with the mobile web; there's no escaping the fact that Apple's iPhone has revolutionised how its users, in their millions, think about the internet. For them, it is no longersomething that is experienced well on a computer and then badly on their mobile phone; the mobile version of Safari has made browsing on the move an altogether more pleasant experience, which it never was before. That opens up new vistas: location-aware task managers can adjust the order of your to-do list based on what the GPS unit in the phone is telling you, so that while you're in the supermarket it will remind you about the cereal you need, but in the office it will tell you to send that important memo right away. Video, of course, is now everywhere. YouTube was already dominant in 2006, but now the BBC's iPlayer is taking over. If it makes its technology available to all, perhaps the UK will become a nation of video makers and watchers. So here are our 100 revised best sites to see you through the next couple of years. They're organised roughly along those lines. Blogging - Now as easy as falling off a log. - Bloglines: bloglines.com for reading web feeds. Smart and clean.- Wordpress: wordpress.com free, and most importantly spam-free, blogging. Browsers - A newly revived category, thanks to Chrome and Safari. - Chrome: google.com/chrome newly out of beta, though Windows-only.- Firefox: mozilla.com/firefox infinitely malleable, with fewer security holes.- Flock: flock.com with an emphasis on linking to social networks.- Opera: opera.com growing in importance for mobiles.- Safari: apple.com/safari Apple's contender; a leader in mobile web access. Cartoons - Everyone needs some relaxation. - Dilbert: dilbert.com hi, cube-dwellers.- Alex: alexcartoon.com amid the financial crisis, Alex the banker remains reliably self-interested.- Doonesbury: doonesbury.com the cartoon you'll also find in that printed newspaper thing.- The Joy of Tech: geekculture.com/joyoftech well-drawn, witty near-daily takes on Apple and computing life.- XKCD: xkcd.com "Stick-figure strip featuring humour about technology, science, mathematics and relationships." Create/collaborate - The main change from last time: whatever you want to do, wherever you are. - Dipity: dipity.com build timelines and add text, pictures and videos.- Zoho: zoho.com everything in one place, from documents to presentations.- Rememberthemilk: rememberthemilk.com online task/to-do management.- Netvibes: netvibes.com your to-do lists, news, weather and photos on one page.- 280slides: 280slides.com create presentations online. Very slick.- Zamzar: zamzar.com convert files from one format to another. Gaming - A field where handheld, bedroom and Flash games are becoming mainstream - Eurogamer: eurogamer.net reportage, with breadth, if not always depth.- The Independent GamingSource: tigsource.com a great place to pick up on tomorrow's breakthrough hits.- Pocket Gamer: pocketgamer.co.uk still by far the best site on handheld gaming.- Metacritic: metacritic.com/games industry touchstone and useful one-stop buying guide.- Jay is Games: jayisgames.com passionate, well-designed and knowledgeable. Geek squad - Stack Overflow: stackoverflow.com where programmers gather.- The Daily WTF: thedailywtf.com daily despatches from the coding warzone.- Joel On Software : joelonsoftware.com essays by a former Microsoftie. Location, location - Services like these blossom with a mobile phone that can access the internet - Dopplr: dopplr.com "share your future travel plans with friends and colleagues", then find out if others will be there too.- Qype: qype.com localised search for pubs, restaurants, etc; also a bit of a social network.- Loopt: loopt.com "transforms your mobile phone into a social compass".- Brightkite: brightkite.com a "location-based social network". Maps - The flip side of location-based services: seeing where you are. - OpenStreetMap: openstreetmap.org a rights-free map created by people like you. Remarkably detailed and precise.- Walkit: walkit.com walking directions for all sorts of routes.- Google Maps Street View: maps.google.com/help/maps/streetview soon to have the UK as well.- Noise pollution map: noisemapping.defra.gov.uk how noisy is it in the area around your house? Money/finance/ consumer fightback - We all need someone on our side. - Money Saving Expert: moneysavingexpert.com does what it says on the tin.- Zopa: zopa.com a human-centred way to loan money to people in the developing world. Music - Last.fm: last.fm British-made, CBS-owned, music recommendation station.- Amazon: amazon.co.uk now has its own MP3 store in the UK as well as the US.- 7Digital: 7digital.com music downloads in MP3 format - so not tied to iPods.