North Shore Computer Society: Don's Picks - The Lighter Side!
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The Lighter Side of Technology!

[ Smilies ] | [ Freebies ] | [ Views ] | [ Games ] | [ Fun Activities ]
[ Fun Products ] | [ Cartoons ] | [ Humor Collections ] | [ Comedians ] | [ Humor Portals ]
[ Political & Topical ] | [ Totally Useless ] | [ Satire ] | [ Lighter Information ]


This list of Web sites, part of the presentation at the May '99 Monthly Meeting, should further your enjoyment of the World Wide Web and Web browsing in general. Other links of interest can be found on our Net Highlights page.

These are by no means comprehensive, so if you find some sites that you think might tickle the funny bone, by all means send me an email at dono@northshore.org. Also, if you find a link that's "broken", please drop our webmaster a note.



Smilies

Helwig's Smiley Dictionary
The Unofficial Smiley Dictionary
Both of the above dictionaries have extensive lists of Smilies, those text based pictures some of us sprinkle through our messages to convey emotion in the relatively dry medium of e-mail messages.

Freebies

100 Percent Free Stuff dot com - Search the Free Stuff Directory! (tm)
These directories come and go almost daily. So if you find one, be sure to use it to get what you want today - it might not be there tomorrow.
 Free Catalogs
Hundreds of free catalogs can be found at this site.

Views

The Amazing Fish Cam!
This camera is sponsored by Netscape - I found the link by looking inside the Navigator program itself!
Renaissance Cruises - Explore the Ships - Ship Tour
Just one of the ways you can check out a ship before you sail on it. Requires the IPIX plugin which you can get from the IPIX site.
The Breakers - Palm Beach Florida
Another IPIX site, this one having views of the Breakers Resort in Florida.
MontréalCAM - A view of the Old Port of Montréal site
Quite fun to watch the people strolling along the St. Lawrence Seaway.
Panama Canal - Miraflores Locks Camera
Watch the ships traversing the Panama Canal. Especially interesting if you know someone who is making the passage to see their ship and, with a bit of luck, the people themselves.
WebCam Central
One of the sites featuring lists and lists of web based cameras. Keep checking back for more - many of the sites come and go at the whim of their owners.

Games

Welcome to the LifeSavers Candystand
This site requires the Shockwave Plugin to get the most from it. But what a great bunch of games to waste time with. My favorite is the Mini Golf.
Dr. Daniel's Movie Emergency - Treatment for the Addicted Movie Fanatic
Lots of movie related games, especially trivia. And even a few games for the not-so-sane among us - check out Stare Down Sally, if you dare.
Coloring.com
Remember how hard it was to stay in between the lines when you used a coloring book? Well, for the artistically challenged (and the young at heart) this site features hours of fun.

Fun Activities

Bell Labs Text-to-Speech
Type whatever you want at this site, and Bell Labs will return it to you as a computer synthesized voice. Sort of useless on its own, but it is still fun.
DialABC: Phone Mnemonics for the Web
Ever wondered if your phone number spells something? You know, like 1-978-DEARABBY or whatever. Check out this site for finding out what the numbers of a phone number spell without doing a lot of hard work.
Walt Disney Pictures'-Pixar's "A Bug's Life"
When a movie comes out these days, the bigger companies produce entire web sites with information about them. But some companies, like Disney, go the extra mile and produce a site which has things to do as well.
Ask Jeeves
Two kinds of fun here. You can Ask Jeeves a question and get the answer (sort of a Web Search site, but with a bit more fun). Or you can just sit and watch what other people are asking. For the voyeurs among us.
The Illustrated Guide To Breaking Your Computer
Step by step instructions in how to completely destroy your computer. Do not let your children see this site! We are not responsible for damage to your computer or injuries sustained while using this site. But it sure feels good to know that someone did all of this in order to create a web site with the detailed instructions and pictures.
Story: Electronic April Fools' Pranks
ZDNet's April '99 guide to April Fools Pranks you can do with your computer or to someone else's computer. Keep the bookmark handy for next year.

Fun Products

Please note that mention in this section does not imply endorsement by either Don or the North Shore Computer Society. We find 'em, you decide whether they have something actually worth buying.

