PS sections from past newsletters '99-'01
Computer/Internet-related links

12/01
http://www.snarg.net

http://www.snarg.net/technobaroque/

http://www.snarg.net/justbecause/

http://www.snarg.net/jng/writing.html

http://www.snarg.net/jng/life.html

http://www.snarg.net/posi-web/
If you've been with us a while & you actually read this part of the newsletter you may remember Snarg. They're back with more of the same.

http://home.nexgo.de/foxya/flash_of_the_month.htm
You ever spun a person? Now's your chance.

http://www.nokia-game.com/rgchallenge.html
Very neat little game. Just use the 'up' arrow key to keep going.

http://www.ferryhalim.com/orisinal/
Generally quick loading games at a very slick site. A must visit if you're into web design - check out the 'Experiments'.

http://www.webattack.com/
Lots & lots of free downloads - impressive.

http://www.antimodal.com/flash/critters04.html
Get your herd of penguins to the other side so that the echidna doesn't notice when he wakes up. Watch them explode when he does!

http://go.to/searchbar
'Search Bar is a little program I created because I hated having to open a new browser window, go to a search engine site, wait for it to load and then do my search. Search Bar is a little window that sits on top of all your windows to give you quick access to many different search engines. It comes with 6 popular search engines (Altavista, Excite, Google, HotBot, Lycos, and Yahoo), but you can add almost any engine you want. You can minimize the program to an icon in the system tray for quick access to the Search Bar.' Patrick Deal

http://www.virtualstapler.com
We try to cater for all types, so if staplers are your thing & life is getting to be a bit too much then this is for you. Also send a Xmas greeting stapler with:

http://www.littlefreak.com

http://www.homepromotions.net/Tehkan/mamesong.swf
A celebration - of old computer games & the song Fame.

http://www.madblast.com/oska/torture.cfm
Make some great mixes & add in a slice of torture.

http://www.evolver.co.uk/wayofthestick.html
They're all out to get you, you know. Get them first in 'the way of the stick'!

11/01
http://www.devotedbee.com/eggpants.html
"The Ongoing Story of an Egg and His Favorite Pair of Pants" A sublime comic strip.

http://www.boardreader.com/
And this search engine looks into the message boards for what you want.

We mentioned the last page of the Internet so while ago. It's still there if you want to see it:
http://www.1112.net/lastpage.html
Now you can turn off the internet here. http://www.turnofftheinternet.com/
After you have closed it down, Ctrl-W will close it down!

http://www.icontown.net/
'IconTown is not just another website offering icons for download - it's an international project where each structure you see is a contribution from people who love making icons. Join the community and become a citizen in this village of pixels!'

And then get along to the Pseudoroom for a look at a lovely site. There are icons & fonts to download.
http://www.pseudoroom.com/

http://www.cometzone.com/
If you've got a web site & you want to change the cursor of your visitors, here's the place to do it - choose the cursor & get the code.

http://www.konstruktiv.net/kitty_02.html
Is this what the net is really for? I never did like them anyway.

http://www.tinywindowsgames.com/tiny/
'Tiny versions of classic games for your sneaky worktime pleasure.'

http://www-unix.oit.umass.edu/~mseabury/flizash/ninja.html
Fancy yourself as an IT ninja - test your ninja skills on this entertaining problem.

http://www.flashkit.com/arcade/Shooting/CutieQua-gamerno-652/index.shtml
Get rid of those pent up irritations with CutieQuake 'The Ultimate Flash Shooter! Fast, violent and now more challenging, but still just as sick ...hmm, we like.

http://www.i-mockery.com/GeneralZod/default.asp
Kneel before General Zod! You basically have two choices - kneel before him and swear eternal loyalty to Zod or die by his hands for your defiance and treachery.
If you choose option 1, you will be saved. You will continue on with the rest of your life as his slave, forever. Keep in mind how much honor there is in devoting your life to serving your rightful leader, General Zod. Much honor indeed.
If you choose option 2, he will crush you with his bare hands. A most unsettling fate for you. He will also kill any small "pets" such as "puppies" that you have acquired.
Not too much of a choice really.

http://www.rathergood.com/blode3/
Joel Veitch presents a 'rathergood.com' flash movie 'Tales of the Blode - Episode 3 - Marmot Mayhem'.

http://bigidea.com/penguins/kids/k_spacedpenguin.htm
Spaced Penguin - catapult Kevin back to his spaceship!

http://www.lego.com/build/junkbot/junkbot.asp?x=x
Loads of entertaining lego games.

http://www.chronicsite.com/gatchaman/freebies.html#game
Then you can download the seriously addictive Macigame - like Tetrus but better.

http://www.josephpalmer.com/planes/Airplane.shtml
Joseph Palmer's step-by-step guide to making his paper planes.

http://www.go2sleep.be/
ZZZZzzzzzzzz..................

