The title of this page is one of the most inaccurate statements in the world. This is because my view of the World Wide Web might not be your view of the World Wide Web. Nevertheless, there's a selected number of websites that have really impressed me with their overall feel, functionality and usefulness, the uniqueness of design and the quality of the contents.
The websites are divided by their categories, as I see them. All of the categories and websites links can be found on this page. For easier navigation, use the category links to jump between them.
I will try to keep in pace with my tight daily schedule and add one new website every few weeks. You will have a sampling of several websites to start with, though. If you have websites that you feel like might be worthy of inclusion, don't hesitate to Contact me.
Enjoy!
Armor Games new!
Armor Games is all about Flash. And games ... Flash games. Armor Games contains a wealth of Flash games that you can play inside any browser on any operating system, making it extremely appealing to non-Windows users, people who frequently travel and cannot lug along a case full of game installation discs or computer users with weak machines who cannot afford high-end graphics for classic, full-blown titles. Armor Games will also appeal to less avid gamers and hobbyist looking for simple entertainment.
What makes Armor Games special is the quantity and quality of content offered. You will have a choice of hundreds of games to play, across a range of genres. Most are done with style and care, with attention to details, including reasonable visual appeal and good sound effects. Armor Games has its own community of developers, making it more than just a hosting site.
I have discussed Armor Games in my sixth Linux gaming article, where I presented some of the many fine titles you can play, including the highly popular and addictive Crush The Castle, the War of the Worlds style, melancholic Arrow of Time, and the multiplayer Armor Wars.
I would like to thank Searching_ _ _ for exposing me to Armor Games!
If you're a Linux user and like to game, there's no better place to start looking for games that run in Linux than Ubuntu Gamers Arena. The name is slightly misleading, as you may wrongly assume the games listed on this site are for Ubuntu only. In fact, most games will run without any problems in any distro - and quite a few are cross-platform, too. This makes this site a lucrative source for Windows users looking for free games, as well.
The site contains a wealth of information, neatly arranged into categories. Every game entry includes a brief description, a number of screenshots, a link to the game site, and some additional notes regarding system requirements and installation.
The site lists approx. 500 games, offering you enough choice to keep you occupied for a long time.
NationStates is a web-based nation-building simulation game. You begin playing by building a nation. The nation template asks a number of questions, upon which the principles of your fledgling state are based. You are allowed to choose the type of government you want, going from Liberal to Psychotic. You can also select the flag for your country, the national animal and the motto. After these, you are asked a few character questions, which will define the spirit of your country. And then, you begin to play.
The "play" consist of daily challenges, brought before your parliament. As the ruler, you need to decide what stance your government will take. The questions may be benign or even silly, asking for more rights for penguin vegetarians, but they can also concern serious matters of war, foreign policy, censorship, and much more. The way you handle these questions will reflect on all aspects of society of your country.
You can also apply for membership in the United Nations, ally with other countries and participate in the game forum. While NationStates is not the typical game, it is unique and interesting and will sweep you, even though you may spend only a few minutes pondering your daily issues.
Raiden's Realm new!
Raiden's Realm is a community tech site dedicated to Linux, BSD and open source software. The website is geared toward all users, from beginners to pros. Among the featured material, you will find distro reviews, news articles and software recommendations, contributed by a number of authors. The site also has a forum, where you can share ideas with fellow members. Last but not the least, the site owner, Steve Lake is a self-proclaimed prose writer, just like me! On Raiden's Realm, you will also find a wealth of short sci-fi stories and novel teasers, which gives you yet another reason beyond strictly technical and geeky stuff to stop by and visit.
For open-minded people who like to take it easy and still learn something new, Raiden's Realm is an excellent choice.