The Learning Company
One of the largest educational software companies, The Learning Company has a lot of information about their products on their site. Visit them and learn.
Chefboy '98
Did you know that there really was a Chef Boyardee? Well, this is the place to check him out as well as play some fun games. Check out the recipes too.
The View-Master Homepage
The 3D viewer is still around. And there are dozens of web pages devoted to collectors and fans. See if any of yours are worth money. Or just visit and reminisce about the ones you tossed years ago.
The Musical Potty - Hop On!
No home should be without one, at least one with a tough to train toddler.
Homepage T-Shirts and Custom T-Shirts by Mackey Special Tees
Do you have a home page which makes you proud? Make it into a custom T-shirt and wear it as additional publicity. Also other web related tees.
Moxie Congress Online Newsletter - Spring '99 Edition
Fan's of Moxie - check out their web site. Lots of information about the product as well as details about their annual festival in Lisbon Falls, ME. You either like it or you hate it (I love it!), but check this site out either way. And if anyone is going to Lisbon Falls, I am fresh out of Moxie ice cream...
Toilet Seat Lifter- Magic John
Ladies - if you can't train him, maybe this product will help. This site just goes to show that products don't need big budgets anymore to be marketed all over the world.

Cartoons

Welcome to Comics.com!
United Media's web site - home to a lot of comics, including Dilbert and Peanuts. Current and recent comic strips can be found here, in case someone lost yesterday's paper or it's already been used in the bird cage.
UExpress Online
Another home of comic strips, including Garfield and Doonesbury.
UExpress Online - Computers Features : The Fifth Wave by Rich Tennant
Biographical information about our May guest speaker.
UExpress Online - Computers Features : The 5th Wave by Rich Tennant
A current comic from our May guest speaker.
SGH Favorte Funnies Page
Steven has put together a number of links to comics he likes. Some of them are from United Media and UExpress, but many others are harder to find.

Humor Collections

The Top 5 List
Both online lists and the place to subscribe to their Top 5 daily mail list. A bit R-rated, but a daily topical source of humor - better than Letterman!
Jokes2000 - Humor, Jokes, Cartoons, Graphics, HTML, Javascript
Not always the cleanest source, but if you can stand the coarse humor, they have a very large collection. Home of the Joke of the Day mail list.
Jokes jokes jokes - get a good laugh
This seems to be either a copy of the above Jokes2000 site or a real good imitator. Either way, it is a slightly different way to get there.
ABSOLUT HUMOUR.
A small but good collection of humor. Just one of the many I drop by every once in a while to see what is new.
The DaEmOnIc FuNnIeS Page
Quite a collection. A least they label the X-rated material as such. Their collections of lists and true anecdotes are the best.
Barking Spider
Not the largest collection, but many of the most famous Internet stories can be found here, from G to X.
Wrecked Humor Collection
List of funny sites. Don't follow these links unless you have an open mind. Many of them are really sick.
Oracle Service Humor Archives Home Page
In the early days of the Internet, an Oracle was someone or somewhere you could go to get your questions answered - usually with a touch of humor. This site carries on the tradition by keeping an archive of all of the funniest sites they have come across.
C*E*A
The Center for the Easily Amused is another humor collection. Check out the amazing GrassCam, where you can actually watch grass grow. Well, you get the idea...
LaughWEB
Home of the Laugh of the Day mail list, this site features exclusively clean humor, or so they say. Currently down, they are trying to locate a new sponsor.
The Humor Archive
This one seems to be inactive, but there is still a lot of links to humor.
Brain Candy - Riddles Jokes Insults Poetry Lyrics Quotations
A lot of humor you won't find anyplace else. Also a lot of fun word games and such.
Colossal Humor Page
A lot of original material here. And what isn't original has at least been reformatted. All of the humor here is clean - if your tastes run a bit the other direction, there is a sister site for the Bawdy.Net which can be found here.
rylandland - choose your destiny
A bit of something for everyone here, including MIDI files.
Ilene's Jewish Humor
Dedicated to a woman who recently passed away, this site has quite a collection of Jewish humor. Some of which I even understand.
Joke A Day
Home of the Joke A Day mail list, it is also a jumping off point for a lot of other humor sites.
Laugh-A-Lot! - Your Clean Jokes Only Website and email list!
Just like the title says, a clean humor site and the home of the Laugh-a-lot daily mail list.

Comedians

The Abbott and Costello Home Page
Dedicated to the comedy duo and run by their family, this site is the source of everything from the complete text to Who's On First to audio clips and extensive information about their lives and movies.
Why A Duck?
One of the Marx Brothers most famous quotes, this site is devoted to the fans of Groucho, Chico, Harpo and Zeppo. If it isn't here, there is a link.
The Official Jerry Lewis Comedy Museum and Store
A site sponsored by Jerry himself, you can find all kinds of material and information about the man and his works.
Hogan's Heroes!
Fans of this comedy show will appreciate the extensive collection of audio clips from the show as well as the detailed info on each of the shows as well as the stars.

Humor Portals

Yahoo Internet Life - Pretty Strange Sites
The name says it all. If it's weird, it is probably listed here.
ZDNet AnchorDesk DON'T GO THERE (DG)
ZD's version of the above strange site. Don't say we didn't warn you.
Yahoo! Entertainment:Humor, Jokes, and Fun
Where I go to find the newest humor and to rediscover some of the oldies but goodies.
THE LAST PAGE
If it isn't here, it isn't worth seeing! Great source of non-commercial humor collections.

