Best of the Web 2001
We pick the top sites for PC users in 33 categories--from free tech support to essential Web services.Edited by Kim Zetter
Wouldn't it be great if you knew exactly where to go on the Web to get the information you need? The Web is huge, however, and there's no single place to find everything. So we've done the hunting for you.
Our intrepid editors and reporters checked out the best sites in 33 categories, with a focus on sites that make you a smarter and happier technology user. We zeroed in on the best places for audio downloads and security diagnostics, for information about hardware and games, for clip art to use on your Web site, and for driver updates for Windows.
In making our judgments, we considered ease of use, breadth of content, and usefulness of information, and we looked at sites that offer free stuff as well as stuff that's worth its asking price. We chose a top pick and a runner-up in each category (which gives you more options); we've also included personal favorites from four PC World editors. But if you don't like our picks--or have other favorites--feel free to send in your own nominees to bestofweb@pcworld.com.
Online Services
Stealth Surfing
SafeWeb
With so many Web sites tracking you online, it's nice to know you can reclaim your privacy at anonymous browsing sites like SafeWeb. Dozens of services offer stealth surfing, but many of them crowd their sites with ads.
SafeWeb's straightforward interface lets you call up Web pages through its proxy servers, preventing sites from identifying you. SafeWeb also encrypts your connection to its servers, filters potentially malicious scripts from Web pages, and lets you block cookies. The free service is supported by small banner ads.
Runner-Up: The ad-free Anonymizer.com offers similar features but will cost you $50 per year.
-- Seán Captain
Radio Stars
Echo
Though it was in a beta version when we tested it, Echo looked formidable. With a few mouse clicks you can create a personal "radio station" from Echo's extensive list of music styles, or you can tune in to other member's stations.
Anyone can listen to your collection, and you can invite people to rate songs, groups, and albums to refine your own playlist. Throw in a slick interface, and you're in music lovers' paradise.
Runner-Up: Spinner has plenty to love--150 music channels playing everything from rockabilly to reggae, a free Spinner Plus player, and minimal ads. If only it were more customizable.
-- Emru Townsend
Counting the Days
Netscape WebCalendar
Of the online calendars we reviewed, Netscape's WebCalendar offers the most flexibility and breadth of content. In addition to marking birthdays, anniversaries, holidays, and appointments, you can add daily weather reports and--after supplying your birthday--daily horoscopes.
The calendar's Event Directory lets you track new movie releases and sports events, and also links to Netscape's city guides so you can add cultural events as well.
Runner-Up: ScheduleOnline is a calendar and project management site. It allows you to track almost every aspect of a project and includes an e-mail program, a file manager, and a bulletin board.
-- Lisa Cekan
Seek and Find
With rapid, germane results to queries, Google wins again as our favorite search engine. Whether you search for "Nantucket salt grinder" to find a mate for your pepper mill or "Digital Relay" to find a hot new CD-RW, Google whips you there faster and delivers more-relevant results than its competitors.
And with its new translation function, Google will convert Italian, French, Spanish, German, or Portuguese pages into English for you--though the beta version we tested was clunky. A Lucent press release, for instance, was translated from the French as: "We are happy to accompany BLR services in its will to be an actor of foreground on this market with a future." Huh?
Runner-Up: Fast is the little-known search engine that could. The search site has a streamlined interface; it returns results from more than 1.5 billion Web pages; and as the company name implies, it's fast!
-- Anne B. McDonald
Space Stations
Xdrive Plus
Numerous sites offer online storage space, but Xdrive Plus downloaded and uploaded data the quickest in our informal testing. You can access Xdrive Plus from any PC, PDA, or Web-enabled cell phone, and it offers select instant downloads from partners such as Symantec and Microsoft.
For example, if you want an applet from Microsoft's site, you can post it to your Xdrive space instantly by clicking on the download, rather than grabbing it through your modem. The site gives you 25MB of space for $5 per month, with additional 25MB chunks available for $3 each per month.
Runner-Up: Myplay is a storage site with a specialty: MP3s and other music files. You get 3GB of free space for digital tunes, and the site has agreements with major music companies that ensure it won't someday find itself in Napster-like limbo.
