| DLL-files.com | What do you do when a program fails to launch, complaining that a particular DLL file is missing? DLL-files.com makes more than 400 common DLL files available for free download. If replacing the missing file doesn't fix the problem, try the site's paid live tech support. |
| DNS Stuff | This is one handy page, with tons of practical tools for Web wizards. Look up Whois data for any domain in several ways, check a mail server to see if it's on spam blacklists, test an e-mail address for problems, and more. |
| The Elder Geek on Windows XP |
Jim Foley, the Elder Geek, runs this site for power users and network administrators looking to get the most out of Windows XP. The site includes tips and solutions for newbies and geeks alike. The extensive forum lets you talk to Jim and other informed users. |
| Error messages | Error messages call attention to problems on your computer, but they rarely provide anything resembling a solution. Some don't even indicate which program has run into trouble. This page lists the exact wording of over 300 common error messages, along with links to help correct the errors. |
| Find Open Source Support | As innovative and exciting as the open-source world may be, not every business user is a Linux or programming guru. This site can find you just such a tech wizard, using a powerful search that focuses on everything from application and platform to price range. |
| Mail2Web | Without even making you register, Mail2Web lets you check almost any e-mail account from virtually anywhere. Enter your address and password and voilà, there's your mail. If you register, you can store your e-mail server names and get a personal Mail2Web home page. |
| MalekTips | If you're a glutton for computing tips, MalekTips lets you gorge on over 2000 of them, with two new tips daily on everything from antispyware to HTML tables. |
| mozillaZine | Keep up with the open-source movement at mozillaZine, with news, forums, and blogs dedicated to converting the Microsoft masses. The site has direct links for reporting bugs; it even posts links to the minutes of mozilla.org staff meetings. |
| Net History | A fantastic Internet history resource, this portal points you toward a wealth of blissfully nontechnical info tracing the international evolution of the Net-as well as of computers and e-mail. |
| The Cooperative Association for Internet Data Analysis | This site hosts many tools and scholarly analyses of Internet performance, routing, network topology, and more. But you needn't be a scholar to appreciate the worldwide connectivity graph derived from data gathered by the group's "skitter" tool! |
| Old-Computers | This online museum lets you browse nearly 1,000 PC dinosaurs by name, company, or year, as well as a library of hilariously dated computer ads. You can also check out other collections from all over the world! |
| pdaPortal | Although the site itself isn't so pretty, pdaPortal is a gateway to hundreds of PDA-friendly Web sites. You can search by site, category, and language. Results can be sorted by site name, popularity, most recent access, or most recent addition. |
| ProcessLibrary | Windows' Task Manager shows you dozens of running processes on your PC. This site associates each one with a detailed description and a rundown of what it does, including whether it uses the Internet or the network and whether it's a virus, a Trojan horse, or spyware. |
| Sysinfo | The Windows Registry is a witch's brew: Mystical ingredients couched in hexadecimal cast good spells- or bad. Sysinfo.org reveals hexes in the hex. Search by numerical code, filename, description, or other criteria and the site will identify start-up programs and Windows objects as safe or not. |
| Tablet PC Post | Tablet PCs are gaining popularity among mobile professionals and students. This site has a great collection of free and free-to-try software and utilities to enhance the tablet experience. Downloads are broken down by category, and separate sections provide software reviews and a forum for interacting with other tablet enthusiasts. |
| Vprofile | Vprofile lets you create videos up to 10 minutes long (using your own webcam and mic). You then send people a link to the video, which is hosted on the company's servers, for less than $1 each. Perfect for video résumés and Web presentations-as long as viewers are set up to accept ActiveX controls. |
| YouSendIt | Got a stingy ISP? If you find yourself bumping up against attachment size limits, get yourself over to YouSendIt, which lets you send files up to 1GB; your recipients get an easy download link by e-mail. YouSendIt can send securely and scans files for viruses. You can be stingy, too: YouSendIt is free. |
| PC Magazine Online | What's up at PC Mag, as well as sister sites ExtremeTech and eWeek |
| My Yahoo! | A favorite for a start page has to be here. It always has a great collection of news sources, weather, sports, stocks, comics, and the like. |
| Trips 123 | An interesting way to figure out how to navigate the intricacies of New York City's mass transit system. |
| The New York Times on the Web | If you love keeping up with what's going on in the world, the Times is still the paper of record! |
| Science Daily | A great way of keeping up with the latest happenings in science. |
| Newsarama | The world of comic books! |
| Drudge Report | Somehow he always knows stuff long before everybody else, including CNN. |
| Robots | Boys will be boys! |
| Apple QuickTime Movie Trailers | If you're a movie trailer junkie, go here. |
| Gawker | A guilty pleasure. |
| Google Image Search | Great for your art needs. |
| Maps and Satellite Images | Great for your map needs. |
| Weather Underground | A good weather site. Most others make you click way too much to get the info you want. |
| News of the Weird | Often off-color, but always funny. |
| Infosec Daily Security Blogs | A compendium of security blogs and other articles from across the Web. |
| Full-Disclosure 1 | A tower of security babble. Full of topics obscure and irrelevant, but everything worth discussing also shows up, sometimes faster than anywhere else. |
| SecurityFocus | Owned by Symantec, this company hosts the famous Bugtraq security mailing list, which is more respectable but less busy and timely than Full-Disclosure. SecurityFocus also has numerous other mailing lists and their archives on focused security topics, such as forensics and honeypots. |
| AOL's Postmaster Info | Hard to believe, but AOL has some excellent tools and references for fighting spam, including a reverse-DNS lookup and great tutorials on spam-related topics. If you deal with AOL users, it's indispensible. |
| Musical Instrument Makers Forum | Did you ever want to make your own guitar? The folks here will help you make your dream come true. |
| Internet Archive | Where else can you find high-quality, free downloads of all your favorite hippie music? |
| The Boston Globe | The Boston Globe's site is still the best way to keep up with the Patriots, New England gossip, and the glacial pace of the Big Dig. |
| CyberRentals | It's a great place to find rental apartments and houses around the world. |
| SeatGuru | SeatGuru is a private aircraft advisor, helping you get the seats (steerage class, alas) with the best leg room and fewest annoying babies on almost every plane flying today. |
| SideStep | Another great travel site, this one aggregates the popular travel booking sites, including Expedia, Travelocity, and Orbitz, to help you find the best rates for flights, hotel rooms, and rental cars. |