Political & Topical

YMMV: Your Mileage May Vary
Topical original humor - dead on target.
The Onion
Another original humor site, not for the squeamish.
MadDog Mildon - A Daily Dose of Madness
MadDog is a bit strange, but her daily newsletter is always a source of a chuckle or two.
DRUDGE REPORT '99®
You either like him or hate him, but without him, we would not have had Ms. Lewinsky and crew to laugh at for the last year or two.
Jim Rosenberg: Monologue Current
Source of the Rosenberg newsletter, his humor can be described as Jay Leno's monologue before the censors get it.
ABCNEWS.com : Weird News: The Wolf Files
Another of the nationally known news hounds, this guy digs up some pretty strange information and connections.
Skeleton Closet: All of the Scandals on All of the Presidential Election Candidates
When they say all, they mean it. No party lines here, they trash them all - even the obscure ones.
Duh-2000 - The Contest
Bored by the Year 2000 problem - check this site for the lighter side of the issue.
This is True by Randy Cassingham
One of the mail lists dedicated to reporting strange news items.

Totally Useless

How to keep an idiot busy
The title says it all. Send this link to anyone you really want to annoy.
If they won't contact you, contact us!
Home of Alien Abductions - I still don't know if this one is straight or a gag.
Furby Autopsy
Have you had it with Furby mania? Or just want to see what makes them tick without having to rip it apart yourself.
Welcome to Voyeur
Watch what words other people are typing into their web search engine. Be prepared for some really weird requests.
Timothy W Macinta's Stupid Web Tricks
Tim is a master of making you feel stupid. Try it out for yourself.
The Hampster Dance
If you have a sound card, check this out. It is funny without one, but with it, let's just say you should be prepared to pick yourself up off the floor.
JP Computing Internet Police Squad
Send this to someone (like me) who you think has been spending a bit too much time on the Internet lately.
Absürd Örg
I'm not completely sure what this is supposed to be, but it is fun while you are there.
World Wide Web Talking Page
The Internet Ouija Board - if you need to consult the spirits and only have a computer handy, you can go here for a session.
Bill Gates Net Worth Page
For those of you keeping up with his value on a minute by minute basis. Lot's of other connections here as well.
The Realm of Niftyness: It's time-wasting fun!
Lots and lots of totally useless, time wasting fun.
Celebrating 20 years of the VCR!
I couldn't resist - neither will you. Pass the link on to someone you like.
GrrlSavage's Home Page
Scratch and Sniff has made it to the Internet. Really. Check it out...

Satire

Yecch!!!
A biting satire of the Yahoo site.
The Corporation
Producing humor on demand for customers since the turn of the century...
Archive of Hacked Websites -Hacked Homepages
Everytime a major commercial site has its site replaced by hackers with another, non authorized set of pages, these folks keep the hacked version for future reference. Not always particularly clean, some of them have become classics.
NorthWorst Air, Welcome page
This guy really hates Northwest Air, but a lot of it is painfully funny anyway.
Bob's Fridge Door lampooning the news and technology
All original humor here, with little spared.

Lighter Information

CIAC Internet Hoaxes
Next time you hear about a new virus and someone tells you to pass it on, check this site to see if you really should beware. But even if it isn't here, just say no and don't pass it on. The chances it is real are nil, especially if you are asked to "Pass it on to everyone you know".
The '80s TV Theme SuperSite
If you have a sound card, check this site out for just about any theme music produced in the last four decades. Almost all of it unofficial, but fun to listen to anyways.
New York Underground @ nationalgeographic.com
Ever wonder what is underground in New York City. Check this site for a complete tour of what is below the surface in the Big Apple.
A Wee Peek Under A Scotsman's Kilt
If you have ever wondered what a Scotsman wears under a kilt, well, let's just say you will never wonder again.
The Golden Raspberry Award Foundation (The "Razzies")
The complement to the Academy Awards, the Razzies are awarded each year to the movies and stars most deserving of them.
The AFU & Urban Legends Archive
Urban Legends and Folklore - Home Page
The above two sites should be checked anytime someone sends you an e-mail telling you about how their "friend" had something horrible happen to them and now they are warning you about it. You can also find a lot of information about previous hoaxes here, including the boy who wanted to capture the world record for cards received and the famous cookie recipe hoax. Don't be taken - check it out here first.
Tom's World--Sláinte! Toasts, Blessings, and Sayings
Looking for a toast for your friend who's getting married? I was and I found a great bunch here (but I used another one anyway).

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Last revised - June 1, 2006
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