10/01
http://ixquick.com
Pretty quick & accurate metasearch engine, calling on 12 search engines in lots of languages. All you get is a search box - but what more do you want?

http://teoma.com
Touted as real competition for Google. This search engine gives you three types of result; 'web pages' - authoritative sites relevant to the search term, 'web pages by topic' - top result pages are grouped based on their topics & finally 'expert links' - pages that contain directories of links for related general subjects.' An Ask Jeeves Property.

http://www.compare-stuff.com/
A really nice variation on the search engine. This one compares 'stuff' - type in two things & the area they are connected to & the results come fast.

http://www.b3ta.com/bunnygame/
A steady hand is needed - sure to be a resounding success. Trace the bunny - you like the bunny or not - find out.

http://www.soulxchange.com/
'SoulXchange is the world's first and only online marketplace for the sale and purchase of human souls. This new soul to soul exchange revolutionizes the process of selling a soul -- cutting down on the cost, effort and inefficiency of traditional soul acquisition.' Don't you just love the internet?

http://www.somethingawful.com/nointelligence/
The error page begins: 'The page you are looking for is currently too stupid. The Web site might be experiencing idiot writers, or you may need to adjust your browser settings to accept more retarded objects.' And then goes on to give invaluable advice - what you really want to see on a 'Page Cannot Be Displayed' page.

http://www.digital-librarian.com/
Lots of categories with lots & lots of links.

http://www.philosophers.co.uk/games/identity.htm
A mini-maze activity called 'Staying Alive - The Personal Identity Game…The aim of the game is to stay alive! There are three rounds. In each round, you will be presented with a scenario and then offered two choices. The decisions that you make determine whether you stay alive or perish. You should always base your decisions on nothing more than the desire to keep yourself in existence. Also, note that you should take each scenario presented to you at face value. The situation will be as described - there are no "tricks" - and you do not need to worry about other 'what ifs'. At the end of the game you will discover if you have stayed alive or not, although, being a philosophical game, the answer won't be that straightforward...'

http://www.stickdeath.com/
Gory stick people deaths - relaxation for those not easily offended & have some spare moments. It uses Shockwave so can take a time but worth it. Be warned - Rob gets lots of Hate Mail.

http://www.zombo.com/
'You can do anything, or nothing, at Zombo.Com. The only limit is yourself. The infinite is possible. The unattainable is unknown' . Well, if you get further than I did, congratulations.

http://www.johnhiatt.com/jh_swat_mosquito.htm
A healthy way to get rid of your irritations. And while you're there check out what John Hiatt has to offer on the rest of his site - there are some MP3 downloads from his current tour.

9/01
http://www.liquid.se/pong.html
Definitely worth a visit. Challenge the computer in those free minutes & you'll get hooked.

http://www.epinions.com/
US-based site that gives you an idea of what you're going to buy. Check here before venturing out to the shops.

http://library.albany.edu/internet/choose.html
This great page tells you which search engine to use for which type of search. Top of the bookmarks for this one. And from there check out some of Albany Univesity's tutorials at: http://library.albany.edu/internet/

http://www.testmyspeed.com
If you want to check out how fast your internet connection is then this is the place. It does depend on quite a few things so be prepared for wide variations.

http://support.microsoft.com/support/windows/topics/errormsg/emresctr.asp
You get them & you ignore them, you don't know what they mean. Get along to the Microsoft Error Message Resource Center. If they can't explain it you can send a message. Also check out:
http://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/0,289893,sid9_gci212076,00.html

And if you want to know what the messages mean as they happen you can download a free programme for MS Windows Error Messages at:
http://www.gregorybraun.com/MSWinErr.html

http://www.iwondercompany.com/stick/
'STICK is a Windows utility you can use to quickly access multiple instances of the Internet Explorer browser without itgetting in the way of your daily computer routine. Stick uses 'Screen Tabs' to contain your browser window. These tabs stick
to one side of your screen and can be hidden such that only the tab shows. They can quickly be unhidden by clicking on the tab.'

http://vivisimo.com/
A new search engine to add to your collection. Search by category or specific search engines & you can customize the display. Try it, you may like it.

http://www.resort.com/~banshee/Misc/8ball/index.html
You've got a question that needs answering - go see Bob!
As they say at the Resort 'Of the many True Oracles, none are more profound than the Mystical Smoking Head of 'Bob'. Not even the Severed Head of Arnold Palmer can penetrate the veils of bulldada protecting the Norms from the Terrifying Truths and Puzzling Evidence. Concentrate and ask a Yes or No Question. Oh By The Frop Of His Pipe, Grant Me Vision!'

8/01
I'm sure you want to know when we last updated Developing Teachers.com, no? I learned this trick the other day. Open a text file - NotePad or the equivalent that you use & type in the following:

[InternetShortcut]
URL=javascript:alert(document.lastModified)

Then 'Save as' "last_modified.url" - without the quotes - in c:\windows\favorites.