DistroWatch is the de-facto UNIX/Linux portal. The website maintains a long comprehensive database on hundreds of UNIX-based operating systems, mainly Linux distributions, but also BSD, Solaris, and others. Each operating system is listed on a separate page, with links to the official site and forums, downloads, reviews by third parties, screenshots, documentation, and more. Additionally, a brief summary and a list of packages is given for each title. It is a tremendously valuable site, with tons of excellent information on just about anything to do with non-Microsoft systems.
DistroWatch also features a highly popular weekly news bulletin, bringing news on distro releases, development in software and the open-source world, and other interesting items. You can also buy software on DistroWatch, in case you do not have available Internet resources for big downloads. Furthermore, the DistroWatch Page Hit Ranking list is considered one of the most accurate popularity meters for UNIX/Linux distributions.
If you like the world of open-source, Linux, BSD, and related, DistroWatch is the best source to start looking for help, information, and well-written, impartial reviews. The website is available in 20+ languages.
This may sound like a boring choice, but think about it. Many people spend hours of their life typing all kinds of documents. Quite often, many of us, even native English speakers, will reach for a dictionary to see if their choice of wording and phrasing is appropriate - or perhaps look up an alternative meaning for a word, to make their sentence sound posh - or even check if they made some horrible spelling mistake somewhere.
Dictionary.com is an excellent source of all this information, delivered in a simple and precise fashion. The site is effective and non-obtrusive. Furthermore, this online dictionary also offers a Thesaurus and encyclopedia entries, which makes it a very useful interactive tool for both improving your documents and learning new things ... in English.
Who said the Communism has lost? It's alive and kicking. But not in its original incarnation, though. Communism has been made true by the Open Source Community. SourceForge is the web's greatest development and download repository of open-source software. This is one place where money and greed are not the champions; rather, cooperation, transparency of information and just cause are.
SourceForge offers a huge choice of excellent, FREE software in virtually every field of computing. If you ever have a need for a certain application, your wisest choice would be to check out SourceForge first before heading off elsewhere and bleeding off your hard-earned money. Sometimes, quite often actually, small and out-of-spotlight little programs that you can find on SourceForge will prove worthier than the big, mainstream stereotype-ware we have been brainwashed to use. Great projects like a variety of Linux distributions, Mozilla, Open Office, and many others are the offspring of the Open Source Community.
tuxmachines.org is an excellent place to get your news about the open-source world. The site features rich content, submitted both by its staff and people all over the world, resulting in a mixed bag of blog entries, how-tos, detailed tutorials, news entries, and other bits and pieces of information. Most importantly, tuxmachines grants you a virtually unlimited access to the hearts, minds and technical skills of thousands of people across the world. It is definitely only of the more well-balanced and efficient intellectual repositories I have come across. Do not be fooled by the simple design; each link hides a world of goodies.
For anyone looking for a pleasant, well-founded, high-quality trip into the world of computing, tuxmachines.org is the place.
W3Schools is one of the most comprehensive and user-friendly sources for learning web design. The site is well structures by topics, including HTML, XML, Browser scripting, Server scripting, Multimedia, and others. All of the categories are sorted in chapters, accompanied with rich tutorials, beginning with basic concepts and simple example, slowing evolving and becoming more complex, allowing novices and veterans alike to find the required material. I must confess that I have acquired a fair deal of my web design knowledge from the W3Schools.
Unlike many online tutorials trying to teach you web design, W3Schools aim at doing it right. Proper use of code and compliance with international standards is no less important than good layout and quality design. You will be surprised at the sheer number of sites that do NOT conform with W3C standards.
Whether you merely wish to refresh your knowledge or start from the scratch, W3Schools is probably the best place to start building websites.
Monty Python is probably the main reason why British are the greatest nation on Earth. They have created the finest piece of comedy EVER - Monty Python. When the humble team of six smart British guys aired their first sketch of Flying Circus in 1969, the history was made. Monty Python became the pillarstone by which modern comedy was made and judged.
The Python guys also made a number of films, including Life of Brian and the Meaning of Life and also individually participated in dozens of other films, series and sketches, including legendary titles like Fawlty Towers (see below) and A Fish Called Wanda.
