The New Web Challengers
Scott Spanbauer and Steve Bass
Watch out, Internet Explorer and Google: A pack of powerful browsers and search engines are gunning for you. We rate 45 tools--and crown a new champion browser.Scott Spanbauer and Steve Bass are contributing editors and Dennis O'Reilly is a senior associate editor for PC World.
Illustration by Glenn Mitsui
In This Article
The Bottom Line: Eight Options for Browsing
Illustration by Glenn Mitsui
We tested IE and four of its strongest competitors--the initial Firefox release, Mozilla 1.7.3, Netscape 7.2, and Opera 7.54--for features, ease of use, and Web site compatibility, to see which makes the best alternative to Internet Explorer. And for an alternative to the alternatives, we looked at three programs that extend IE, adding features and enhancing security. All of these tools are priced just right at zero dollars each (for personal use, and in Opera's case if you don't mind ads). Our Best Bet is the Mozilla Foundation's upstart, open-source Firefox for its fast, simple, and secure approach to the Web.
Mozilla Foundation Firefox
4.5MB 
The Mozilla Foundation's new Firefox browser is speedier, trimmer, less cluttered, and more modular than the separated-at-birth Mozilla and Netscape browsers. It's cleaner than Opera's free browser (ad-free Opera costs $39)--and safer than IE.
Firefox maintains its slimness without forfeiting key features that are available in competing browsers. In addition to offering tabbed browsing (see FIGURE 1
Figure 1: Keep tabs on many sites at once via Firefox's tabs.
), the newcomer blocks pop-ups, types log-in names and passwords for you, and lets you wipe out your personal browsing history, cookies, and cache to keep snooping roommates, bosses, and kids out of your private business. It stays lean by spinning off anything that isn't a core browsing feature into one of tons of optional add-ons that you can get through the Firefox Web site, or into a stand-alone Mozilla Foundation program.
Like the other browsers we tested, Firefox couldn't automate the log-in process at absolutely every Web site we visited. But although Firefox couldn't log us in to the Bank of America credit card site (one that also stymied Internet Explorer, Mozilla, Netscape, and Opera), it managed just fine at the bank's mortgage site. (Opera was the only other browser able to log onto the mortgage site.)
Firefox, though, was the only browser we tested to make an outright page-rendering error, causing several elements on the Slashdot.org Web site to overlap each other. And like every other alternative browser, Firefox simply won't work with such IE-only sites as Microsoft's Windows Update and the MSNBC TV site. But since uninstalling Internet Explorer is either impossible or more trouble than it's worth, depending on who you ask, that isn't the end of the world. You can have your Firefox and your Internet Explorer too.
Opera 7.54
3.6MB 
Opera is the only one of the Windows Web browsers that isn't free: You either pay $39 or use the ad-supported edition, which places a banner ad at the top of the browser window. The ad doesn't get in the way of browsing, but many of the ads are animated with flashing or blinking text. Otherwise, Opera is stable, fast, and feature-rich, offering tabbed browsing, password management, form filling, pop-up blocking, an RSS news feed reader, and integrated e-mail and newsgroups.
Finding and enabling Opera's settings isn't always easy; pop-up blocking is listed under Skin/Windows in Opera's Preferences dialog box, for example. Fortunately the browser stashes its most important settings--including pop-up controls--in a handy Quick Preferences menu off the Tools menu (see FIGURE 2
Figure 2: Pop-up blocking and other common controls are just two clicks away when you use the Opera browser.
).
In our testing, Opera managed to log us in automatically at several financial Web sites where the other browsers could not. However, Opera displayed a serious flaw on two Web sites where it failed to recognize ordinary-looking links that employed JavaScript. You may want to keep another browser close at hand in case you run into similar problems during your Opera browsing.