When you are at a site, click on this in the favourites & it'll give you the date the page was last modified. Magic.

http://images.google.com/
Talking of magic - back to Google - my favourite search engine - & their lightning search that seems like magic. They have now incorporated an image search. The engine chooses pages of thumbnails from over 150 million images! Phew! Take a while to get through. When you click on a thumbnail you're given a top frame of the picture & the bottom frame is the site it's from. They just get better at Google.

http://www.google.com/press/zeitgeist.html
'Google Zeitgeist - Search patterns, trends, and surprises according to Google
For both breaking news and obscure information alike, people around the world search on Google at www.google.com. With a bit of analysis, this flurry of searches often exposes interesting trends, patterns, and surprises.
On a monthly, weekly, and sometimes daily basis, this Google Zeitgeist page will be updated to reflect lists, graphs, and other tidbits of information related to Google user search behavior.'

http://www.wilders.org/free_tools.htm
Lots of free programmes to help you & your computer stay safe.

http://www.jasons-toolbox.com/test-defenses.asp
Viruses are in the news again. Here's a useful site that helps you discover if your system is protected or not against malicious scripts. You can ask for an e-mail to be sent to you containing a VBS attachment. When you run it, it attempts to read your registry. It doesn't do any harm though - it's just to see if it can get that far without being detected. If it does get that far you need some protection!

http://www.hardwareanalysis.com/
If you're in the market for a new computer or parts for your present one, check this site out before going to buy. They give you the lowdown on just about everything - & fellow geeks will help you out in the forums. There's also a good tutorial on building your own computer - for those dead times between lessons!

http://www.thunderbirdsonline.com/
I don't really know what this is doing in the newsletter but this seemed a good enough place as any to put it. Join Jeff, Scott, John, Virgil, Gordon, Alan, Brains (a true geek hero) & Lady Penelope & Parker on Tracy Island - it had everything! I always wondered what happened to Mum but it seems she died prematurely, no details given. If you don't know what I'm talking about, I wouldn't bother.

7/01
http://www.slashdot.org/
'News for Nerds. Stuff that matters.'

http://www.officeletter.com/
'Our weekly newsletter is devoted to helping you get the most out of the Microsoft Office suite, whether you're using Office 97, Office 2000, or Office XP. In addition to news, advice, tips, tricks, advice, and opinions, you'll find reviews of the best in office products, from printers and low-cost scanners to Office add-ons. We invite you to explore our Standard (free) edition of The Office Letter online.'

http://everything2.com/
If you happen to be a budding writer check this out: 'E2 can be a very, very confusing place at first. This website has grown from being a very simple user-written encyclopaedia to a very complex online community with a focus to write, publish and edit a quality database of information, insight and humor. When you make an account here you join not only a team of dedicated writers but an entire micro-society and community with its own pop culture, politics, beauty and blunders. It's not perfect. In fact, it can be pretty messy. It's cool as hell, though...'

http://www.toptenlinks.com/
An interesting collection of voted 'top ten' sites, products, news headlines & people - each sub-divided several times.

http://www.wordmap.com/
'Wordmap is the leading specialist in knowledge maps' - a very popular search engine with some. Do a general search or choose the theme. Some say it gives more accurate results than Google.

http://www.delphi.com/n/main.asp?webtag=navnet&nav=start
Walt's Navigating the Net Forum.

http://www.mydesktop.com/
Informative & clear computer-related site - bookmark it for when you have a need.

http://www.darksites.com/souls/horror/evilguide/index.html
A walk on the dark side - well, looks pretty harmless to me & anyone who pre-empts hate mail with a set of readymade responses can't be all that bad! They say: 'Congratulations on your decision to join the forces of darkness! Evil always needs more tools... I mean... agents... for its unholy army of the night, and by joining now you can rest assured that your remaining years will be spent pursuing the 'good' things of life: lust, greed, debauchery, the slaughter of hapless innocents... Your favourite hobby can become a lifelong career! Thus, this handy guide has been created to nurture any potential lunatic into a lifetime of evil and destruction.'

6/01
http://www.happyhub.com/network/reflex/
Do you reckon your reflexes are good? Don't mind wasting a bit of time? And end up wasting quite a bit of time? Get along & test yourself! An Olympic sport in the making..

http://www.karenware.com/
Karenware is Karen Kenworthy's site. She is the author of PowerTools - the free Windows programme that 'makes life easier with Windows'. There's the Power Tools to download, many more useful free programmes & a newsletter to subscribe to.

http://www.lookoff.com
This is a site devoted to helping you find the most suitable search engine for your specific purposes. They say that 'specific topics will be found more efficiently with specific search tools'.

http://www.freeanswers.com/ask2.asp
Another troubleshooting site for your computer problems.

http://www.ecomplaints.com
For those with an e-complaint, you can see if anyone else has had a problem with a particular product or provider & you can post your own for all to see.

http://www.driverguide.com
If you're ever in need of updating your drivers, then this is the place. They have a huge database of drivers & resources & all free.

http://www.eugenemirman.com/
For something a little different! A star in the making - cool crooner.

http://www.balthaser.com/fx/builder/fx_boot.asp
And after Eugene, sit back & enjoy this - a treat in flashy design.

