Constant Comedy

Constant Comedy

British site www.constantcomedy.com does exactly what it says in the URL - streaming comedy videos by both professionals and amateurs in a kind of never ending talent contest.

No need to sign up to view, but if you do, you get to vote off videos you do not like and if enough people agree with you the performer gets the axe and the next funny man or woman takes centre screen.

You can choose the videos you think you will like by category on the left-hand side or just browse through them in the video section.

Again - signing up means you can upload your own funny video for people to watch and vote on.

If you like your laughs stand-up style this is the site for you - and while there are some absolutely tragic performances - it is not hard to find some truly funny people

Moving Messages.

Its faster and more fun than typing an email. Video messaging is an efficient way of communicating over the web and there are lots of sites that allow you to do this very easily. Check out these sites and you will very soon be sending video messages as long as you have a webcam.

www.oovoo.com

www.flixn.com

www.springdoo.com

Fixing a PC boot problem

www.bootdisk.com is a great resource for people that want to get ever so slightly technical with their PC.

It has features and guides on tuning up your PC and links to other sites with even more information.

But this place is a must if you need to boot up your PC from a floppy disk, say if you have had a disk crash or wanted to format a hard disk or simply not boot via Windows.

You download any of the files from the site and you run the file and it writes a floppy disk that you can boot your PC from.

And if you are into developing that skill there are sections on creating boot CDs and even showing you how to boot up using a USB stick.

The site is aimed at techies so take a friend if you are scared by naked bits and bytes

Live Maps

http://.maps.live.com

Now, Google Street View is definitely a glimpse into the future of what we can expect from mapping apps a few years down the line - but as you might expect, Google's nemesis Microsoft have a few tricks of their own up their sleeve.

Microsoft's live maps uses aerial images shot from an angle and from nearer the earth's surface to supplement its core satellite maps. So, whereas a satellite map gives you a rather flat view, the other aerial images add real dimension to the image, and shows off incredible detail in images.

And if you are prepared to download a dedicated application rather than simply browsing, you get treated to the piece de resistance - the 3D view. Once installed, you will find buildings in some locations faithfully modelled in three dimensions to provide a truly breathtaking experience.

In this sense I think it trumps Google Earth's attempt at the same 3D modelling features. Having said that, as a truly useful application for finding locations like restaurants, hotels and the like, Google Earth wins hands-down

Unknown Files

One of the problems with finding out what to do with a file is finding out what software made the file. The trick to finding out is the three letters at the end of the file name called the file extension - like .exe or .doc. But what if it is .msg or .zip?
Well, you need www.fileinfo.net , it is a massive list of file extensions along with the name of software that can read it.
So if you are confronted with, say a .uue file extension, you go to the .uue entry and find out not only what kind of file it is but what software you need to make it work.
The site also lists files by their role - so for example if you have trouble telling your .ini file from your .idx file - this is the place to go.

Google Maps

http://maps.google.com

Over the past couple of years, Google Earth has made headlines by giving us a stunning birds-eye view of our planet from satellite images. But getting down to human-eye level has not really been catered for.

One issue is its notworth trying this site if you have a slow connection because the photos will take an age to update. Nevertheless, if you have got a blistering connection, you have simply got to check this out, even if you have got no practical use for it.

Cute PDF

www.cutepdf.com is a site that the writer lets you turn your usual documents into more secure and reliable PDF documents really easily.

Once you have installed the programme, the option to save or print any web page or document as a PDF just appears in your printer list.

That is it really. There are no adverts foisted on you, no weird watermarks splurged across the pages.

And it is free because they hope that you like it so much you will eventually pay for their advanced version. But - of course - you do not have to

Midomi

Midomi lets you search for music with your voice. Plug in a microphone, sing a bit, and this site will search in its database and hopefully, name that tune. Visit www.midomi.com

I tested out the system with a Carpenters song and amazingly, Midomi got it right first time.

Instead of matching my rendition of "Close to you" with Karen Carpenter's version, it was matched with recordings by other Midomi users, who all seemed to go flat in the same places as me! I had no idea that bad singers were that predictable.

You can also build an online profile, hook up with fans of the same kinds of music, and rate or comment on each other's songs.

Like all social networks, Midomi works on the strength of its users. So the more people sing into it, the more we will all get out of it and - believe me - this site is has only just begun