The Ten Wonders of the World Wide Web (Top Ten Websites)

Member Name: sandrabarber

Product:	Top Ten Websites
Date:	17/09/02 (234 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: entertaining, useful, amusing

Disadvantages: you'll not get any work done, you'll overspend

I don't know what I did before the internet. I use it LOADS, and I do so for a variety of reasons:

1. Shopping
2. Research
3. Entertainment
4. Learning
5. Communication
6. Earning
7. General information

On top of that, I am a professional web designer and need to be aware of what's going on. As a result, I visit hundreds of sites per week for no reason other than they're there and I want to see what they look like and what technology they are using.

In each of the above categories, there are sites I return to again and again, many on a daily (or even several times daily) basis.

So, in no particular order, here are my top 10 sites:


1. framleyexaminer.com

The Framley Examiner is an online spoof newspaper. I don't know who writes it, or why they write it (I can't see how they can make money out of it), but I do know that it is the funniest thing I have EVER read. I have to check back at least once a fortnight to see if there have been any updates.

The site contains everything you'd find in a normal local paper, like news, features, classifieds, adverts, and more.

Here's a snippet or two from the classifieds so that you get my meaning:

?300 TINS HEINZ SHIP SHAPES. No frigates, hence quick sale. £20 the lot.?

?HOLIDAY PHOTOS. 36 exposures. Would suit young couple with 2 blonde children who?ve been to Spain. £5?

"CHILD'S PAUL SIMON COSTUME. £30."

?SPORTS? WIGS. Thomson, Redgrave and Bristow. Hardly worn. £5 each or £12 the set?

If you haven't laughed at those, you won't like the site. I LOVE the site.


2. myvoice.co.uk

I like being asked my opinion, and I can muster up an opinion on just about anything under the sun if you give me a couple of minutes to think about it.

Giving my opinion is even better when I get something in return.

>Enter myvoice.co.uk, a site where you get rewarded with gift vouchers for taking their surveys.

Surveys can be on any subject, and they usually add a couple of new ones every week. Each survey is quick to take and will earn you 5, 10 or 25 points. You also get emails inviting you to participate in longer surveys for more points.

Once you've amassed 2000 points, you exchange them for a £20 gift voucher from a variety of stores.

Yes it does take a while to amass enough points for that voucher, but unlike many survey sites you are guaranteed of getting something here, and I can vouch that once you apply for a voucher it appears in a few short days.

Well worth taking a couple of minutes out of your day for.


3. sainsburystoyou.com

Going to the supermarket is a real drag if you have a full-time job and can only go at the busiest times or in the dead of night.

Online supermarket shopping is a real blessing for me, and Sainsbury's is my online store of choice to do it from.

Using the online supermarket is easy, especially after you've done it once as the site stores all your past purchases ? even your offline ones if you've used your clubcard ? and you can just go and click on all your usuals in no time.

You can get everything online that you can get in the store, and the staff always choose good quality, fresh ingredients on your behalf in my experience.

Of course Tesco do all this too, but Sainsbury's have the edge for me for two reasons: firstly, I find them to be better at timekeeping, and secondly, if you accept delivery between Monday and Thursday, it is free.


4. emysteryshopper.com

I like to shop, I like to earn, and I like to give my opinion. Being an online mystery shopper for this site enables me to do all three.

Mystery shopping on web sites involves assessing a web site on all manner of things: navigation, compan
y details, security, privacy, ordering, emailing, telephoning and much, much more. You may also be required to make purchases and apply for refunds.

emysteryshopper.com has high standards, and if you don't live up to them you won't get paid. It is not an easy ride, but it is a very enjoyable and rewarding one.

You won't get rich doing mystery shopping, but you will enjoy yourself and earn nice little chunks of money in the process. And you have the great satisfaction of knowing that what you say really will make a difference to how a company conducts itself in future.