5/01
http://www.well.com/user/argv/java/dots.html
Play against the site in a 'join the dots' game - easy, hard & killer.

http://www.intel.com/home/tech-center/calculate_download/
This is a very useful addition. You're about to download a programme & you want to know how long it will take before starting - this will tell you. You can go to the Intel site & do the calculations or you can download a small programme & do it from your computer. It'll also tell you the speed of your connection.

http://www.computerhope.com/
Here's another very helpful site devoted to computer problems & development. Info & troubleshooting on hardware, software, operating systems & much more. Check here first.

http://www.quickbrowse.com/
Now this is an interesting addition. It sends you a series of web pages daily through your e-mail. Choose from a series of online newspapers, albeit from the US, & you'll get the front page or specific sections straight to your in-box every day. View your favourite sites all at once on one page, each page following each other as you scroll down. A very neat way to save yourself loads of clicks.

http://www.w3schools.com/default.asp
Learn about HTML, XHTML, CSS, ASP, MySQL, Javascript, VBScript among many other online tutorials.

http://support.microsoft.com/servicedesks/fileversion/dllinfo.asp?fr=0&sd=msdn
Where you've always wanted to go with your DLL problems care of Microsoft & the DLL Help Database.

http://www.pcworld.com/downloads/file_description/1,fid,2015,00.asp
A download from PC World 'Create professional-quality flowcharts and diagrams with this utility. SmartDraw comes with 750 symbols and templates, along with loads of clip art. One of its handy features: Once you connect a line to a graphic, it will stay connected to that graphic even when you change its size and position -a big help for creating flowcharts. The utility works with Lotus SmartSuite, Microsoft Office, WordPerfect, and other programs that support Object Linking and Embedding functions.'

www.nano.com www.flyswat.com www.gurunet.com
These sites offer small programmes that run alongside your browser. When you open a web page you'll find key words underlined - turned into a hyperlink - & all you do is hold down the 'Alt' key click on them for a pop-up window with an explanation & more links. This saves opening other windows for search engines. Gurunet goes even further by doing the same in any Windows application, not just on web pages. A timesaver.

http://www.ndroid.com/005/main.html
A different & trendy web site for those in search of inspiration on well-designed web sites.

4/01
http://www.girafa.com/
Don't you get a bit fed up when you've just done a search & you're faced with an enormous amount of links to check out? This is a neat little toolbar, that sits on the left of the page, that shows you thumbnails of the sites that are in the search page, it shows thumbnails of all the links on a web page, it helps you save these thumbnails while surfing & it also helps you e-mail friends with these thumbnails instead of just the link! It's free & it works with Internet Explorer, versions 4 & higher. Nice idea - check it out.

http://www.e-2.org/word_perhect.html
'As word processing software becomes ever more advanced, with the ability to correct syntax and spelling errors, these familiar programmes begin to impose a standardised corporate language onto our writing - subtly altering its meaning. Working with the programmer Jon Pollard, Takahashi has produced a new and fully functioning online version of these platforms which undermines this dehumanising process. Reclaiming the initiative back from the software, Word Perhect presents an idiosyncratic hand drawn interface leading to a set of functioning but strangely altered tools.' It's fun & different so check it out.

http://groups.google.com/googlegroups/deja_announcement.html
Did you use the newsgroups at Deja like me, only to find you'd recently lost most of My/Your Deja? Shame but, fingers crossed, it looks like normal service will be resumed shortly courtesy of my favourite search engine Google - google groups is in the process of being created using the 500 million messages from Deja that date back to '95. I just wish they'd get on with it! There are some other similar interesting sites that might well be more attractive if they take too long.

http://www.hotsheet.com
When you see this site you wonder why there aren't more like it around. It's basically a lot of lists of sites on one page. So by bookmarking this page you are saving yourself the job of bookmarking lots & lots of very useful sites. I've got loads of bookmarked sites in different folders but I usually only go to about 5% of them. If you're searching for a type of site, it's worth checking what they have here first. Very useful.

http://support.microsoft.com/support/kb/articles/Q242/4/50.ASP
You've probably been there & come back empty-handed. You had a question you wanted answering about some Microsoft product - who hasn't got 10 million questions. So, you thought the logical step would be to find the answer on the Microsoft site. You go there & spend half an hour trawling the mammoth site & come out with nothing.
The Microsoft Knowledgebase was originally designed to be used by its own technicians to help resolve user problems. When solutions were found they were put on the site for all to benefit. Unfortunately it's got so big now that it's very difficult to find anything. Until now, that is! Get along to the Knowledgebase keyword page & bookmark it. Use it & it'll save you bags of time.

http://www.potatoland.org/shredder/
If you're feeling a bit bored or find a site you'd like to take your anger on then this could be for you. Just type in the url & see a mangled version. I put DT.com in & was impressed - might take a few pointers.

http://www.pcworld.com/downloads/file_description/0,fid,4076,00.asp
At PC World at the above link you can download the Procrastination Clock. This will calculate how long you have left to live. It's based on the statistical averages related to birthday, gender & race. Comforting or not!