Mozilla Foundation Mozilla 1.7.3
12.1MB 
Mozilla started as a rewrite of a rewrite of Netscape's venerable Communicator Suite, and it is certainly more capable and less buggy than its predecessors. But somewhere along the way, too many cooks spoiled the browser. Mozilla's innumerable options, features, and modules may satisfy inveterate tweakers, or people who simply can't live without fine-grained control over their browser's AutoComplete behavior. However, if you are looking for a fast, straightforward, secure alternative to Internet Explorer, choose Firefox instead.
Mozilla is equal to most key Web tasks, including log-in and password management, form filling, pop-up blocking, and cookie crushing. And while the program's e-mail and Web authoring programs are hardly awe-inspiring, they do the job.
Though Mozilla couldn't find the log-in and password fields at the Bank of America sites we tested, it fared well at almost every other site we tried (none of the browsers could automate log-ins on the main pages at Fidelity.com or Gmail at Google.com. And while Mozilla can't impersonate IE at sites that require Microsoft's browser, fewer and fewer such sites exist.
Microsoft Internet Explorer
Now bogged down in the nearly interminable task of updating Windows, Microsoft has let its seasoned soldier languish behind the lines, where it is presumably out behind the ammo dump, shooting off expired rounds at beer cans. While IE has enjoyed its ubiquity, competitors have added key features like pop-up blocking (now part of IE via Windows XP Service Pack 2) and the ability to open, view, and bookmark multiple Web sites in a single browser window.
More important, the steady increase in Internet-based viruses, worms, browser hijackings, and other attacks has made browser security a daily crisis for millions. Though Microsoft has steadily bricked up the gaping security holes in Internet Explorer (notably via XP's SP2), the company refuses to abandon its browser's inherently exploitable ActiveX technology. As Windows users come to realize that the pop-ups, unwanted toolbars, and spyware bogging down their systems are slipping in through ActiveX's permeable security, they are switching to alternative browsers in significant numbers, something they haven't done since IE made browsing free nearly ten years ago.
So why stick with IE? Since nine out of ten people browsing use it, Web developers create sites to work well in IE, and some (including Microsoft's own Windows Update site) work only with that browser. Also, some big sites--and many company intranets--are designed using proprietary IE extensions, so they may not function properly in another browser.
Still, while size is important, it's not everything. Just ask Goliath.
Netscape Communications Netscape 7.2
24.2MB (with Sun Java 2)
If Mozilla is the home-grown, salt-of-the-earth browser of the people, Netscape is its city cousin, crafted with one primary objective: to steer you toward other Netscape or America Online products and services. Netscape is based on the same basic code as the Mozilla browser but adds elements that serve parent company America Online, including AOL Instant Messenger (in place of Mozilla's AIM-compatible Chatzilla) and the Weather Channel's Desktop Weather utility. The Netscape toolbar offers links to Netscape online services and some browser settings, and the pop-up blocker comes preconfigured for your inconvenience to allow a list of more than a dozen Netscape and AOL sites to slip through.
Once you disable or remove its unwanted features and settings promoting AOL, Netscape is nearly identical to the Mozilla suite, including both browsers' Mail & News and Composer modules. They also performed identically in our testing of surfing compatibility. All of the bundled froufrou, however, makes Netscape's download twice as big as Mozilla's, topping 24MB. Unless you're excited about receiving all of the Netscape/AOL special offers, you're probably better off choosing any one of the other browsers reviewed here.
Internet Explorer Shells
These three programs turn Internet Explorer into the browser that it could be if Microsoft were interested in updating its venerable product. By repackaging and augmenting IE's own features with tabbed multiple windows and other innovations that are already de rigueur in other browsers, they can make standing by your old faithful program easier.
Avant Force Avant Browser 10
1.1MB
Avant browser and Maxthon are virtually clones, with a few minor differences that could make one or the other more appealing to you. As with other browsers, be ready to reconfigure Avant's interface to reflect your version of Web reality. For some reason, Avant's window tabs show up at the bottom of the screen by default; things felt right once we dragged the tab bar to the top of the window. We also dragged and dropped other interface elements to their rightful places. For example, the browser's handy row of buttons for navigating among tabs and managing them appears in the top-right corner of the screen by default, but this row cries out to be nearer the main navigation buttons at the top left.
