Blog
Holland Home Services – If you’re reading this you’re probably interested in what we’re putting out there, right? Ok, maybe it is a little vain to put our own site on the list, but without this list you might not be finding all this other cool stuff, right? Besides tech/web blogs, we also have blogs on everything from home services, to health, sports, technology and more. Plus we’ve got a great recipe club for all the chefs out there!
Productivity/Tools/Apps
Gmail - With great spam protection, multiple ways to organize your emails, a customizable layout, and more storage than you’ll probably ever use Google’s Gmail is the way to go for your email service. Plus bringing all of your messages and contacts in from your old email address is as simple as a few clicks. Not to mention by having a Gmail account you’ll get access to many of the great applications, tools, and websites that Google offers.
Google Chrome – Google’s web browser has become a major competitor with other top browsers. Its layout is clean and simple, it gives you a bit more screen space and a bit less toolbar clutter and it has its own app store (which I could write an entirely separate blog about) to customize it how you see fit. Plus, one feature I find useful and logical is that they’ve made the address bar double as a Google search bar, so you never have to retype a web address you accidently put in the search bar and vice versa. Basically it makes everything faster and simpler - if only everything worked that way . . .
Join Me - Ever tried to explain to someone how to do something on their computer but you weren’t by their computer? It can be pretty difficult to translate your message at times. This site can fix that. With the other person’s permission and pin code, you can actually see and control their computer from your computer or vice versa.
Sourceforge - If you need some software but your wallet is empty check out Sourceforge. There’s all kinds of free downloadable software at your disposal. Very nice.
Pipl - Can’t find a person that you know on the web? Get an email from someone and not sure who? Pipl can help. You can type in names, usernames, and emails to find out the who, what, and where of people online.
Tiny Url - If you have a humongous link that’s messy to look at or is taking up too many characters even with Twitter’s link shortener, then TinyURL has the solution. Just copy your link, paste it into the box, click shorten and it will spit out a nice short link that takes you to the same web address as your original link, but without the length of an encyclopedia.
Social Media
Google Plus - Facebook and Twitter have just gained some major competition. Google’s version of social networking is growing quickly, and with its integration with Google search, other Google applications, and its innovative way of grouping your friends and acquaintances, it could prove to be the biggest social networking platform in the near future.
Twitter - If you haven’t heard of this one you’ve been living under a rock - possibly the Rocky Mountains. However, while Twitter is very well known, I don’t personally know too many friends who are using it. This micro-blogging site is all about instant updates of what is happening right now with short posts. You can find up to the second information on what’s happening in the world from the people’s perspective by just clicking on the links under “Trending”.
Klout - A great site for checking out how much sway you have in the social media world. You simply enter some information for all of the different networks you’re a part of and Klout will give you insights and analytics on your overall social media presence.
Interactive Entertainment/Games
Intel Personal Museum - Personal Museum is a VERY cool way to view a presentation of your Facebook page. It is essentially will take you through a multimedia museum of all the things you’ve put on Facebook. If you haven’t tried it you have to, it is nothing short of spectacular.
Monoface - Useful? Maybe if you’re a plastic surgeon, otherwise not so much. Fun? You bet. It takes a second to load, but it is worth it. Once it loads, you can click on different parts of the face to swap noses, eyes, hair and more. Then sit back and admire your mish-mashed results.
Moodstream - If you’re looking for inspiration, Moodstream can be a great source. Move the sliders around based on how you’re feeling or want to feel and it gives you streaming music, images, and video based on what you’ve entered, it is cool to say the least.
Music & Video
Pandora – Pandora is beyond fantastic if you’re a music lover, especially if you’re looking to discover new music. If you’ve never used it before, basically it uses what are called internet radio stations. You type in a song or artist and it continually streams songs based on that selection. From there you can tell it what songs you do and don’t like and it will adjust accordingly. You can also create a shuffle of multiple stations that you’ve created for more variety. If you’ve never used Pandora, you are missing out.
Grooveshark – Grooveshark is another internet radio site, but its setup is quite a bit different than Pandora. Grooveshark actually lets you pick which song you play or even set up an entire playlist from its massive selection of songs. If you like to be more in control of your music feed this is the way to go.
Howcast - This little gem is useful times ten. It’s like Youtube but with all kinds of how-to videos and guides. There’s great content for self-improvement, tutorials, and even a video that shows you how to remember where you parked. I think we all could benefit from that every now and then.
Hulu - Hulu is similar to Youtube but it offers a lot of content that you can’t get on Youtube such as TV shows, documentaries, and even some movies. Definitely worth checking out if you’re looking for some video entertainment but don’t feel like shelling out cash for it.
Sports
Bleacher Report - If you’re a sports fan Bleacher Report is a great source for sports stories and blogs written by other fans like yourself. While there is some bias from time to time overall the content is really high quality and thought provoking. It’s interesting to see other fans perspectives on teams and topics, and you can even subscribe to receive emails when new stories on your favorite teams are posted.
Onion Sports - This site is another take on sports all together. The Onion produces some pretty hilarious stories (and fake stories) on their website. Their videos are especially comical.
Business/Entrepreneur
Big Think - This site features a variety in content from some of the world’s top thinkers and leaders. There’s a bevy of interesting articles and videos on all types of subjects such as science, politics, business, religion and more.
Ted - This site contains videos of interesting ideas, speeches, and presentations from some of the most successful people in the world. Ted is a great source for inspiration, ideas, and information that could be the secret to your success.
Search Engines & Directories
Qwiki - Qwiki is a remarkably unique search engine that delivers multimedia results instead of the standard link and description. It’s a very refreshing and innovative way of finding information, by taking mundane searches and makes them fun and exciting.
Web MD - A fantastic source for health and medical articles, advice, and more.
Wolfram Alpha - Are you and a friend arguing about what year Abraham Lincoln was born? Wolfram Alpha takes a lot of the digging out of finding information on the web. It allows you to search factual questions get answers instantly instead of search result, so you can move on to the next argument.
Gogobot - Gogobot is an excellent source of information for travelling. You can see where other friends have travelled, read reviews of different locations, get advice from other travelers, and see photos of different destinations.
Project Gutenberg - Consider this your online library. Project Gutenberg has over 38,000 free e-books available at your fingertips. If you like to read you’ll love Project Gutenberg.
Shopping/Reviews
Retrevo - It can be tough to sort through all the different types of electronics and find which one is right for you, where the best prices are, and just what exactly you’re going to get. Retrevo is here to help you with all of that. It gives you great information, comparisons, and reviews on TV’s, cameras, camcorders, computers, phones, and much more. Plus there are other great resources such as a database of user manuals.
Amazon - If you’re ever bored and looking for something new to try, hop onto Amazon’s website and search for one of your favorite products ranging from music, bikes, food and everything between and beyond. Based on what you enter Amazon will give you recommendations on other things you might like, and I have to say, they’re usually right.
The information contained in this article have been written for the HVAC industry public or private and are not to copied, reproduced or plagiarized without the written consent of the author. News publications and trade organizations interested in using content contained in this blog/article can contact Steve Holland at Holland Home Services at the Contact Us section of this site.