To end on a note of warning!

My Internet love is a corpse-hoarding granny

By Lucy Sherriff at The Register - 22.02.01

http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/6/17117.html

Trevor Tasker's online romance went from steamy to chilly when he flew to the States to marry his love, only to discover that she was an old age pensioner with a corpse in her freezer.
Trevor, 27, met Wynema Shumate in a chat room, and exchanged electronic love notes with her for months. After she sent him photographs of herself in her smalls he decided to up-sticks to the States to be with her.
However, the photographs were taken over 35 years ago, and Trevor was met at the airport by a rather larger, and older woman than he expected. Shumate is now 65, and weighs in at an impressive 20 stone, according to a report in The Sun.
But fair play to Trevor, he was not to be deterred and resolved to stay for a holiday despite his shock.
But worse was to come, because Shumate had kept the dead body of her former flatmate, James O'Neill in her freezer, because she wanted to continue living in his house, and keep drawing money from his account.
O'Neill had died of natural causes, but Shumate had tried to cut off one of his legs in order to fit him in the freezer. She has since been sentenced to a year in jail for fraud and unlawfully removing a dead body.
Trevor has apparently vowed never to go online again. His mum said that he was very embarrassed about the whole affair.

3/01
ttp://www.microsoft.com/enable/products/keyboard/keyboardsearch.asp
I’m sure most of us use at least one Microsoft product, if not three or four, on our computers. So to help you save lots of time Microsoft have put all of the keyboard shortcuts in one place – Word, Windows, Internet Explorer, Excel, Access etc….Get along to the page & choose the programme & then you’re away.

http://www.room102.com
They start off saying, on the front page, that they’re not as good as Goggle. But what Goggle can’t do & they can is give you a thumbnail of the sites it finds. This then gets you surfing quickly until you get what you’re after. Not the greatest search engine by any means but a taste of things to come.

http://www.sover.net/~whoi/Priceless.html
Priceless is the operative word – all of the quality freeware that it features are just that - free. Lots for the Windows user – programmes for business, graphics, internet, multimedia, system, text, security…Have you tried Sun’s Star Office – an excellent free alternative to Office? Or in need of an anti-virus programme?

http://mast.mcafee.com/mast/mass_map.asp?track=1&period=3
This is quite a nifty page from McAfee – a world computer virus map. They provide a map of the world, colour-coded to show the latest spread of viruses or infected computers over the last week or 24 hours. Pretty.

2/01
http://www.musicmatch.com
MusicMatch Jukebox is an indispensable programme on my computer. It looks after all of my mp3 collection, allows me to transfer these to CDs & vice versa. It has a variable compression rate so you decide on the quality & size of the files & a host of other features. There is a pay version, which would be useful for burning CDs if you didn't have software such as Nero - otherwise the free version is probably all you need.

http://www.onlineconversion.com/
Online Conversion - a very useful site to have bookmarked. Convert anything you can think of - length, temperature, speed, volume, weight, computer, time, cooking, angles, area, power, energy, density, force, light, clothing, fun stuff......among many more categories.

http://www.fixwindows.com
A very useful site to have bookmarked in the (likely) event of problems with your Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows NT 4.0, Windows 2000 and Windows ME operating systems. A host of tips, articles & advice to help sort you out, each section beginning with a diagnostic flow chart.

http://www.pcpitstop.com/
If you'd like a free second opinion on how your system is shaping up get along to the Pit Stop. The site puts your computer through its paces & gives you an analysis & tips on performance improvement. You need Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.0 or higher.

http://officeupdate.microsoft.com/templategallery/
Microsoft Office Template Gallery - as they say: "For those times when you know what you need but don't want to start from scratch, we've created the Template Gallery. We've partnered with content experts to provide you with hundreds of useful templates to get your work done. We already have hundreds of templates: resumes, cover letters, sales and marketing documents, collection letters, legal documents, complaint letters, and much more. And, we're just getting started. We are working with a growing set of partners to provide additional templates based on suggestions from our customers like you."