In addition to blocking ads, pop-ups, and ActiveX controls, Avant lets you erase your browsing history and other tracks, and bookmark groups of tabbed windows. It also serves as an RSS reader, complete with dozens of feeds (see FIGURE 4
Figure 4: The Avant browser IE shell lets you import RSS feeds in various categories from a drop-down menu.
). Not surprisingly, Avant Browser's log-in automation and site compatibility closely mirror those of IE.
Mysoft Technology Maxthon 1.1
1.8MB
Maxthon transforms the Ubiquitous One (IE) into a tabbed browser bristling with toolbars and utilities. Like Avant Browser, this IE shell blocks ads, pop-ups, and ActiveX controls, and its privacy tool makes it easy to erase your Internet cache, cookies, and browsing and search history. Maxthon gives you lots of control over whether and how new Web pages open in new tabs; and, like Firefox and Mozilla, the program lets you bookmark sets of tabbed Web pages so that you can open them all at once. You can also close open sites by domain or by screen position--all those to the right or to the left of your current position. Even if you turn off many of its bells and whistles, these core features make Maxthon useful for anyone who continues to rely on Internet Explorer for their browsing.
Like Avant Browser, Maxthon had a few compatibility issues with some of our test Web sites. However, if all you want is to fill a few of Internet Explorer's feature gaps, Maxthon could be just what you need.
Stilesoft NetCaptor Personal Edition 7.5.3
1MB
If the interfaces of the Avant Browser and Maxthon IE replacements are a bit too busy for you, NetCaptor may be more your style. The program looks a lot like plain-vanilla Internet Explorer, tacking on only a few unimpressive interface flourishes and toolbars. But NetCaptor does add two indispensable features: tabbed browsing and the ability to bookmark groups of tabbed pages. You can even e-mail these groups to other NetCaptor users. The program defaults to lining up Web page tabs at the bottom of the screen, just as Avant Browser does; switching the tabs back to the top of the browser's window requires a trip to its configuration settings, as well as a program restart. The smallest enhancement to IE of the three shells we reviewed, NetCaptor's two-trick fix may keep the alternative-averse from switching to Firefox.
New Names Shake Up Web Searching
Illustration by Glenn Mitsui
Keep It Local
Yahoo Local: Say you need a neighborhood PC repair shop or a dry cleaner. Yahoo Local lets you search within a mile of your home--or up to 50 miles away. You can save your location preferences and use a drop-down menu to repeat a recent search around town, or in a city you visit often. Broaden the search area with a few clicks, or sort the results by name or distance from an address, city, or zip code. You can view the search results on a map that highlights their location and provides even more information (see FIGURE 5
Figure 5: When searching locally, you can see your results on a map at the Yahoo Local site.
).
Chowhound: Whenever I travel, I worry that I'll walk into the worst restaurant in town. I'm not even sure I trust my own local newspaper reviews. That's why I rely on Chowhound, where the area locals undoubtedly have the last word. Whether you're looking for the best barbecue in Birmingham or top-notch sushi in Seattle, Chowhound's experts clue you in to the best of the local dives--and the eateries you should avoid.
Craigslist: If you're ready to get really local, try Craigslist, which offers regional listings for over 50 cities in the United States as well as many in the United Kingdom, Australia, and Canada. Each month you can find about 3 million new classified ads--featuring 75,000 job postings, plus personals, services, and items for sale--and more than 50 discussion forums.
Gasbuddy: In the era of $2.50-per-gallon prices, remember to visit Gasbuddy, which lists the lowest gas prices state by state--and province by province in case you're heading north.
