Welcome to the 50th Post Spectacular! But that's not all. It's your host's 23rd Birthday. In honor of this momentous occasion, I would like to take the time to bring attention to my favorite websites. It's the best of the best if you will. Midnight Rec: A Few Of My Favorite Sites Let's start at the very beginning. Pajiba - Their tagline "Scathing Reviews for Bitchy People" is accurate. Even with the greatest of films and media content they review and address, they aren't afraid to point out the flaws and do it with wit and intelligence. The site layout has been changing as the community expanded and the new subject areas are much appreciated. You visit for the reviews. You stay for the community. Craftster - What happen when a bunch of crafty people, not satisfied with simply sticking to existing how-to's, go out and form their own web community? Craftster happens. There are people doing things you never imagined possible with ordinary and extraordinary craft supplies. Every scale, every purpose, every style is mined and discussed for the advancement of craftwork. Penny Arcade - And now something for the nerds. This web comic provides over the top commentary on the state of the gaming industry shown through the twisted eyes of characters Gabe and Tycho. The comic has the potential to appeal to all fans of games because, though the style is consistent, the approach to humor can be as crude or sophisticated as the subject requires. Project Gutenberg - When a site says "free" anything, I'm skeptical. Many seem to push the boundaries of intellectual property rights law. Not Project Gutenberg. They provide free access to public domain works transcribed by users. It's a wonderful resource for looking into some of the classics of literature for research or leisure without spending a fortune for works that are out of print or continually reprinted just to turn a profit. Viddler - I'm not going to lie here. I think YouTube, while undeniably the most expansive, is the worst of the online video sites. The layout is confusing and the compression settings can make watchable videos (available on other sites for this reason) come across poorly. Plus the technology really hasn't advanced. Enter Viddler. Viddler is what YouTube should have been from the start. You can create working links sequenced to specific parts of a video. You can opt to have a small logo appear on all of your videos linking to another website. Facts can come up without having to manipulate the video footage to put them in. And user comments can be set to specific time-points in the video, coming up while the video is playing. Whether you opt for a personal or commercial (oh yes, its ppc/ad sharing) account, Viddler is the way to go for great looking personal videos. Please to enjoy five of my favorite sites.
Labels: Midnight Rec