- Passionato: passionato.com classical music MP3 downloads, slowly building momentum.- Songkick: songkick.com find out where your favourite bands are playing next, based on your music library.- Blip.fm: blip.fm be your own DJ and create a social network from your choices and recommendations. News recommendation - Digg: digg.com still the reigning champion.- Reddit: reddit.com slightly upmarket from Digg; slightly below...- Techmeme: techmeme.com technology news chosen by computer, though it'snow adding human editors.- Popurls: popurls.com aggregating the aggregators: the web in a window.- Slashdot: slashdot.org still attracts a big, and often knowledgable, audience. Offbeat - The Onion: theonion.com still the satirical newspaper of record.- B3TA: b3ta.com beyond classification; its forum has spawned many memes... and trolls.- Lolcats: icanhazcheezburger.com captioned cats and other animals.- PostSecret: postsecret.blogspot.com notes of secrets sent by people who want them posted. So they are.- Passive-Aggressive Notes: passiveaggressivenotes.com would it be too much trouble for you to have a look? Photography - Flickr: flickr.com the granddaddy of photo-sharing sites.- Picnik: picnik.com photo editing in your browser.- Picasa: picasa.com Google's photo organisation and editing tool. Windows only. Physical from virtual - Moo: moo.com Moo business cards have become a calling card in themselves.- Blurb: blurb.com coffee-table book publishing of your books.- Lulu: lulu.com book, photobook, calendars and other sorts of publishing.- Cafepress: cafepress.com badges, T-shirts etc. US-only at present.- Spreadshirt: spreadshirt.net design your own T-shirt or sweatshirt and get it printed. Reference - CIA Factbook: cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook all the data you need on pretty much anywhere.- Wikipedia: en.wikipedia.com still a first port of call on most topics.- Rotten Tomatoes: rottentomatoes.com check the film you plan to see here.- Internet Archive/Wayback Machine: archive.org the web in aspic.- Wikileaks: wikileaks.org anonymous source of leaked documents. Search - Google still dominates. - Clusty: clusty.com results in clouds.- CoolIris: cooliris.com image-based searching - a new way to use the web. Social software - Chances are high you're a member of at least one, and perhaps all, of these sites. - Facebook: facebook.com virtually everyone's your friend here.- Myspace: myspace.com hangout for all the teenagers. And Kirk Douglas.- LinkedIn: linkedin.com mainly for business.- Friends Reunited: friendsreunited.co.uk the original social network. Twitter, and associated - Twitter has proved itself over and over this year as a vector for news. - Twitter: twitter.com the ur-site, where you can create an identity (or several).- Monitter: monitter.com watch keywords on Twitter. A brand, your name, a meme? No login required at present.- Matt: themattinator.com post to multiple Twitter accounts. Requires your password; only give if you trust the site.- Twitterfeed: twitterfeed.com posts blog contents to Twitter. Requires password; only give if you're sure that you trust the site. We do.- Twitter: Grader twitter.grader.com find how you rank on Twitter. Video - BBC iPlayer: bbc.co.uk/iplayer already taking up 10% of UK network traffic.- YouTube: youtube.com dominant provider of video content online.- Vimeo: vimeo.com better rights control than YouTube and a cleaner interface- Worldtv.com: worldtv.com set up your own global TV channel.- Qik qik.com: video-sharing from your mobile.- Joost: joost.com internet TV via a browser plugin.- Videojug: videojug.com a sort of social network of informational video.- seesmic: seesmic.com short video conversation: another social network Virtual worlds/MMORPGs - Runescape: runescape.com amazingly successful MMORPG.- Entropia Universe: entropiauniverse.com set in a distant future on the untamed planet of Calypso.- Club Penguin: clubpenguin.com minigame-tastic virtual world for kids.- Moshi Monsters: moshimonsters.com "educational" virtual world for kids. Visualisation - DabbleDB: dabbledb.com create online databases and analyse them.- Google Visualisation tools: http://code.google.com/apis/visualization/documentation/gallery.html dozens of tools for making data more comprehensible.- Many Eyes: http://manyeyes.alphaworks.ibm.com/manyeyes/page/Visualization_Options.html IBM's visualisation tools, similar to Google's. To unsubscribe send a message to [email protected] with the subject unsubscribe. To change your subscription to digest mode or make any other changes, please visit the list home page at http://accessindia.org.in/mailman/listinfo/accessindia_accessindia.org.in