Tools for Business
Investing Online Resource Center: Online investing is as tempting as visiting one of the Internet's many gambling sites, and yet lots safer. Or maybe not. If you're thinking of trying your hand at the stock market or otherwise tinkering with your savings, check out the nonprofit Investing Online Resource Center. You'll find plenty of valuable advice and information, such as when your buy and sell orders are really placed. The site's Flash-based Investing Simulator Center is a real eye-opener, letting you preview just how badly a poor financial choice could hurt (see FIGURE 6
Figure 6: Give your investment strategy a test drive at the Investing Online Resource Center.
).
Keyhole: Just a few minutes on Keyhole, and I felt like I was riding on a flying carpet, zooming in from space to anywhere in the world--down to as close as 15 meters or less in some swoops. Pop your street address into the text box at the bottom of the screen to get a bird's-eye view of your home. Sure, the service will set you back $30 (lowered from $80 when Google acquired Keyhole last November), but its 3D satellite views of streets in most major cities--not to mention the far reaches of the globe--are ideal if you're a real estate pro, a salesperson, or even just a hiker who wants to plot your next trek in the Himalayas. Browse here for the service's seven-day trial.
Clipping Services: I want to hear about anyone mentioning my book, PC Annoyances, so I set Google Alerts to check both Google's News and the Web automatically each day and then give me a report. But Google isn't the only free clipping service on the Web, and some Google Alerts competitors are just as cool. For example, RSICopyright's Clip&Copy service (free with registration) allows complex searches, such as "steve and bass not guitar". I can also limit my searches to any combination of roughly 200 periodicals, such as Adweek and AP Custom News. And if I want to know when a specific word or phrase was spoken on TV, TVEyes will send me an e-mail alert for free.
Consumer Demand Index: Shopping.com's Consumer Demand Index ranks the top 20 shopping searches, the top gainers of the week, and the most popular products in various categories. One click gives you details on over 100 product groups.
AskNow: What's the average life expectancy of a California black oak tree? Which section of the federal penal code deals with online spam? For answers to these and other obscurities, browse over to AskNow, a live, interactive service that's sponsored by reference librarians throughout California. Enter your question (along with your name and city), and click Connect to open a chat session with one of the volunteer librarians. You don't have to be a resident of the state, but you'll need to provide a California city and zip code (try Beverly Hills, 90210). Just be prepared to wait: Linking up with one of the librarians can take several minutes.
Shopping, Internet Style
Snap: Most Web search engines analyze a site's content and links to determine its relevance to whatever term you're trying to find information about. Snap is different because it bases its results on other variables, such as the percentage of users who did something on the site--for example, purchased an item or subscribed to a newsletter. What makes Snap truly useful is its sorting: I entered "sony camcorder" and found the best spot for more info about the camera, as well as where other searchers went most often for product ratings (see FIGURE 8
Figure 8: The Snap search engine delivers your search results in sortable tables.
). The service was in beta when I looked at it, so the number of users was small, as were the statistics and site ratings, but it still got me to the information I needed. At the top of Snap's screen is a box listing keywords related to your search term--for example, "ring tones" if you searched on cell phones. Or enter a popular term such as "digital camera," and you'll see a product comparison chart loaded with detailed specs above the standard search results. You can even sort the table by category, or add and remove categories.
Cairo: Even if you prefer shopping at brick-and-mortar stores, you'll benefit by using Cairo to check out the local sales before you hop in the car. This comparison-shopping site zeroes in on local deals by zip code. Browse by products on sale, by retailer, or by brand; or if you're shopping for something specific, Cairo will send you an e-mail the moment it goes on sale.
LiveDeal: If you have something big to sell, such as a washing machine or a pool table, EBay may not be your best bet, considering the shipping hassles. LiveDeal is designed for buying and selling locally. Listings are free, provided that you don't want to highlight your listing, use the site's Buy Now feature, or add some other extra. A word of warning: The site is so slow you'll think you're back on dial-up. Oh, you're still on dial-up? Forget I said anything.