1/01
http://www.google.com/options/buttons.html
This is a very welcome Christmas present from my favourite, incredibly quick, search engine Google. They are making searching even easier. Instead of going over to a search site to hunt down something you can do it straight from your links toolbar - IE or personal toolbar - Netscape.
To start with you need to put the feature on your toolbar. There's no downloading as it's only a bookmark & all you have to do is drag & drop from the site into the links section of your toolbar & there you have it! Now when you've got a page open all you have to do is highlight a word & Goggle will automatically give you a list of search results - from over one billion web pages. From there you go on to what you want. I searched for 'engine' & in 0.1 seconds it found 140.000.000 pages!
That's not all - when you go to another web page, click on the Google search & a search box will open, write in what you want, enter & it will show you every page that matches. You need x4 browsers plus for this to work.
There's also 'Google Scout' - which gives related sites to the page you're on & 'Google.com' - that takes you to their search home page. Magic. All is clearly & visually explained at the site. Slap it on!
IE users on a PC http://www.google.com/options/winexplorer.html
Netscape users on a PC http://www.google.com/options/winnetscape.html
IE users on a Mac http://www.google.com/options/macexplorer.html
Netscape users on a Mac http://www.google.com/options/macnetscape.html

http://www.m-w.com/promos/button/button.htm
Here's another button to add to your toolbar - a dictionary - highlight, click & Merriam-Webster gives you a definition.

http://searchengineshowdown.com
If you're interested in comparing the search engines around then this is for you. Among the things you get to find out are the sizes of each database & the number of dead links in each.

http://www.help.com/ft/newbie/newbie-120700.html
A newsletter from Help.com, Newbie Notes, offers tips & advice on all things to do with your computer - 'a new column that translates geek speak into layman's terms. 'Until computer manufacturers start thinking like car manufacturers, your computer--unless you own an iMac--generally looks the same as your cousin Vinnie's. Stop pondering the variations of gray, because just as mothers, teachers, and self-help gurus have always said, it's what's happening on the inside that matters! Subscribe & see.

http://www.fontparadise.com/
Another font site - zap up your documents free of charge. All are listed by category & also alphabetically so it's easy to get around. Easy to install.

12/00
http://www.tinysoftware.com/pwall.php
A couple of newsletters ago I recommended the personal firewall from Zone Labs - Zone Alarm at http://www.zonealarm.com I've been very happy with it but I've heard about another free firewall. This is the 'Tiny Personal Firewall' from the computer company Tiny & seems to have all you need as well.

http://www.lavasoft.de/aaw/index.html
A firewall is supposed to make you invisible when you're surfing the net. Another function is that it tells you when a programme on your computer is 'phoning home' i.e. sending some information back to the programmer. This is usually harmless information but the trouble is you never really know. If you want to find the programmes that are trying to send information out - the 'spyware' - you could download Ad-Aware. This programme finds the spyware &, if you tell it to, deletes it for you too.

http://computingcentral.msn.com/help/howtodownload.asp
When I first started out with computers & the internet I was lucky to have Gerard to sort me out. There were times when I didn't know what I would have done without the advice. I very much sympathise with those starting out now without a 'Gerard' handy. For example, everyone is on about the latest download. Sounds great but how do you actually go about downloading a programme. The above address gives the newcomer an explanation on the different kinds of downloads.

http://www.downlinx.com
When you've sussed out the downloading situation, get on down to DownLinX & download all you need. You'll find over 40.000 programmes on their books under a dozen headings.

http://www.powerarchiver.com/
Another area of confusion is 'zipping'. I use the universally WinZip - http://www.winzip.com but now there is an alternative called Power Archiver & it's free, easy to use & contains just about everything that WinZip does. Worth investigating if you're after a compression programme.

http://www.wantedfonts.com/
'A modern culmination of unique fonts on the net', they say. And loads of links to other font sites.

11/00
http://www.ucmore.com/
Here's something to help you out when surfing the net. It's similar to Alexa & Netscape's 'What's related' but is much more sophisticated. You don't have to do any searches at all. It is installed at the top of you browser & goes into action when you open a page by giving you a series of related & categorised links. Unlike utilities like Copernic or Web Ferret or Search engines, you don't have to open anything up to make a search. What you might be looking for might be sitting right there. If not then carry out your normal search.
When I view the Developing Teachers.com site I'm given the following categories at the top of my browser: Teacher Training, English as a Second Language, Language Schools, Teacher Resources, Jobs, Student Resources & Online Resources. In each category there are up to 60 links given. It makes searching easy. The download for installation is very quick but unfortunately it only installs on Explorer.

http://hotwired.lycos.com/webmonkey/
Something else for your browser toolbar. WebMonkey, an excellent web building site, is giving away a toolbar that helps you have your favourites at your fingertips.

http://www.do-not-sleep.com
For those who are in need of ideas in the early hours of the morning. Lots of links aimed mainly at the geek.

10/00
http://www.zonelabs.com
Download your personal free firewall & remain invisible while connected. This little programme is getting a high profile everywhere on the net. It takes a few minutes to download & it's easy to install. As others try to get into your computer Zone Alarm blocks them & tells you when it does. If you want to feel a little safer & more anonymous then this is for you.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk
My father put me onto this. He's a Telegraph reader & every Thursday they have a Connected supplement with a column entitled Boot Camp. All of the back issues are on their Electronic Telegraph web site. Follow the links to the Connected section. The Boot Camp series is, as you might imagine, designed for the novice computer user in mind - it's all very clearly explained & with lots of information for the not so new computer user. Last time I looked they were on week 141! There's a lot more on the Telegraph site so have a hunt around while you're there.

