Steve Kidd's Links Page

These sites listed are usually a) free, b) pretty comprehensive and c) information based - i.e. I would imagine I would get value out of them without paying a cent. I also find myself weeding out sites which want your email, name or whatever (I do believe that message boards should ask for this, but I don't want to answer twenty questions then be asked to divulge my personal details). If you want to pay for a quiz pay me. If you have any links to add please email me, but purleeeze, don't ask me to link up pages which don't get me anywhere quickly. Regarding question sites, there are any amount of places that have a few dozen 'free' questions, but unless there are at least 300 or have a particular novelty, I have not listed them. In several of the quiz sections, I may have placed an asterisk (*) by my favourite from a section. As of 3 June 2008 I have had a look at all sites.

I would say the following three applcations are "must haves" - i.e. if you haven't got them on your PC, click on the links and get them now.

Firefox or Google Chrome To look at pages on the internet you need a 'browser' Usually you buy a PC ready loaded with Microsoft Internet Explorer. As with all Microsoft products, I have no particular beef, but as they are commercial products, they tend to be less dynamic and adaptable. Firefox and Chrome are a browsers that do most of the stuff that IE does, and some things a little better. You can use all browsers on your computer, so why not?

OpenOffice As with the browser, many computers come installed with Microsoft software such as Word and Excel. OpenOffice provide products which replicate these applications, the big difference being that they are free (but you can contribute with work or donations.). Added benefits are that glitches are fixed pretty quickly and that innovation is evolutionary and continous. Again, you can have Microsoft and OpenOffice utilities side by side so just go ahead and try them out.

Skype Skype is a wonderful tool for messaging and especially talking via microphone and headphones or speakers or even cooler with a video camera (I thoroughly recommend you invest about \A320 apiece on a half decent headset and camera). If you have a friend in Pontefract or Plymouth who has Skype - hey Presto, it's free! You can buy 'Skypein' which enables you to phone telephones at a very very cheap rate.

OK, now you have the essentials, allow me to indulge you with the "should use" - sites that just provide wonderful tools for a person like me.

Google If you don't have this Google advanced search page as your home location you are probably not so sad! (In case you didn't know, Google enables you to locate pages on t'internet, but I'm sure that if you are here you know that already.

Wikipedia This is the very best information source in the world. Once again it fits in beautifully with the open access ethos, and you can help by contibuting information (which is relatively easy) or making a donation to Wikimedia.

BBC We are so lucky to have the BBC. I reckon the website alone is worth the price of the liscense. This link goes to the news front page, but don't forget to check out as much as you can, e.g. the BBC iplayer home page.

And the preachy stuff:

Amnesty If you wish to donate to a charity, I believe that gifts to Amnesty will yield the greatest 'bangs for bucks'. We are nowhere without freedom.

The Brights If you find this link contentious, then good. Brights are people who seek to bring some logic into this crazy stupid misled world that we live in. PS some of the nicest people I know are religious; thanks Mum.

Steve Kidd This is so self-indulgent I know it will cheese off precisely those people who I would love to chese off. Nah - it just takes you back to my home page and I couldn't think of a third link for this trio.