Internet bargains: I found two great Web sites for grab-'em-when-they're-hot Internet deals: Ben's Bargain Center and DealCatcher. I like their no-nonsense, get-right-to-business attitude. The deals on both sites are truly super. I once picked up 50 CD-R discs for just the $2 shipping fee. And to make my bargain hunting even easier, I take advantage of the RSS feeds these sites offer.
A World of Travel Info
Kayak: I've always admired a good travel agent's ability to find the bargains. With Kayak I feel like I'm my own travel agent. I ask for flights from Los Angeles to New York, and Kayak finds 117 that fit the bill. Too many, so I click Price & Time on the results page and use the sliders to make price, arrival, and departure adjustments (see FIGURE 9
Figure 9: Kayak's slider controls let you filter your travel search results by price and departure/return.
). The listings change in real time. If I forget to include a nearby airport as a departure alternative, just one click adds it, and one more tap on the Stops field sorts the flights to put the nonstops on the top. (Kayak can also find deals on hotels, and car rentals will be offered later this year.)
SideStep: Whenever you're looking for a second opinion, check out SideStep, which offers immediate, side-by-side price comparisons for flights, hotels, and auto rentals. Click here to download SideStep's toolbar. It automatically opens a pane on the left side of Internet Explorer when you visit Expedia, Kayak, Orbitz, or any other travel site. Move to another site, and SideStep steps up with new pricing. Bargains are hit-and-miss: Against Kayak, the SideStep toolbar fared less well in flight prices, but it did better at finding low hotel rates. SideStep's rates compared favorably with those Travelocity served up, finding a cheaper JetBlue flight, and it blew away Orbitz with a $113 flight savings. These results are from a few random searches--your mileage may vary.
TripAdvisor: When I first landed on TripAdvisor, what really jumped out at me was the site's placement on its "worst" list of a hotel my wife and I had planned to book, causing us to look for an alternative. Also handy are the user reviews in the site's TripAdvisor Forums, which can save you from repeating someone else's mistake. For an instant comparison of rates (for, say, a hotel mentioned on the forum) at Expedia, Hotels.com, Orbitz, and Travelocity, click the QuickCheck button to see the information from each site in turn.
WiFiFreeSpot: You're crisscrossing the country on a business trip, and you just have to get online. There are scads of free Wi-Fi access points that will let you make the connection. WiFiFreeSpot lists free Wi-Fi hotspots in airports, hotels, resorts, RV parks, campgrounds, and vacation rentals. The site covers North and South America, Europe, and Asia. You can also look for hotspots by type of location or by region.
Dodgeball.com: If you're on the road and looking to hook up with some friends, use Dodgeball.com and your mobile phone to broadcast your whereabouts to your buddies. Send a text message to the site stating your location, and in no time all the pals on your Dodgeball.com network will get the message (you can also send them a photo, if your phone has a built-in camera). They'll find out what you're up to--and where they can join you. And if a friend of one of your friends is within ten blocks, they'll get a message as well (a feature you can turn off, thankfully). Dodgeball.com is available in Boston, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, Seattle, and 16 other cities.
Late News, Fresh Info
Amazon A9: You can browse for days and see nothing but the same old Web sites, but then stumble on a site like A9 and remember how much fun the Web can be. A column of buttons lets you refine your standard Web search results to include the contents of books, or information related to movies, references, or images (see FIGURE 10
Figure 10: Broaden your Web search to include the contents of books, as well as movies, images, and other non-Web references, at Amazon's new A9.com search site.
). Each set of results displays in its own panel. If you install the A9 Toolbar, you can scribble quick notes about your search results. (This feature requires an Amazon account to store your history, bookmarks, and diary entries.) Hover the mouse pointer over a listing's Site Info button to view valuable "People who visit this page also visit:" references. When the screen becomes too cluttered (and I promise, it will), grab the edge of a panel and resize it; A9 will remember your window preferences and reopen in that layout
All the News: Spyware plagues nearly everyone surfing the Web. I use Topix.net to feed me the dirt on the latest spyware trying to infiltrate my PC. Aside from technology, the site covers 11 other primary news categories, including gadgets, health, and local news based on your zip code. Visit Topix.net for your daily dose of spyware news, subscribe to the site's daily or weekly e-mail alerts, or sign up for its RSS feed.