8/00
http://www.absurd.org
Similar to http://snarg.net mentioned in the April edition of the newsletter. Not as interesting but maybe I didn't hang around long enough.

http://bigcats.care2.com/
The new 'donate with a click' site is about the big cats - a click gives a donation to the Wildlife Conservation Society - so you may as well get along & click on them all. - http://rainforest.care2.com/ - http://www.thehungersite.com/

http://www.purpleturtle.com/ And now you can help the turtle! Twenty percent of all advertising revenue goes towards turtle conservation. You can get yourname@purpleturtle.com e-mail here as well.

http://100hot.com/index.html   http://www.web100.com/
If you're lost on where to go here are a couple of useful sites.
Seen at the list of comedy sites at one of them:
The Pope and Queen Elizabeth were standing on a balcony beaming at thousands of people in the forecourt below. The Queen says to the Pope out of the corner of her mouth, "I bet you a tenner that I can make every English person in the crowd to go wild with just a wave of my hand." The Pope says, "No way. You can't do that!" The Queen says, "Watch this." So the Queen waves her hand and every English person in the crowd goes crazy, waving their little plastic Union Jacks on sticks and cheering, basically going ballistic. So the Pope is standing there going, "Uh-oh, what am I going to do? I never thought she'd be able to do it." So he thinks to himself for a minute and then he turns to her an says, "I bet you I can make every IRISH person in the crowd go wild, not just now, but for the rest of the week, with just one nod of my head." The Queen goes, "No way, it can't be done." So the Pope headbutts her.

7/00
http://www.dropthedebt.org
Here's another worthy site. This time it's devoted to trying to get the G7 countries to clear the Third World debt. On the site there's a video of rocksters such as Bono & Travis & to support the cause all you have to do is drop in on the Drop the Debt site and give them your e-mail address. This will then be sent to the G7 leaders in an attempt to create the largest petition ever. Don't worry about them passing on your address as they promise there will be no spam. 21st July is Net the Debt Day. It is being organised by http://www.jubilee2000uk.org/ so give them a visit too.

http://www.yukyuk.com
After the Drop the Debt site get along for a few laughs at the YukYuk site.

http://www.tucows.com
Famous site for a host of guaranteed virus-free downloads. Among the software:
- CD, Jukebox & MP3 Players
- Bookmark Utilities, Browser Add-Ons, Searchbots
- Internet Phones, Web Cams
- E-Mail Tools, Modem Sharing, Web Accelerators
- Anti-Spam Tools
- Games, Compression Utilities
- HTML Utilities, Auction Tools
- Language Translators, Image Animators
- Stock Quotes, Weather Monitors
- Anti-Virus, Parental Control
- Backup and Restore
Check here first if you need anything.

http://www.fontfile.com   
http://www.reflectdesign.com/bvfonts/
More fonts than you can cope with!

http://www.webbrain.com/
Now you see your search results with this new search engine called WebBrain, Netscape's Open Directory Project database. It gives you a picture of your search results as well as the traditional list. You can see your original search category while still becoming more specific, all in the form of a spider map. Much more interesting & the way search engines will go, they say.

6/00
http://servercc.oakton.edu/~wittman/find/internet.htm
A springboard for everything & anything to do with the Internet experience - impressive.

http://www.webwasher.de/en/software/wwash/download.htm
If you want to surf the web without banner ads & pop up windows then download the WebWasher. It's free, takes up less than 1Mb in size & is easy to install. It saves time as the ads aren't downloaded -it's white space instead - & how often do you actually click the banner ads?

http://www.bartleby.com   http://www.wolinskyweb.com  
http://www.refdesk.com
For free reference sites these take the proverbial biscuit! You'll never need to go anywhere else. Check them all out to find one that suits! The Bartleby site especially is full of goodies - they say they are the "most comprehensive public reference library ever published on the web." The site is divided into four sections:

Reference - http://www.bartleby.com/reference/
Verse - http://www.bartleby.com/verse/
Fiction - http://www.bartleby.com/fiction/
Non-fiction - http://www.bartleby.com/nonfiction/

Here are some of the things they've got: Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition, The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language,Third Edition; Roget's II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition; Simpson's Contemporary Quotations; and The American Heritager Book of English Usage, Bartlett's Familiar Quotations, Strunk's Elements of Style; six poetry anthologies, including the Oxford Book of English Verse; EmilyPost's Etiquette; the Cambridge History of English and American Literature: An Encyclopedia in Eighteen Volumes; Frazer's the Golden Bough (1922) and Thomas Bulfinch's Mythology (1913). Among many more!
With these & http://www.britannica.com we're spoilt for choice.

http://www.urban75.com/Mag/bubble.html
I gave you a few time - wasting sites last month but this beats the lot. You know the parcel bubble wrapping that you can pop? Well, now you can do the same on the web - run the cursor over the bubbles & pop! And then they recharge so you can really waste some serious time! Not quite the same as the real thing though.

http://www.mamma.com
Called the mother of all search engines! It apparently accesses 4.2 million pageviews monthly. Check it out.

 http://www.raging.com
Another new search engine with a big future from AltaVista.

http://www.1112.net/lastpage.html
Bet you thought that the Net went on forever. Check out the very last page.

