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List of the Month

Each month we highlight an Internet, USENET Special Interest Group (SIG), or similar mailing list(s) or Website(s).

TipWorld's "Cool Web Site of the Day"

If you visit the TipWorld homepage, http://www.topica.com/tipworld/, you will find a long list of daily and weekly newsletters that you can subscribe to, at no cost, and will be sent to you via E-mail. One of these is the "Cool Web Site of the Day." The sites they choose won't always be of interest to you, of course, but they do manage to uncover some really good sources of information and/or entertainment. Below are some recent examples of sites and the explanations that accompany them. If you like these, visit the TipWorld site and subscribe the the newsletter. It is listed under the "Internet" heading. You can also choose to subscribe to other newsletters at the same time, if you like.

  • INTERACTIVE STAR CHART - 04/12/2001 by Jim Welp

http://www.mystarslive.com/

When you look up into the night sky, do you see a bunch of blinking lights and wonder what they are? Well, wonder no more. The Interactive Star Chart at MyStarsLive.com is a fantastic resource for amateur astronomers and just plain ol' stargazers. When you visit the site, all you have to do is choose your location, time, and view, and MyStarsLive will generate a star map of the skies above your home. The chart identifies stars, planets, constellations, and galaxies and even warns you about upcoming events like eclipses, asteroids, and meteor showers. Don't wish upon a falling star without it!

  • THE ARCHIVE OF MISHEARD LYRICS - 04/11/2001 by Jim Welp
http://www.kissthisguy.com
 
What do you get when you cross a generation of drug-addled musicians slurring their convoluted lyrics at mind-numbing decibels to a generation of drug-addled fans striving to understand the meaning? The Archive of Misheard Lyrics, that's what. They're all here, from "There's a Bathroom on the Right," to "Excuse Me While I Kiss This Guy," to "I Fight With Dorothy and Dorothy Always Wins." If you don't find this site a hilarious trip down memory lane, well, you probably blew out your memory in addition to your hearing.
  • THE OFFICIAL US TIME CLOCK - 04/09/2001 by Jim Welp

http://www.time.gov/

I believe it was Tom Robbins who said, "Time was only invented to keep everything from happening at once." Or something like that. Whatever the quote, you have to agree time is a pretty helpful feature. And if you're going to pay attention to the time, you might as well be accurate. At The Official US Time Clock Web site, you'll find a giant Java-animated clock with the current time as agreed upon by the United States Department of Commerce, the National Institute of Standards and Technology, and the US Naval Observatory. For you skeptics out there who reckon that if three gummint agencies come up with the time, it's probably half past 33 o'clock, listen to this modest claim: "The time maintained ... should never differ by more than 0.0000001 seconds from
Coordinated Universal Time." So if you have a friend who's routinely late by more than 0.0000001 seconds, forward him or her this note and there will be NO more excuses!

  • INTERNET ANAGRAM SERVER - 04/06/2001 by Jim Welp
http://www.wordsmith.org/anagram/index.html
 
Obese cow lit. Bite close ow! Bet cool we is. Web coot isle. What in blazes am I going on about? Sadly, those are all anagrams for "Cool Web Site." And did I figure that out by wasting countless hours rearranging the letters in this newsletter's name? No I did not. I found that out by wasting countless hours at the Internet Anagram Server. This site is a hoot for word fans. Just type in a word or string of words and the server spits out perfect anagrams. Once you're done rearranging the letters in the names of your loved ones, be sure to check out the "Hall of Fame," where you'll learn that Elvis = Lives, Evangelist = Evil's Agent, and Clothespins = So Let's Pinch.
  • CALENDAR ZONE - 03/29/2001
http://www.calendarzone.com/
 
Quick, what day is today? Cheater--you peeked at your computer display for the answer. Anyone who has ever gone on a prolonged vacation can vouch for how difficult it is to keep track of the days without constant graphic reminders. Calendar Zone will make sure you always have the right calendar to match your interests, lifestyle, or mood.
 
How about a bioregional calendar for the New Ager in you? There are historical, millennial, cultural, and even military calendars to spice up the ways you track time. There are calendar quotes and poetry and even a recipe for calzone--just don't ask me why.