Since it’s Friday it’s time for Five for Friday. Here are 5 interesting web services I’ve come across recently that I thought worth sharing.
1. PicMonkey
All my regular readers know that I have an avid interest in photography. I take thousands of photos each year and spend time playing around with them in various software. I recently came across PicMonkey a free editing service online. They offer most of the basic tools you would need such as crop, rotate, exposure, sharpen, etc. I’ve played with it a little and like it but I usually use another higher-end program on my MacBook. However, if you have basic needs and don’t own anything else, this looks like a good option. They also have a membership plan for $33/yr of $4.99/month which includes additional features.
2. iFixIt
Ever have an electronic gadget break on you and wanted to try to fix it yourself? One of the problems is finding a guide to help you with the repairs as well as find parts once you have found a guide and determined what the problem is. Well, iFixIt is the site for you. They have two sections, one for finding repair manuals and another for finding parts. While they don’t have everything and you might be able to find manuals using Google, this is still a worthwhile site consolidating information in one place.
3. FindTheBest
Another common situation is you are thinking of purchasing an item or service but aren’t sure which one. FindTheBest is a site offering data driven comparisons of various goods and services. They use information from public databases, manufacturers websites, and expert sites to bring together the pertinent data. If you are thinking of making a purchase and want a side-by-side comparison of the various features then FindTheBest is the site for you.
4. Search Multiple Services Simultaneously
There are many multi search engine sites out there. Some are better than others. A new one I wasn’t aware of is mic-ro.cosm search tool. It contains 128 different services from a variety of sources that can be searched simultaneously. This includes your standard search engine and meta-search engines as well as references (various encyclopedias, dictionaries, etc.), book and e-book sources, and others. Take a look and see if it fits for your next Internet search.
5. TinEye
TinEye is a reverse image search that allows you to upload an image or give the URL of an image and determine where it came from, if modified versions are available and if there are higher resolutions versions. I’ve not had a reason to use it yet but will certainly bookmark it for when I do.
