Top 10 Websites

It is really hard to choose your top 10 favourite places to visit on the Internet, but after thinking long and hard, I have to say this selection is certainly the 10 most visited places in my History folder!

In descending order from 10 then…..

10. www.digitalspy.co.uk. A site I discovered sometime in 2001, and since then is a place I visit everyday. It is an independently run site, which is all things Digital with a huge emphasis on digital media, so that’s Radio and TV to you and me. This is the place for unrivalled news and views on NTL, Telewest, Sky, all the Mobile Networks, the Digital Radio networks, the Internet and all things, well, digital really. Couple this with a humungous forum stage covering some 20 different digital categories. You are guaranteed some intense discussions here about all things digital!

9. www.bananalotto.co.uk. I have to admit this is one of the first places that I head for whenever I log on! The basic premise if you don’t already know is that this a lottery, but different to the national lottery in that it is free to enter, it is drawn daily, and you need to match 7 from 49 to win the million. This has never been done in the history of the game, but they have had 6 from 49 winners on a few occasions taking £100,000. You can win with matching 4 numbers or more actually and prizes start at a fiver. Having said this I’ve yet to win, but the chance exists so I do it!

8. www.myvoice.co.uk. I have to admit I’ve always been a fan of surveys, despite the amount of junk mail and spam they inevitably create! That said I make myvoice a port of call every few days. The set-up is quite simple, answer a few simple questions on a range of hot topics, submit your answers and you earn points. Accumulate 2000 points and these can be cashed in for £20 of shopping vouchers, with a wide ranging voucher selection to pick from! The site has new surveys every few days usually, takes little time, and is interesting too!

7. www.nme.com. Being a music junkie, this site is pretty indispensable when it comes to finding music news, reviews, gig guides and charts. I know there are plenty of other music portals out there but for me this is the original and best, having read the paper version the NME for about 10 years now! The site is well designed, regularly updated and compliments the traditional printed weekly very well. A welcome recent addition to the site is NME radio, which plays all the latest tracks, and I don’t mean the new Sclub7 one, or the Will Green or whatever his name his !!! (sorry pop idol fans – don’t mean to offend!)

6. news.bbc.co.uk. This is the news site of the huge BBCi portal. Ok, so I do visit other areas of the BBC’s online presence from time to time, but as this is my top 10 I’m talking sites I hit a lot! As I listen to Radio 1 at work all day, the news I get is simply headlines, and that’s enough whilst at work, as I’d rather be cheered up by the likes of Mark and Lard! Anyway, when I get home, if I’m not watching a bit of Sky News for the headlines, then I do like to check news.bbc.co.uk to see what’s what. The coverage is world wide, but split nicely into sections, such UK, Europe, Middle East and so on. There are also useful sections for science and technology, business and entertainment news. Updates come 24/7, the site runs very quickly and is never down, which is a bonus.

5. www.ebay.co.uk. I’ve recently become a regular browser at ebay, and yes, I’ve also started buying a few bits and bobs! It’s addictive, almost in a Ciao sort of way! Essentially here you’ve got an open market. Person A wanting to sell item X, and persons B, C and D all furiously trying to outbid each other until the auction closes! Ok, so it’s not like a traditional auction, which sells a number of items in a few hours. An ebay auction can last up to 10 days. You place your bid, click submit, and you’re the highest bidder. If no-one else outbids you before the auction close, then you win. If you do get outbid, then you’ll get an email telling you so, and then you can fight for your goodies again! There’s much more to it than this of course, and I’m just getting into the selling side of things, but it’s another great way to make a few quid, though like me you’ll probably spend more than you make over the months!

4. uk.tombola.com. A lot of you probably play Tombola? If not then I’ll briefly hit on why I enjoy this site so much! They’ve been up and running for around 2 – 3 years now, and offer a range of free to play games each and every day. The games are the same every day, though new ones are released every month or so. The games revolve around the scratchcard model, and other simple games, such as hamster racing, balloon popping and so on. Depending on the game, match 3 symbols, reveal 3 matching values, get a 1st and 2nd in the race and the cash prizes are yours, which can be up to £10,000 at times! OK, so I’ve never won, but a lot of folk have, and as they say you’ve gotta be in it to win it!

3. www.smart-drivers.co.uk. A bit specialist this one, but I do visit a lot and enjoy it, so it as to feature high in my top 10. This site is the UK’s most popular unofficial club for MCC Smart owners, and for those with interests in this wonderful little car. Incidentally the car was recently described in a magazine review as a cross between a Porsche and a Citroen 2CV. I don’t know whether to laugh or cry!! Anyway the club is very passionate about the car, they hold regular meetings, give the latest Smart news, press releases, speculate about the up and coming MCC Smart variants and the like. The club also runs a messageboard which is wonderful forum for all things Smart, and is a great place to meet like minded owners.

2. www.google.co.uk. Boring I know, but functional, fast and in my mind absolutely essential to the internet. I never really was happy with a search facility until Google came on the scene. It is so accurate, and I have yet to fail to find something relevant and useful for whatever I may throw at it. For extra functionality may I suggest the Google Toolbar for Internet Explorer, available for no charge from Google. This little plug in will allow you to search from a ‘highlight and right click’ operation, and ensures you’ve always got a search bar on your toolbars.

1. uk.ciao.com. How predictable? Probably high on many peoples lists? This site needs no introduction, but is the single most factor for lost-time in many of our lives. But it’s fun, it’s interesting, it enriches ones life, it enables you to meet new people, it helps you improve your writing skills, and you can make a few quid from your work. I know I know, not as much as in the past, but there’s still money to be made from the Premium Fund and the odd read, and you never know with all those darn pop-up’s the money may go up in the future? I do play at Dooyoo to from time to time, but I feel much more at home here, perhaps it’s because I’ve been active for longer, I dunno?

Anyhow, that’s my top 10 of the good old internet! I look forward to your thoughts!

Alflavor for Ciao UK, March 2002.