5/00
http://www.soda.co.uk/soda/constructor
Talk of the web at the moment - check it out - go play!

http://www.blindsurf.com/
And if you've got some more time on your hands take a random trip to some quality web sites. All you do is choose a category & go with the flow.

http://www.emode.com/
And still even more time on your hands then get along to Emode for a quiz or two. Are you a sex goddess/god? What breed of dog are you? Are you a loony? What's your emotional age? All these & lots more crucial quizzes in Personality, Relationships Career & Health categories.

http://www.about-the-web.com/
http://cwis.kub.nl/~dbi/english/instruct/www/indexuk.htm
If you're just starting out with the Net & you're in need of information then these sites are for you - clear, very informative & lots of links.

4/00
http://snarg.net
If you're after something different on the net then you must check this out. You do need to let it run for quite a while & start mousing over the hot spots to find different routes that you can take. Not for those of a nervous disposition!

http://www.fontpool.com
Loads of fonts to add from the ones you got from Mashy mentioned in the February edition.

3/00
www.deja.com
A vast collection of newsgroups. My brother put me onto this after telling me how he got his Walkman mini-disk repaired free of charge after quoting to the manufacturer other similar cases he'd found in a newsgroup. So last week I thought I'd check it out for the scanner I'd promised myself for Xmas. The pros & cons were discussed - an Acer Scan Prisa 620 U by the way - & I felt happy going to buy it & haven't looked back since. It doesn't have to be computer related either - anything is discussed. Another similar site, considered better by some, is http://www.remarq.com

http://www.techweb.com/encyclopedia/home. , http://www.guru.net/ , http://www.pcwebopedia.com
After mentioning the http://www.whatis.com last month here are some more excellent dictionaries of computer terms all free. Check them out & find which one suits you.

2/00
www.mashy.com
Don't know about you but I like having many different fonts to choose from - the wackier & chunkier the better. Lockergnome recommended Mashy & quite rightly so. There are some original fonts from Mashy & loads of TTFs (True Type Fonts) - 1098 different ones when I was last there - all free & downloadable.

www.whatis.com
This & the next site come from Gerard's travels. This is a very useful site devoted to explaining the net & related topics with a dictionary of net terms at the top of each page.

www.symantec.com/avcenter/
An essential site to have under your favourites if the thought of a virus entering your computer worries you. When you find a virus, go to this site & enter the name in the search & you'll be told if it is genuine or a hoax & if it is genuine, & you have opened it, what to do about getting rid of it. A good free supplement to your anti-virus programme.

1/00
http://askjeeves.com/
In response to the WebFerret I was talking about last time Nedra has sent this one. It lets you enter your query in real English (i.e. Where can I find information about English academies in Madrid?) & searches a number of other search engines, including www.metacrawler.com/ which in turn searches multiple engines, allowing you to define your search nicely (by phrase, keyword).
We have also found a worthy competitor to the Web Ferret I referred to in the last issue. It is again free, is called Copernic 2000 & you can download it from www.copernic.com It uses specialised engines for the search you want. On the free version you get to use six categories: the Web, E-mail Addresses, Newsgroups, Buy Books, Buy Hardware & Buy Software - & on the pay version for c.$40 you get 20+ categories. In order to download Copernic 2000 it might be an idea to first download Go!Zilla from www.gizmo.net , free again, & this programme enables you to download programmes safely without fearing a break in your connection as you simply go back to the site & continue - Go!Zilla has saved what you began.

2/99
For the Xmas sites mentioned above I used the WebFerret & it has made life much easier for general web searches. Write in 'Christmas' & this device queries all configured search engines simultaneously, discarding duplicate results (not always!) & gives you a list of 500 sites! It takes seconds to get results & then all you do is click in the list on the site you want to visit. No more laborious opening of the search engines.. You can download it for free from www.ferretsoft.com - There are pay versions of their products too. Slap it on your desktop.

1/99
A couple of lines about mailing lists. I was reading the other day about the dangers of signing up for different newsletters - not this one I hasten to add. We've all done it but if you haven't here's how to avoid a problem in your in-tray. When you're at a biggish web site, they offer you a list of areas to chose newsletters from & you opt for half a dozen. This may be asking for trouble. The less ethical companies use this as a way of getting mailing lists together which they then sell to all & sundry . You are then bombarded with loads of useless spam mail. And then when you're fed up with that & you try & get off the mailing lists, they ignore you. Or you get an email out of the blue from them & if you respond to say you want out they know it is an active address & sell it on again. Watch out there's spam about. (Now there's one for you - why is it called 'spam'? - all answers on the back of an email.

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