Secunia: Next to spyware, Windows' security weaknesses are the biggest threat to PC users--and they seem to pop up far too regularly. I use Secunia to search for details on specific security flaws in Firefox, Internet Explorer, or Windows. The site tracks security holes affecting 4000 other products, including programs from Cisco, HP, and Novell. Sign up for the site's weekly e-mail missive, or subscribe to its RSS feed.
OldVersion: Have you ever suffered from Upgrader's Remorse? The disorder occurs when you regret a software update because the new version creates a conflict. You'll find the cure at OldVersion, which houses about 500 old releases of over 50 products, both freebies and commercial programs. On the flip side are people who want to know immediately about the most current version of practically any program. If you belong in this group, visit VersionTracker to make sure that your system is up-to-date with all the latest Windows, Palm, and Mac software.
Daily Rotation: So you say you're a technology news junkie? Me too, and that's why I swing by the Daily Rotation page each morning. The site serves up headlines from almost 200 news feeds, such as BetaNews, Microsoft Watch, and Neowin News. To keep from being overwhelmed, I configure Daily Rotation to show headlines from only about ten key sources.
Google Scholar: If you ever need to dig up details on a doctoral dissertation or find a specialized research paper hidden in the academic universe, try Google Scholar (currently in beta). You won't have to wade through endless, irrelevant results, plus you'll get valuable cross-references and citation rankings--essential tools for academicians. By the way, the first thing many people do on this site is to conduct an ego search (and no, my thesis wasn't listed).
Clusty: The new Clusty metasearch engine from Vivisimo blasts your request to other sites based on what it knows about the strengths of individual search engines. For instance, Clusty entered a search for "Pasadena Doo Dah Parade" on GigaBlast, Lycos, MSN, and other sites, while a search for "migraine" added Overture, Wikipedia, and Wisenut to the mix. Click any of Clusty's five tabs (News, Images, Shopping, Encyclopedia, and Gossip) to bring up related topics, or add tabs for blogs and Slashdot.
Universal IM: Inside Instant Messaging
For most messages, e-mail's just dandy. But for those quick, respond-to-me-now back and forths, such as whenever I have to tell my editor I'm going to miss another deadline or I want to ask my wife out to dinner, nothing beats instant messaging.
A slew of free universal IM clients are available for the picking. All work with the major chat services--AOL Instant Messenger, ICQ, MSN Messenger, and Yahoo Messenger--which currently freeze out each other (with the exception of AIM and ICQ). At the top of the list is the one I use: Trillian, from Cerulean Studios). Trillian isn't new, but the version you'll be able to download by the time you read this allows messaging and file sharing over local networks without using a server. It also permits you to have both video chat and CD-quality voice chat with people using any of the IM clients listed above. Another hot new universal chat tool is Qnext; click here to get your copy. And if you're an IM fanatic (as I am), log on to BigBlueBall or Instant Messaging Planet for the latest news on everything IM.
Steve BassBrowser Wars II: Firefox's Grassroots Cure for Internet Insecurity
Photograph by Eric Millette
Microsoft appeared to put a resounding end to the browser wars back in the late 1990s by integrating the free Internet Explorer with Windows. No browser has put a dent in IE's dominance since then, but the tide may be turning. And the browser king's Achilles' heel could be its close ties to Windows.
The nonprofit Mozilla Foundation, which hopes to address IE's inherent security flaws, oversees the development of the Mozilla browser. The group was founded in 2003 with financial support from AOL's Netscape division, but it relies on contributions of work and money from corporations and individuals. The group's project produced a faster, smaller browser: Firefox.
