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8 Web sites that will change your life
The best of the Web focus on interactivity and customization to change the way you live your life online
by Matt Sevits | Pulse Editor
Digg.com
Finding random crap online has never been easier than at digg.com, a site that allows users to upload their favorite Web pages and either digg them to boost their popularity or bury them to make them less popular. Often, the most popular stories are the weirdest ones, though Digg is also known for breaking news and rumors.
Mint.com
Mint is a Web site that takes online banking to a whole new level. It takes all your bank accounts and credit cards and conveniently displays the balances in one place. Mint also makes financial responsibility easier by letting your know how much you spend each month on groceries and gas, etc., and Mint will e-mail you to let you know your bills are due. You can even set a budget and have Mint e-mail you if you overspend.
Instructables.com
Think of Instructables as the ultimate guide to life. The site consists entirely of how-to articles, from how to kiss and how to shave without getting razor bumps, to how to fix your broken Xbox 360 and how to make your own burlesque pasties. No matter how mundane or weird, if you want to know how to do it, Instructables can tell you.
Meebo.com
Do you hate having to open three different instant messaging programs to talk to all your friends? Worry no longer - Meebo lets you log on to all your IM accounts (AIM, Yahoo!, Google Talk, MSN, ICQ) in one easy-to-use Web-based interface. There's nothing to download, and now you can IM your friends when you get bored at work. Meebo also has various chat rooms for your online chatting experience. It's like middle school all over again.
Last.fm
Music buffs will love last.fm, which tracks what you listen to, gives you recommendations based on your tastes and compiles a personal top chart for you every week. With last.fm, music also is a social experience. You can add friends, compare your tastes and join user-created groups based on musical taste. Last.fm also just added the ability to stream full tracks and videos for free for many artists, making last.fm your one-stop music destination. And yes, there's a last.fm application for Facebook, so you can display your top artists or your favorite playlists for all your Facebook friends to see.
Alluc.org
There are numerous Web sites out there today that post links to TV shows and movies online, but Alluc.org is one of the best. Its lineup of full TV shows is impressive and surprisingly comprehensive, which means that fans of top shows like "America's Next Top Model" and "Weeds" never have to miss another episode. Alluc.org also has a great selection of links to movies and music videos. What are you waiting for? Go benefit from the piracy of others.
Predictify.com
Predictify allows you to predict the outcomes of real-life events (like the presidential election or the Oscars) and make money if you're right. Users can also ask questions of their own. Not all the questions earn you money, though. Premium questions, which require you to pay $1 for ever user who responds, pay out after they've ended, but most questions are free to ask, which means that you'll get bragging rights that you predicted Amy Winehouse would go to rehab, but not much else.
SonicLiving.com
Sonic Living is another Web site that changes the way you listen to music. It looks at the artists you listen to on iTunes, Pandora and last.fm and lets you track those artists so you know when their shows are coming to a venue near you. You can also create a calendar of all your favorite events and share it with your friends. You'll never miss another show.
msevits@dailyemerald.com
Finding random crap online has never been easier than at digg.com, a site that allows users to upload their favorite Web pages and either digg them to boost their popularity or bury them to make them less popular. Often, the most popular stories are the weirdest ones, though Digg is also known for breaking news and rumors.
Mint.com
Mint is a Web site that takes online banking to a whole new level. It takes all your bank accounts and credit cards and conveniently displays the balances in one place. Mint also makes financial responsibility easier by letting your know how much you spend each month on groceries and gas, etc., and Mint will e-mail you to let you know your bills are due. You can even set a budget and have Mint e-mail you if you overspend.
Instructables.com
Think of Instructables as the ultimate guide to life. The site consists entirely of how-to articles, from how to kiss and how to shave without getting razor bumps, to how to fix your broken Xbox 360 and how to make your own burlesque pasties. No matter how mundane or weird, if you want to know how to do it, Instructables can tell you.
Meebo.com
Do you hate having to open three different instant messaging programs to talk to all your friends? Worry no longer - Meebo lets you log on to all your IM accounts (AIM, Yahoo!, Google Talk, MSN, ICQ) in one easy-to-use Web-based interface. There's nothing to download, and now you can IM your friends when you get bored at work. Meebo also has various chat rooms for your online chatting experience. It's like middle school all over again.
Last.fm
Music buffs will love last.fm, which tracks what you listen to, gives you recommendations based on your tastes and compiles a personal top chart for you every week. With last.fm, music also is a social experience. You can add friends, compare your tastes and join user-created groups based on musical taste. Last.fm also just added the ability to stream full tracks and videos for free for many artists, making last.fm your one-stop music destination. And yes, there's a last.fm application for Facebook, so you can display your top artists or your favorite playlists for all your Facebook friends to see.
Alluc.org
There are numerous Web sites out there today that post links to TV shows and movies online, but Alluc.org is one of the best. Its lineup of full TV shows is impressive and surprisingly comprehensive, which means that fans of top shows like "America's Next Top Model" and "Weeds" never have to miss another episode. Alluc.org also has a great selection of links to movies and music videos. What are you waiting for? Go benefit from the piracy of others.
Predictify.com
Predictify allows you to predict the outcomes of real-life events (like the presidential election or the Oscars) and make money if you're right. Users can also ask questions of their own. Not all the questions earn you money, though. Premium questions, which require you to pay $1 for ever user who responds, pay out after they've ended, but most questions are free to ask, which means that you'll get bragging rights that you predicted Amy Winehouse would go to rehab, but not much else.
SonicLiving.com
Sonic Living is another Web site that changes the way you listen to music. It looks at the artists you listen to on iTunes, Pandora and last.fm and lets you track those artists so you know when their shows are coming to a venue near you. You can also create a calendar of all your favorite events and share it with your friends. You'll never miss another show.
msevits@dailyemerald.com
Viewing Comments 1 - 3 of 4
Tara
posted 2/21/08 @ 2:18 PM PST
I'm very curious to know how secure the mint.com website actually is. Putting my bank account information into anything seems kind of skeptical.
Security.
posted 2/21/08 @ 5:48 PM PST
Tara is correct to be concerned about security. While mint.com probably is reasonably secure, having all of your financial information accessible through a single portal is a huge risk, somewhat akin to having the locks on your safe, your house, your car, your bike lock, and your safe deposit box all fitted for a single key. (Continued…)
Gene
posted 3/06/08 @ 6:03 PM PST
Predictify.com could use a quality assurance team. They are not totally accurate with results. It is becoming a very weak forum. I have my doubts that it will last. (Continued…)
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