The heroic deeds of Monty Python across four decades of work are documented on the official site called Pythonline, maintained by Eric Idle. Pythonline has it all - most importantly links to most popular and highest rated Monty Python sketches like the Ministry of Silly Walks, Argument Clinic, Galaxy Song, the Parrot Sketch, and others, all of which you can also be downloaded from Youtube. Furthermore, there's lots of music, a crazy forum, and more superb stuff. If you consider yourself a member of human race, ergo ipso facto you like Monty Python, therefore you should visit Pythonline.
John Cleese, one of the fantastic six of the Monty Python cast created new definitions for obnoxious and misanthrope when we created the character of Basil Fawlty, the owner of the Fawlty Towers hotel. The sheer snobbish stubbornness with which Basil gets into trouble every minute of every episode makes for some of the finest moments in human behavior ever screened. Three decades later, Fawlty Tower is undoubtedly one of the funniest British comedies, alongside 'Allo 'Allo, Only Fools and Horses, and Black Adder.
Fawlty Towers website pays tribute to this great show. The site details the history of how Fawlty Towers began , apparently based on a true story, details the episodes and casts, has an A-Z Fawlty guide, quizzes, trivia, and other interesting stuff. Like other websites dedicated to predominantly dark British humor featured on this page, Fawlty Towers is about self-indulgence, nostalgia and quite a bit of fun.
We must thank Charles Darwin for two things: one, his contribution to science; two, the above website, which probably would never have come into being without Charles Darwin. Well, what is it all about? Well, it's about Evolution, of course! Only, it takes a rather unorthodox approach to basic natural advancement of the most advanced species, homo sapiens.
Darwin Awards is dedicated to all those people unique enough to remove themselves from the evolutionary cycle by taking revolutionary actions. In other words, it is dedicated to people whose stupidity is only surpassed by their somewhat sad if humorous demise. If you still have no idea what I'm talking about, Darwin Awards documents deaths. However, not just any deaths. It chronicles the most bizarre, unbelievable and improbable deaths, so stupid that they actually border on genius. We are talking about people juggling live hand grenades, people falling off rooftops while engaged in intercourse (the so-called Luftwaffen Grotesque), people bringing the roof down while still inside the building, and other most merry occurrences.
So, if you're in for a treat that so politically incorrectly reminds us of our finality, you should step a few moments reading Darwin Awards. After that, you will realize that evolution also includes a by-product, the so-called regression, in which case the present exemplars only lived (or rather, died) to prove Darwin's theory even truer.
Cafe Rene is the first place you should go to if you have any questions or doubts regarding 'Allo 'Allo!
'Allo 'Allo! is one of the great classic British comedies, which, like most others, came to life following the Monty Python revolution in the early 70s. Alongside Fawlty Towers, Only Fools and Horses, Black Adder, Yes Minister, and many others, 'Allo! 'Allo! dominated the humor scene of the 80s and still remains one of the wittiest and funniest pieces ever made. It tells the story of a cowardly French café owner, René Artois, who leads a very brave life. He cheats on his wife with both of his waitresses, promising both to marry them after the war - but he stays with his wife Edith because she owns the café. To make things even more complicated, René is fancied by the German lieutenant Gruber. He collaborates with the Germans, in trying to steal ancient paintings while simultaneously helping the French resistance rescue downed British pilots. And this is only the tip of the iceberg.
'Allo 'Allo! tells the war story in a very different light from what one might expect. The Germans are more interested in drinking and getting rich than actually fighting. The de Gaulle resistance hate the Communists more than the Germans. And the British are charmingly dumb. Don't forget the sex innuendo on almost every occasion.
The sit-com ran 9 series, with 82 episodes, plus numerous Christmas specials. Everything you might want to know about 'Allo 'Allo! can be read on Cafe Rene. It might not be the prettiest or the most up-to-date site, but it is definitely fun and well-written.