Mozilla Foundation chief technologist Brendan Eich says IE's security problems run deep down to its Windows roots. IE is "the target of choice, and it's overintegrated with Windows," says Eich, who wrote the JavaScript scripting language for the original Netscape browser in the mid-1990s. For example, by default IE allows sites on your "trusted" list to start downloads automatically, but spoofing (altering) this list is relatively easy. "There are so many holes in IE that giving it the power to do automatic downloads is a bad idea," Eich says.
Firefox benefits from the Mozilla Foundation's hundreds of volunteer programmers, testers, and contributors, who poke around the browser's program code to uncover and publicize flaws and possible breaches. The foundation even offers a bounty of $500 per bug, and it promises to have patches ready in one or two days in most cases, according to Eich. Compare that with the weekly or monthly IE security updates Microsoft posts on the Windows Update site.
But their contributions go far beyond security. "There are so many users and use cases, you don't want to leave anyone out," according to Eich. "You want to have this thriving developer community," Eich says, "to let their creativity go wild."
Dennis O'Reilly and Scott SpanbauerNews to You: RSS Made Simpler
Signing up for RSS feeds can be a hassle. The easiest way to start is with the beta reader built into Yahoo's home page. If you already have a Yahoo account, click here and click the Add it button. (Sign up for a Yahoo account here.) Next, click the Add Content link (usually near the top left), and type, say, PC World into the Find Content field. Click one of the Add buttons, and then Finished. When the page refreshes, you'll see your new RSS module. If you encounter any problems, check Yahoo's RSS FAQ). Be sure to start with a manageable number of feed sites and items per site.
An alternative to Yahoo for RSS feeds is the Desktop Sidebar, a fun, free tool that's not only an RSS reader but also a super desktop utility. The program features a media player, an image manager, a calendar, an appointment reminder, a quick note-taker, and several other handy applets. Like Windows' own taskbar, the Desktop Sidebar hides when it's not in use.
If you're wondering where to find RSS feeds, Feedster.com (you just have to love the name) is the spot to look (see FIGURE 3
Figure 3: Feedster makes it easy to sign up for RSS news feeds.
). Start here to home in on political, TV, or blog feeds. If you still can't find what you're looking for, click the Feedfinder link near the top of the page to search nearly 1 million RSS feeds.Steve Bass
Have Your Say: Join the Blog Generation
The problem with Web sites is that they're fairly static. Weblogs liven things up by allowing people to post via e-mail any little thought that comes to their mind, nearly instantly. And now that the camera-phone craze has created the photoblog offshoot, you can not only read about the daily trivialities of thousands of people you've never met, but see them too.
Blog guides such as Blogwise (see FIGURE 7
Figure 7: Blogwise has the blog for you.
) employ teams of volunteer editors who review and categorize dozens or even hundreds of blogs to winnow out the chaff. Photoblogs.org is a good place to start on your tour of image blogs, as well as to plunge into posting your own pictures.
If you're looking for a Web soapbox of your own, Google's free Blogger service is perhaps the easiest way to join the blog herd. But when blogging really starts to take over your life, you may need the industrial-strength services of Six Apart's TypePad service (which starts at $5 per month.
Scott SpanbauerCollective IQ: Wikis Bring the World Together
No one likes a know-it-all. But occasionally, you learn things in life that ring true. If you were to put all of those random and not-so-random bits and pieces of priceless knowledge and wisdom together in one place, you'd have a knowledge resource of tremendous value.
That's the goal of a wiki--an open online encyclopedia of sorts that remains continuously under development by anyone who cares to contribute. One of the largest and most fascinating is Wikipedia.org (see FIGURE 11
Figure 11: Leave a little bit of knowledge behind when you visit the Wikipedia online encyclopedia.
), which, not surprisingly, contains the most detailed history of and guide to wikis anywhere. For a list of nearly every wiki on the Web, check out WorldWideWiki's SwitchWiki site.
If you have a yen to work on your own wiki, you can practice editing one at Meatball's SandBox site, and once you're ready to leave the sandbox, you can go out and tell the world what you really think.
Scott Spanbauer