5. amazon.co.uk

I think that amazon are hugely overpriced. I also think that their policy of showing prices EXCLUDING V.A.T. is sneaky and underhand ? relying as it does on the fact that people are as thick as me when it comes to calculating 17.5 per cent of something and adding it on in their head.

having said that, amazon is a wonderful site for research. If I'm interested in a book or CD, my first stop is always amazon.

In the book section you'll get an excellent synopsis of plot, along with a host of customer reviews that help you make your decision as to whether it is worth splashing out your hard earned cash or not.

In the CD section, you get the opportunity to listen to several tracks from each CD online.

Then once you've made your mind up, you can head off to somewhere considerably cheaper to make your actual purchase.

Oh yes, and if you can't find a book or CD anywhere, the chances are that amazon will have it or will be able to get it, in which case I don't mind paying their ridiculous prices for once.


6. theprizefinder.com

I don't consider myself a 'lucky' person (whatever that means), but I do live in hope of winning a prize some day. It must be wonderful to find yourself pulled out of the hat and in line for a car/cash/TV or even a C
D or book.

So every day I head off to theprizefinder.com to see what competitions are available online.

This site can be slow to load, which is a pain, but it is worth it. It lists literally hundreds of competitions every week, which are logically grouped into categories, and it is updated daily. Links to all competitions mentioned are available on the site so it's really no trouble at all to get your entry in.

For me this site stands head and shoulders above the mish-mash of utter confusion that is Loquax.


7. ciao.co.uk

I love writing. I like to share good news, and if I come across a product or service I consider to be a rip-off or waste of time, I want to tell people about it. And if I get paid for doing this in return, then wehey!

Ciao, in case you don't know, is a consumer site very much like dooyoo. So why aren't I promoting dooyoo then?

Well, I don't think dooyoo is nearly as good as ciao. I find it less friendly, much more difficult to navigate and, especially since the redesign, a rather ramshackle affair.

Sorry if that upsets some people, but I can't help liking ciao better.


8. ananova.com

I'm not a news junkie, but I do like to be kept informed of what's going on in the world. And if something big is happening, I want to be updated on progress as and when it happens.

Enter ananova.com, a superb news site that tells you what you want to know, when you want to know it, and doesn't bombard you with promos, polls, useless information and too many coloured boxes (like bbc.co.uk).

Ananova is what a news site should be: it has a clear white background that does not obscure the text, it has relevant, quality graphics, its pages are not clogged up with extraneous frippery, and it is packed full of news.


9. cd-wow.com

The cheapest site on the net for CDs, with most coming in at £8.99 incl
uding postage and packing, and the bargain basement ones even cheaper.

I've been shopping at this site for a couple of years now. When I first found it, it sold mostly just the top 100 CDs and had a very small back catalogue. That catalogue has been constantly expanding, however, and they now have quite a decent range of old material to choose from.

They have also started selling DVDs recently, but not using them I can't speak for their quality, range or price.

I do know that I've had loads of CDs from them and they have arrived in record time from all corners of the globe in quality, secure packaging. The one time I received a duff CD, my money was refunded without quibble.

Just one thing to look out for: all cd.wow CDs are foreign and may not necessarily be the same as the British versions. If you care about this (and I don't), then a quick cross-reference with a British site will soon put your mind at rest.


10. innovations.co.uk

Ever wanted to cut your own hair? Ever fancied a deckchair that rotates so you're always facing the sun without having to get up and manually move the chair yourself? Dreamed of a Swiss Army Knife that doubles as a microwave/shoelace/vibrator?

Well if you have, then this site is for you. It's packed full of the kind of ridiculous items that get sold in the back of the Sunday papers. 'At last, a chair with built-in incontinence pants and foot massager'! (Joking).

In amongst the hilarious gadgets and gizmos, however, you will also find some genuinely innovative and good stuff that really will make all those little jobs a lot easier.

A great site to visit when you fancy a laugh, or when you're shopping for your gran who really would be helped by a gadget that lets her retrieve dropped items from the backs of radiators.


That's it. That's what I do when I should be working and when I'm h
ome at night and there's nowt on telly.

Hope you enjoyed.

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