This is truly one of the finer websites ever made, definitely not because of its crappy design but because of its excellent, masterpiece contents. The site is all about the personal, egocentric, egomaniacal, narcissistic super-obsession of one guy's love with himself, Mark Maddox. However, every single work on his website is written with utter brilliance. It's raw, funny and extremely cunning. It's no small wonder it's one of the more popular websites out there. Be warned though, it's not for the feeble-hearted, overly-cultivated, extra-refined, weak, or enlightened souls.
Maddox thinks he's a pirate, although I cannot image what Utah has to do with pirates, unless they have found a way to sail a boat across the Salt Lake. He's recently written a book, called The Alphabet of Manliness, which has instantly become popular and ranks very high in book sales. So there you go, Maddox, you got a free spitshine from me, even though you never answered my emails. Sniff.
EDIT: He did answer me, so I humbly retract my last sentence. You're the man.
Undoubtedly, this is one of the funniest British comedies of all times. It's about Del Boy and Rodney Trotter brothers, played by David Jason and Nicholas Lyndhurst, a pair of small-time, small-money crooks / peddlers living with their grandfather, and later, their uncle in a council flat in Peckham. The sit-com revolves about their fishy business endeavors as they try to get rich from one episode to another, usually inspired by Del's crazy ideas, but never quite succeeding.
The first series met with mediocre enthusiasm from the audience; nevertheless Only Fools and Horses quickly became one of the most influential TV show on British television, resulting in seven series and numerous Christmas features and becoming a social and cultural icon. The reason for this is that it had elements of everyday life that just about anyone could relate to. Apart from phenomenal, typically dark British humor, Only Fools and Horses mixes emotions and situations so well that it's become a timeless, priceless piece of art.
If you even remotely like British comedy, Only Fools and Horses is a must.
CastleCops is more than just a collection of forum rooms. It is an in-depth security central offering a variety of computer related services to a broad range of users, in several languages. However, I would like to focus on the forums. The forum offers a wealth of information so extensive that new users might find the navigation a bit daunting. CastleCops hosts a number of forums specially dedicated to specific products, like WinPatrol, Proximitron, Returnil and others, but it also deals in general subjects. Most of the topics are focused on the Windows operating system, but Linux users also have a place to share their ideas. Another upside of the CastleCops forums is the malware cleanup section, where unfortunate (Windows) users can ask for help, as well as the malware reporting and prevention forum. It's a good place to learn about computers and security.
EDIT: Sadly, CastleCops has closed a few months ago. This great site is no longer available.
Wilders Security Forums is probably one of the more versatile security forums on the net. It is rather quite balanced. On one hand, it offers quite a lot of useful information in a number of forum rooms; on the other, it does that without overwhelming and confusing clutter. The forum is clean, intuitive and easily navigable. Some of the sub-forum rooms on the site are official support forums for a number of leading computer security products, like Acronis, Eset, ewido, and more. Other rooms are dedicated to general security topics like firewalls, anti-virus software, privacy issues, and other. Wilders Security Forums has a great staff and a vibrant community that will offer help and advice to any newcomer. For a typical computer user - most of us really - it is probably the best overall security-conscious informative and support site on the web.
If you're into science, quasi-science, demi-science, and pure nonsense that goes beyond the ordinary and have a taste for conspiracy theories, you may like anomalies-unlimited.com. The site offers insight into the world of crazy, scary and weird stuff taking place behind the curtains of the world. While authenticity of some of the content is a bit dubious, it makes for a fun reading nevertheless. You don't have to be into paranormal and alien abductions to enjoy the website.
The site seems to be no longer actively updated, but it has quite a bit of material to get you started into the occult. Or just plain enjoy the fact that some people really need an excuse to wear a tinfoil hat. Oh, it's not pure science per se, either, but it more or less broadly fits the category.