-- Michael S. Lasky
In Synch
MyPalm
MyPalm succeeds for the same reason Palm is the most popular PDA device: divine simplicity. The site lets Palm owners sync calendars, contacts, and tasks to a free, personalized Web account so that you can access a virtual digital assistant from a PC anytime you're sans Palm.
You can add or edit data online, then sync it to your real Palm. The customizable Publish option lets designated users view portions of your calendar.
Runner-Up: MyPalm is limited to Palm OS users (including Handspring and Sony CLIE owners), but FusionOne works with PCs, some cell phones, and Palm devices. FusionOne Basic is free; the more comprehensive FusionOne Plus costs $10 a month.
-- Michael S. Lasky
Tech Tune-Ups
PC Pitstop
You check your car's oil regularly, don't you? So why not do maintenance on your PC? PC Pitstop is a free site that uses ActiveX controls and JavaScript to diagnose your hardware, hard disks, and Internet connection, and to sweep your system for viruses. (PCWorld.com and PC Pitstop recently partnered to offer the latter's free service through our site.)
You just click a link to start the tune-up, and then leave your computer alone for a few minutes. PC Pitstop provides a summary report of your system's condition, including explanations of problems it has found and tips for maximizing your PC's performance. You can use the TechExpress service to e-mail the results to a technician or to your brainy nephew.
Runner-Up: A good complementary site to PC Pitstop is CatchUp, which is a cool tool that scans your hard drive, then points you to updates, security patches, and tips for the specific apps on your PC.
-- Emru Townsend
Call Security!
Panda ActiveScan
In a perfect world, we'd all floss religiously, pay our parking tickets on time, and never use a PC that wasn't running antivirus software with the latest updates. But this is reality--and reality demands Panda Software's ActiveScan.
ActiveScan's free browser-based tool is a snap to use, and it can find and remove over 55,000 viruses and Trojan horses. And unlike some rivals, ActiveScan is updated daily. You can check your entire PC or a specific folder or file, or you can make sure the latest outbreak hasn't infected your Outlook or Outlook Express in-box.
Runner-Up: Trend Micro's Housecall offers a free online scanner that will not only find viruses on your system but also remove most of them.
-- Harry McCracken
Office Spree
Personable.com
No matter what your business, you'll probably have to share files with someone, so compatibility with Microsoft Office files is a must. Personable.com isn't just compatible with Office 2000, it is Office 2000.
Once you subscribe ($25 one-time activation fee, and monthly charges that range from $20 to $60), you can access Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook from any PC with a Net connection. The site plans to offer Office XP in the future, but no release date was available at press time.
Runner-Up: FreeDesk is less compatible, but it's fine for simple documents--and it's free. Apps are pretty speedy; but test the limits of document import and export before relying on the apps for your needs.
-- Emru Townsend
Going Postal
Yahoo Mail
Though Hotmail is still the most famous free e-mail service, Yahoo easily tops it by adding every possible mail feature to its system without sacrificing clarity or usability.
For example, Yahoo makes it a snap to set up forwarding addresses, POP3 mail, and filters. Factor in the easy sign-up procedure--which demands minimal private information--and you may want to become a Yahooligan, too.
Runner-Up: Hotmail, the pioneer of Web-based e-mail, remains a strong contender, but we found it sluggish. And its scant in-box capacity (2MB to Yahoo's 6MB) keeps it in second place.
-- Emru Townsend
Direct Delivery
Yahoo!
Looking for order on the Web? Yahoo's venerable directory organizes its multitude of sites into 14 neatly charted categories and intuitive subcategories, and has a separate section for shopping. You quickly reach actual links within one or two subcategory levels. It also offers one of the best selections of international sites, with 21 country-specific directories.
Runner-Up: The Open Directory Project offers a clean interface and good cross-categorization of sites. It also lets you easily work your way back from a specific site to its category so you can broaden your search.
-- Anush Yegyazarian
Home, Home on the Web
Homestead
These days you're no one if you don't have your own Web page. But designing a personal page can be frustrating and time-consuming.
Homestead provides the best templates and tools to get your site up quickly and to customize your site to give it your own stamp. It's free, too. A nice bonus for you and your visitors: no cookie clutter and no annoying pop-up ads.
Runner-Up: Yahoo's Geocities, also free, can help you post a customized site in less than 15 minutes. But the customization process is a bit clunkier than Homestead's, and you must deal with pop-up ads. Like Homestead, Geocities offers about 16MB of free space.
