Can you imagine a blog without a year-end list? Mine is my favorite website discoveries. They’ve served me well through a year of loss and change. They seem like the kind of sites that will be around for a while. Best of all, they’re all free.
I’ve divided the list into three categories covering major types of content you’ll find on the web: Useful, Cool and Just in Case. I’m leaving out Useless.
What are your favorite websites this year? Share them with me and other readers by adding a comment.
USEFUL
- Memorista Learn and practice a foreign language. Choose French, Italian, Spanish, Polish and German. (via makeuseof)
- Sparkpeople Resolve to act on those perennial resolutions to exercise more and eat less (via Demogirl)
- Wine Library TV Laugh and learn wine with Gary Vaynerchuk. You may wonder if you’re watching a Saturday Night Live skit, but no, it just looks and sounds that way. Gary is for real.
- Jobspice Input your resume information and choose a design. The templates have colors and fonts to make your resume look polished and professional. (via Demogir)
- Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube and Flickr. Knock social media if you like, but my online friends and connections have made it a better year for me on several levels.
COOL
- Google Earth, Google Docs, Google Voice, iGoogle, Google Reader, Google Wave, Google Calendar, Google Trends, Google Alerts, Google Blog Search, and Google Zeitgeist 2009 are all Google applications I used for the first time this year. They’re all good.
- Animoto Upload photos and music, or use their stock options, to create professional-looking music videos that you can email to friends and family as greeting cards.
- Kibotzer Nudges you towards your goals. Kibotzer, as in kibitzer + bot, helps you track your progress. This site would be useful, except there’s a waiting list, so for now it’s merely cool.
JUST IN CASE
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Read about H1N1 and contagious diseases
- USA.gov Search this directory to contact any government agency
- Microsoft Password Check here for tips about creating secure passwords if your FB account gets hacked.
- PDF to Word Convert online pdf files to Word so you can edit and save changes
- Still Tasty Provides the shelf life for foods in your cupboard and fridge (via PCMag)
Curious to know what’s on other bloggers’ lists this year? There’s sure to be many more in the next two weeks.
- 10 Crucial Consumer Trends for 2010
- Liz Strauss’ Gratitude Gift Guide
- 12 Days 12 Ways to Help the Homeless
- Peter Travers’ Top 10 Movies of the Decade
- Poetry Friday: A Christmas List
- Penn-Olson: Top 10 TV Ads
Thanks so much for including Kibotzer (nudging you towards your goals) on this list! Kibotzer evolved into Beeminder (nobody got the kibitz + bot pun) and is now open to the public.
My first visit to Beth El was when they were building on Touhy, and alternating their Friday night services between the Palmer Square building and a rented hall on Devon, somewhere between Western and California. But I think there were two buildings before Palmer Square.
You can still see the Hebrew inscription on what is now St. Basil’s Greek Orthodox Church, on Ashland south of the Eisenhower — and some of the pews in the balcony still have the little brass plaques with the names of the women who sat there. (Men of course were downstairs.)
In addition to Robb Packer’s book, you might want to follow your interest by contacting the Chicago Jewish Historical Society.