Exit Mundi: A Collection of End-of-World Scenarios
Exit Mundi is a very interesting site. The site is all about all possible ways to destroy Planet Earth. Sounds sinister, but it's actually written in a light, funny style that makes the threat of a Gamma Ray Bursts apocalypse and similar calamities sound rather melancholic. The scenarios are divided into groups, like space threats, technological threats, religion-related events etc. Each catastrophe is described with a good proportion of science, facts and humor and is accompanied with lots of nice images. If you like aliens, robots, huge explosions, doomsday thingies, and whatnot, you can surely enjoy yourself reading this website. The material on the site is written by Maarten Keulemans, a science and technology journalist from Holland (Netherlands).
One of the reasons we have websites and read all manner of stuff on the Internet is our curiosity. Just like energy and entropy are opposed, so are the laziness and curiosity, the two prevalent characteristics of the human nature. Without curiosity, we would still probably be living in caves. But as it is, we have CFC-free air conditioning, vaccination, online petitions, and lots of sites telling us how things work. One of the best such sites is definitely HowStuffWorks. There's very little you won't find on this remarkable site, dissected into tiny details, with simple explanations and lots of images. It's a great start on almost any subject, technical or humane.
MathWorld is a very extensive online source of mathematics. It was made by Wolfram Research, the creators of Mathematica scientific program. The site contains lectures, citations from books, thousands of terms and examples, 3D applets for interactive geometry, and more. The layout is simple, clean and intuitive.
This site might not appeal to someone who think of mathematics as forced labor, but it can be of great use for people with scientific background or inclinations.
The Tech Model Railroad Club of MIT new!
If you think Building a Balancing Scooter is a feat of geeks, then you should probably take an inhalation before you read this one. The Tech Model Railroad Club (TMRC) is a 60-year-old club dedicated to railroad funs and hackers, who together help create, maintain and improve the largest mini-scale railroad network in the world.
You all remember the three-box plastic model running on batteries that you all had in your childhood? Well, think about something a thousand times bigger. TMRC is all about running a realistic railroad network, with thousands of feet of tracks, hundreds of rail models, dozens of buildings, bridges and staging yards, all built to scale and in great detail and governed by a super-station computer programmed by the TMRC geeks.
If nothing, the website is worth visiting for hundreds of spectacular photos of the TMRC network. I also warmly recommend you spend time reading everything. The Wikipedia article will also give you more info on what to expect from TMRC.
Best of all, you can visit TMRC and drive your own train around, be it diesel, steam or electric. Talk about boys with toys. TMRC is a must. It's an incredible accomplishment of history, dedication, cooperation, friendship, fun, and great skills.
Building a Balancing Scooter new!
I was thinking about adding this site to the Science section, but I thought it fits here better. Building a Balancing Scooter is a very simple, very unique site. It teaches you how to build a self-balancing scooter, i.e. a Segway like thingie, in about two weeks, using off-the-shelf parts, some C coding and less money that you would spend on buying the real thing.
Trevor Blackwell, the ultra-geek behind the contraption, demonstrates in fairly simple terms his work on the Scooter and its upgraded version 2. His Scooter Mark II is faster and lighter than Segway, by the way. Must see for anyone with even 1 part-per-million geekiness in their blood.
The Deep Sky Frontier (does not seem to work recently; will keep you updated)
Warning: this page will work properly ONLY in Mozilla Firefox or similar Gecko-based browsers.
This page has no special purpose, except one thing - it's absolutely huge. How huge, you ask. Well, I don't want to spoil you the experience of trying it for yourself, but if you used the arrow keys to scroll, it would take you 500,000 years from one end of the web page to another. Yes, I'm not joking. 500,000 friggin' years! The page is HUGE!
If for some reason, you have trouble getting started, here's the link to the site's How BIG is this page?. If you click on the scroll bars and move around, you will never be able to find that How BIG is this page again. I'll give you a little hint, the link to get back to the start position can be found in the right bottom corner of this webpage.
Explore it and enjoy!
