- Erols Internet - My current provider. They started out in the DC area, and now they cover a good portion of the northeast US. They're decent and inexpensive.
- Nyx Home Page - One of very few public systems that still offer free Internet access.
- THE LIST - Look here to find an Internet provider local to you.
- Bell Atlantic Infospeed DSL - Bell's new ADSL service works on existing phone lines. Their slowest service is 10x as fast as a 56K modem! Talk to me if you're interested in signing up, I can save you some money.
- Lynx home page - For everyone with slow or text-only Web connections. Nowadays, "slow" is probably anything slower than a 28.8K modem... but how long will that last?
- Netscape Navigator - My browser of choice.
- Internet Explorer is decent too.
- Yahoo! and Lycos - My favorite Web search tools, generally in that order.
- My Yahoo! and My Netscape are two good "portal" sites that serve as good, customizable starting points for surfing.
The
DC Registry is a handy place for
DC-area people to tell everyone about their pages.
GeoCities - One of several
public systems that offers free personal Web space.
- Primer on writing HTML documents - All you need is something to say and a place to put it.
- Why the Web Sucks - Maybe it's a little too easy to publish on the Web?
- Top Ten Ways To Tell If You Have A Sucky Home Page - A slightly more lighthearted look at the same topic.
- EmuMail is a great way to check your E-mail from a web connection, particularly if your connection is slow.
- ICQ (I Seek You) is an awesome little service (currently free and in beta and not so little any more) that allows subscribers to locate each other online, notify on login, and initiate chats & file transfers.
- NetMeeting is a cool "chat" program that includes text, a "whiteboard," audio, video, and sharing applications.
- Pegasus Mail - A really good, free E-mail program.
The Real World
Here's a somewhat random collection of Web sites that I find particularly interesting or useful for life outside the Web.
- Generally useful, whoever and wherever you are
- AT&T Toll-Free Phone Directory - "white pages" and "yellow pages" formats.
- CityNet - Links to countries,
regions, and cities around the world.
Washington has a few nice web sites, such as the DC Pages and Yahoo! DC. - Dining Out on the Web - Has a nice geographic listing.
- eBay - Online Auction site. This one is my favorite so far. They seem to have the biggest selection and a cool trust/feedback "honor system" for minimizing scams and disputes.
- Internet Travel Network - All sorts of travel info, and you can even make reservations.
- Maps! - Interactive, multi-scale, fast, and flexible.
- MapBlast has the most accurate and detailed data that I've seen.
- MapQuest apparently covers most of the world. And it's the most flexible service I've found.
- Maps On Us has the best integration with Yellow Pages and personalization that I've seen.
- Planet Earth Home Page.
- PointCast Network - an amazing little screen saver (and then some!) that constantly gives you updated news, weather, sports, stock quotes, etc.
- SureTrade - My favorite online discount brokerage, although I haven't tried many. Very cheap and decent terms overall.
- White Pages - Find anyone, anywhere.
- Four11 - search for E-mail or postal addresses, phone numbers, and even internet phone connections.
- Switchboard - search for people and businesses across the United States.
- Yahoo! Finance - Free stock/fund quotes and other investment information. There are a ton of online investment sites now, but this is my favorite.
- Zip-Code Lookup - gives you a 9-digit Zip-Code for any address.
- More specific to me and my interests
- Alpha Kappa Alumni Council.
- Canadian Government - AMS was flying me back & forth to Ottawa for over a year.
- Computer Graphics index.
- I Need My Chocolate - Yes, I'm a chocoholic!
- JavaSoft's Home Page - Java is slowly replacing PowerBuilder as my group's preferred development environment/language.
- Los Alamos National Laboratory - another frequent AMS destination. LANL is an intriguing place. Not only did they develop the first atomic bomb, they also own one of the world's fastest supercomputers. And the scenery in New Mexico is amazingly beautiful.
- NASA's Home Page.
- PIONEERS - I was involved with their Carnival booths in 1991-1993.
- Presidential Savings Bank - A great place to keep your money if you're in the DC area. You can even apply for an account online. The only drawback is the limited number of branches and ATMs. (I have better ways of getting cash though.)
- Sybase's Home Page - We use their PowerBuilder development tool extensively at work.
Museums and Galleries on the Web
It isn't the same as visiting in person, but it's still impressive.- Lists of Museums
- Guide to Museums and Cultural Resources on the Web - Sponsored by the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County.
- Virtual Library of Museums
- My Favorites
- The American Museum of Natural History, New York NY - Probably my all-time favorite.
- The Chuck Jones Showroom - One of the best places to go for animation art.
- Dale Terbush - Also try a Yahoo! search on his name to see some really amazing landscape art.
- The Franklin Institute, Philadelphia PA.
- The Smithsonian Institution, Washington DC - Particularly Air & Space, American History, and Natural History.
- The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, Washington DC - Depressing, but very worthwhile.
Slightly Less Serious
- Calvin and Hobbes!
- The Dilbert Zone - I'm glad someone sees the humor in corporate life.
- The Late Show with David Letterman.
- LEGO Information
- Muppets! - Here are a couple of my favorites:
- The Oval With Points Fan Club, of which I would be a card-carrying member, if there were a card for me to carry.
- The Reduced Shakespeare Company - some of the funniest shows I've ever seen!
- Strawberry Pop-Tart Blow-Torches - Cutting-edge research. Really.
- The Tick
- Gavin Suntop's: TICK HOMEPAGE!
- Halt Naughty Spawn! - Focuses on the comic book.
- The Tick Page