-- Anush Yegyazarian
Advice & Information
Strike Up the Band
DSL Reports
Despite its name, DSL Reports offers information about all types of broadband Net connections, including cable and satellite hookups. Drawing input from an active and opinionated community of users, the site guides you through the often grueling process of going high-speed.
On hand are tools to tell you what types of broadband connections are available in your area; ISP reviews; and reader forums with advice for solving post-installation glitches.
Runner-Up: For information specifically about high-speed cable connections, CableModemHelp has lots of tips on cable connections, but little info on individual providers.
-- Edward N. Albro
Pixel This
Megapixel.net
If your pictures are in pixels but they still look pitiful, check out Megapixel.net. This slick digital-imaging site offers tons of content, including articles that explain such concepts as focal length and such techniques as adjusting a picture's color balance.
The site posts four new digital camera reviews each month, with test images. You'll also find a glossary, reader forums, and free classifieds. The site doesn't assault you with blinking "Buy me now" buttons.
Runner-Up: Steve's DigiCams also offers a glossary, camera reviews, and discussion forums. But the site looks like it was designed in 1997--an odd way to lure those interested in state-of-the-art imaging.
-- Alan Stafford
Game Room
GameSpy
The Web is perfect terrain for the insular world of PC gaming--and the best gaming sites aren't for casual fans. GameSpy is our pick, though it tends toward super-detailed articles, inside jokes, and a bit of juvenile humor.
GameSpy also hosts a network of "planet" sites devoted to individual games ranging from Black & White to Unreal Tournament. Use the site's menu bar to browse other sites like Action Planet (for first-person shooter games) and File Planet (for patches, demos, and downloads).
Runner-Up: IGNPC has up-to-the-minute news, previews, and reviews.
-- Eric Dahl
Tech Time
Tom's Hardware
From motherboards to hard drives and all points between, Tom's Hardware pushes PC parts to their limits and beyond. The staff has helped uncover CPU and chip-set bugs and has been the first to overclock new processors. For in-depth tests of motherboards, graphics cards, or RAM types, start here.
Runner-Up: AnandTech publishes insightful reviews of new CPUs, motherboards, and video cards.
-- Eric Dahl
Software News
BetaNews
Along with our own PCWorld.com, BetaNews is one of the best sites for news and info about software, especially programs that are still in beta. The site scours the market (such as Microsoft Developer Network) for news on upcoming software and offers free downloads of beta programs for unofficial testing.
BetaNews also posts notes from companies searching for official beta testers. The download section includes programs for Windows, Linux, Macintosh, and Palm systems.
Runner-Up: Woody's Watch offers Microsoft-centric newsletters and utilities, plus Woody's Palm Watch. You'll never find more thorough and (sometimes brutally) honest coverage.
-- Emru Townsend
Tech Reference
Webopedia
Technology is an ever-changing field, so you need a good reference guide to follow the latest terminology. Internet.com's Webopedia takes the prize for ease of use, depth of coverage, and comprehensible language. The hard-to-stump search engine offers clear definitions, together with links to terms within a definition that might require further explanation.
Category searches (covering areas such as wireless computing, multimedia, and microprocessors) and a list of related terms and links help with broader searches.
Runner-Up: Though it lacks Webopedia's breadth, technology portal WhatIs.com lists categories and offers helpful article links.
-- Cameron Crouch
PC Rx
ExpertCity
Online technical support is getting harder to find, as sites offering free support disappear or abandon consumers for paying corporate customers. One site that still offers quick, efficient, reasonably priced help is ExpertCity.
The experts set their own fees (ranging from free to $20 per question in our testing) and offer sound advice. The site includes a handy chat tool for interactive help sessions--especially useful for step-by-step instructions. If the steps get too complicated, you can call your expert on the phone.
Runner-Up: Internet.com's cheery-looking VirtualDr maintains a number of tutorials and busy discussion boards.
-- Yardena Arar
Digital Teachers
PC Show and Tell
Don't know how to change a formula in an Excel pivot table? PC Show and Tell has streaming audiovisual tutorials covering thousands of tasks--everything from checking e-mail on AOL to enabling Java applets in FrontPage.
