Net Tour - a tour of the non legal parts of the internet



Tour Index	Sites to visit Frequently	Features
- Frequent - Bizzare and Amazing - Bells and Whistles - Interaction	News Quality news is easy to get, for instance, the Guardian, The New York Times (you signup, but it's free) and the ABC News all have great online sites. See the news section for more. Browse through the more obscure papers such as the Vladivostock News English Edition in the news section. Other Large Sites Many of the large internet service providers (ISPs) such as Big Pond and Ozemail have good sites. Country based portals can be interesting, Ireland has online.ie , and New Zealand has stuff.co.nz . One of the largest sites in Australia is from Channel 9 and Microsoft, 9MSN. Britannica Online has an excellent web directory including a site of the day. dujour.com has riddles, trivia and competitions that change each day. Many of the television shows have good spinoff sites such as Burke's Backyard, Consuming Passions, Foreign Correspondant and The Movieshow. Search engines also often have great content, particularly Yahoo Australia (look just under the main logo for new news stories or interest sites, and check out their weekly picks). Find the Newest Content If a site is good, it should have a frequently updated "what's new" section. For instance, the Lonely Planet Site has a "What's New" section called Scoop. Cool Salon magazine is one of the internet success stories intelligent views in a beautifully quick and graceful format. One of my favourite things to do on the internet is visit the cool site of the day. Good sites can be found at the Australian Internet Awards. Check out Interpol for a slice of international intrigue, or The Onion or Brunching Shuttlecocks for humour. For Martial Arts history check out Bushido Online . The literature and poetry page is authored by a retired lumberman, whereas January Magazine has very cool and contemporary book reviews . The Fray has a very cool feel and is worth a look . The History Channel is also worth a look although it is US based. The Sceptics Dictionary is worth a browse . Ms Megabyte generally has interesting stuff . See Time Magazine's 100 most important people of the 20th Century , Time's Digital 50 (biographies of important people in technology), the US National Portrait Gallery , or the Cannes Film Festival . Cameras on the Web Around the world in 80 Clicks has 80 cameras which can be viewed via the web. Have a look at the Loch Ness web cam in real time . Or Rundle Street through Robocam (only if you have netscape), Storm Cam for Darwin Harbour , Florence from the top of St Maria Del Fiore , or the South Pole . For more online cameras, see the World Map of Live Webcams . No such thing as a Free Lunch? Promo.com.au has frequent competitions, as does the Village website. It may also be worth checking your lotto tickets while you are there.	The Guardian The Guardian is a quality newspaper which has developed an excellent online presence. You have to register to use all of the site however this is free. Britannica Online Britannica Online has opened up parts of the encyclopedia to the public and has interesting sites highlighted on the web.


	Bizzare and Amazing Sites Use your computer to analyse radio signals from space for SETI in the search for other life. Stick Figure Death Theatre and Bert is Evil are sites that have absolutely no point. The useless pages has become a massive site leading to many pointless and often bizarre and amazing sites. See also Counting Down for obsessive Fan sites. Messy Gourmet has an interesting philosophy. How Stuff Works is a fantastic site for the curious . Stuart's Quiz Page is a good was to test general knowledge . Reaching New Heights is a site on the history of sky scrapers (US based) where you can see the worlds ten tallest buildings.	How Stuff Works How Stuff Works does exactly what it says it will and explains things in a clear and concise way. Where to start? Want to know: - How a TV works? - How jet engines work? - How toilets work?

	Sites with Bells and Whistles The bells and whistles (the technically cool features of the internet) are more than just moving images. Extra software or at least the latest browser can be needed to view these sites. Try the Crossword of the Day from Quizland . Extreme sports from Quokka.com . Download some small movie clips of trailers of movies (in different formats avi or quicktime - see IT). There are also various sites with a new sort of web technology which allows greater movement on web pages with less waiting (i.e. faster download) called Flash which is available here. Sites which use flash include, Simpsons Site (flash and normal), SouthPark site (flash and normal) and the mambo site. How about translating from language to language automatically, check out the Alta Vista Translator. Move objects thousands of kilometers away with the telerobot.	SouthPark site The SouthPark site has a lot of content on it, so to get the most out of the site, you should be prepared to wait a little. There is a section where you can download Southpark clips.

	Interaction with others - Chat and other Programs Newsgroups are now available through Google. What is Chat? Chat is a written conversation. You type something in, and it appears on a page in real time (give or take a few seconds), and others respond (or vice versa). Often you can send messages to others privately, i.e. only they can read it. Chat Tips Chat rooms are groups of people chatting (usually less than 30 people). They are often organised by topic. Use a name such as "Green" for privacy. See chat abbreviations on this page (right). Which Sort of Chat: Both of these chat sites do not require any special software or that you learn anything technical. However, they will probably work faster and better with newer hardware and software. For Yahoo chat, click here. For Lycos chat, click here. Games Yahoo Games has Chess, Backgammon, Crosswords, Checkers and other games against other players, requires java (newer browsers). Other software ICQ (I Seek You) ICQ is free software which allows you to see when friends are online (who also have icq) and talk to them in real time. You have a large degree of control over who contacts you in what manner and it is an example of how easy software is getting to use. ICQ automatically records all conversations (message dialogue button), allows you to exchange files and send internet addresses. Download the software and install it (very easy if you have a working internet connection) and it runs in a very small window in the background. Add friends icq numbers and you are away. Here is where to get ICQ or here through Tucows. Related Links Recreation and Sport News and Weather Humour Back to Main Page	Chat Abbreaviations There are many abbreviations used in chat, here are the main ones you need to know: newbie = a person new to chat who does not know what is going on lol = laugh out loud rofl = rolling on the floor laughing brb = be right back afk = away from keyboard :o) = smiling ;o) = wink wb = welcome back booted = for some reason your chat program failed There are lots of other abbreviations used in different sorts of chat, but these are the major ones.


	This is page is a net tour; a tour of recreational parts of the internet.


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