A slightly creepy digital voice reads instructions while animated screen shots guide you through drop-down menus and command fields. A year's subscription costs $30 and buys unlimited Web access. Or try the free 30-day trial membership.
Runner-Up: EHow provides answers for basic hardware questions, though the tutorials are unevenly detailed and the site lacks visuals.
-- Edward N. Albro
Web Designs 'R' Us
EarthwebDeveloper.com
Unless you have time on your hands, you should probably stay away from this site. The wealth of resources for Web developers at EarthwebDeveloper.com is overwhelming--ranging from the seemingly bottomless JavaScript library to the latest on CGI script security breaches.
But what makes this site as sticky as flypaper is its collection of tools and tips for using JavaScript, HTML, CGI, Perl, Java, DHTML, and Active Server Pages.
Runner-Up: WebReview.com is the online version of the respected Web design publication. It features style sheets, tools, and guides to design pages for specific browsers.
-- Dennis O'Reilly
Web Site Tips and Tools
Web Techniques
So you've posted a Web page, but now you've got no idea what to do with it? Web Techniques will help you manage your creation, with articles, programming tutorials, product reviews, and insightful discussions of Web trends and issues.
Runner-Up: The Software QA and Testing Resource Center's Web Tools section has an incredible selection of free testing tools--to measure performance, for example.
-- Dennis O'Reilly
E-Commerce
Gavel Down
EBay
EBay has long been synonymous with online auctions, despite competition from powerhouses like Yahoo and Amazon. Its 11 regional sites encourage international surfers to participate in an activity largely restricted in the past to U.S. residents. And unlike some of its competitors, EBay has the critical mass of users needed for a person-to-person marketplace to work.
Runner-Up: EWanted puts a new spin on auctions: Buyers can post requests for items in the same way that sellers post their goods.
-- Emru Townsend
Cell Phone Plans
GetConnected.com
Choosing a cellular phone and service provider is an arduous chore. Fortunately, GetConnected.com helps you navigate the morass of pricing plans, service options, and phones with charts and shopping aids.
Our favorite feature: Estimates of typical monthly bills for different plans based on the level of usage you forecast. The site also offers comparison-shopping sections for PDAs, satellite and cable TV services, and long-distance phone carriers.
Runner-Up: Point.com has a good set of tools for cell phone shopping as well as articles about wireless services.
-- Yardena Arar
Consumer Advice
ConsumerSearch
Reading product reviews can be tedious, especially when it involves trying to make sense of divergent opinions. ConsumerSearch simplifies this task. Pick any category, and you'll get detailed summaries of reviews from top magazines (including PC World) and Web sites as well as a ranking of a reviewer's reliability; a breakdown of product features; and links to other resources.
Runner-Up: Though not as thorough as ConsumerSearch, ReviewFinder casts a wider net for online reviews, and its editors sometimes write their own.
-- Emru Townsend
Buyer Beware
RatingWonders.com
You've found a great digital camera deal at an online store you've never heard of. Before you hand over your credit card number, get the lowdown on the vendor's legitimacy. RatingWonders.com can provide an overall rating of the site or a department-by-department analysis that assesses everything from product selection to spelling and grammar.
And if you decide to pass on the unknown supplier, RatingWonders.com can help you find another e-store based on the criteria you specify as most important. Customer comments and ratings provide insight into whether the store lives up to its promises.
Runner-Up: BizRate.com's comparison-shopping tool lets you strike a balance between product price and store ratings.
-- Emru Townsend
Build Your Own PC
NECX Direct
NECX Direct sells everything you need to build a PC from scratch, and the site is well designed. You can usually reach a compact product listing in two clicks. From there, you can compare products or access detailed specs. Shipping costs are calculated automatically for the items in your shopping cart.
Runner-Up: TC Computers is less extensive but offers excellent prices and unique features like the Configurator, which lets you order all the parts for a custom-built PC in one interface.
-- Eric Dahl
Best Bot
My Simon
Most of us don't have time to hop from site to site ferreting out the best deal, so MySimon does the job for us. It's easy to use, and it tracks a large number of merchants (who pay a fee to be listed).
The bot lets you reorganize listings--for example, by filtering out merchants that charge restocking fees. You can use customized menus to specify the product features you want. MySimon also includes merchant ratings by Gomez.
Runner-Up: PriceGrabber.com lets you punch in your zip code to receive approximate shipping and tax charges with your product listing. (PriceGrabber.com provides prices and specs for PCWorld.com's Product Finder feature.)
-- Aoife McEvoy
Downloads
Art to Go
ArtToday
The Web is bursting with free clip art. So why are we recommending a fee-based site? Quantity and usability. ArtToday has thousands of illustrations, photos, and Web animations.
Keyword searching simplifies finding the art you seek--be it a cartoon kangaroo or a portrait of Einstein. ArtToday is free for three days; after that, it's $30 a year (for access to some 870,000 items) or $100 (over 1.2 million items).
Runner-Up: Ansel Adams photos, New Yorker cartoons, and other classy content make Corbis the Rolls-Royce of art sites--but its per-item prices start at $3 for home use and $8 for businesses.
-- Harry McCracken
Downloads
Download.com
We're naturally biased toward our own download section, which has a large library of carefully selected files. But to keep things fair, we excluded ourselves and went for the site with the greatest breadth--Download.com at CNet. The site has files for Windows, Windows CE, DOS, Palm, Macintosh, Linux, and even BeOS.
Runner-Up: Softpile.com offers a clean layout and fast searches; however, the site's selection is small.
-- Emru Townsend
Palms Down
Tucows
With vast libraries of software downloads for virtually any PDA, Tucows is a winner. And an array of local mirror sites in almost every state and country significantly decreases download times.
Runner-Up: PalmGear.com hosts an extensive collection of Palm OS software, news, tips, and forums.
-- Michael S. Lasky
Music Downloads
ArtistDirect
Napster may get all the press, but nothing outclasses Artist Direct for atmosphere. The music site features band information, links to official and fan Web sites, discographies, and legal free downloads (from artists such as Black Crowes and Sophie B. Hawkins). This site is a treasure trove for new discoveries.
Runner-Up: With a straightforward home-page design reminiscent of Yahoo, MP3.com is another great place to find new and unsigned musical talent.
-- Emru Townsend
Software Tune-Ups
Tech Tracker
TechTracker is a collection of sites that monitor application and driver updates for Windows and Palm operating systems. The site's WindowsTracker.com lists 7000 applications and drivers, while PalmTracker.com catalogs close to 2000 apps.
Runners-Up: DriversHQ and WinDrivers.com list more drivers than TechTracker does, but no applications. WinDrivers.com, however, lists Linux drivers.
-- Alan Stafford
My Top Pick: EBay
You already know that EBay is a good all-around auction site. But I've found an unexpected use for it: tracking down hard-to-find parts for my outdated computer. The site has been a great resource for locating refurbished, used, and surplus parts for my beloved four-year-old 133-MHz laptop. Among my bargain finds: a spare trackball ($20), a new floppy drive ($25), and a new plastic casing for the battery to replace my cracked one ($30).
-- Melissa J. Perenson
My Top Pick: Zoetrope
As a fledgling fiction writer tapping out stories on my home PC, I stumbled onto director Francis Coppola's Zoetrope Studios, and found it to be the best online writer's workshop I've seen. Members have to read and rate others' stories before posting their own, and the feedback can be very valuable. There are sections for musicians, photographers, and directors, too. And with Coppola behind the site, you get the feeling you might be discovered any day.
-- Lisa Cekan
My Top Pick: Multimedia Library
Everyone's gotta have a hobby; mine is making QuickTime VR panoramas--360-degree digital images that you can spin with your mouse or magnify to view details. The Multimedia Library is one of the best places to see these movies. It posts a QTVR movie of the week and supplies links to QTVR sites (offering virtual tours of Paris's Louvre museum, downtown Seattle, and even Mars), including ones containing tutorials for creating panoramas.
-- Alan Stafford
My Top Pick: Kuro5hin
The New York Times is fine, but I want more from my information site. Throw the Times, The New Yorker, and the online magazine Salon.com into a blender; hit frappé; and you end up with Kuro5hin. The site is a free-for-all of news and opinion written by readers--you're as likely to find a humorous discussion about listing "Jedi" as your religion on government census forms as a serious essay on using PC viruses to efficiently distribute security info.
-- Andrew Brandt
