Teen Translator

Our language is changing more everyday. You don't have to go much further than your television, or your own teens, to realize that new words have entered the language while you were sleeping. If you are clueless about words like: heezy, baggin, and drip out, then Teen Lingo is definitely a place you want to put on your list of favorites.

PetFinder

The Petfinder web site is a national data base of available homeless animals looking for good homes. It has listings for over 160,000 adoptable pets. If you'd like to adopt a pet of a particular breed the site will search the country, state or zipcode you provide. You can also post personal ads for lost pets. Locate shelters and rescue centers near you and more.

Sheet Music From the Past

UCLA has put together an amazing online archive of old sheet music. Not only does the Digital Archive of Popular American Music have the sheet music covers, it also contains the actual musical notation. If you've been looking for an old tune in the music stores and couldn't find it, try this site. My only question is: Does the recording industry copyright watchdogs know about this? Are there any issues?

License to Bark

At the official License to Bark site you can create a unique method for identifying your pet should it get lost. Two ID tags--one for your pet's collar and one for you to confirm ownership when the pet is found. The ID contains a picture of your companion, a unique ID number and an 800 phone number that's available 24/7.

Great Beginnings

Perhaps the hardest part of writing a book is coming up with that perfect first sentence, paragraph, or page. Frequently it's the first sentence that hooks you into the rest of the book. Opening Hooks is a data base of first lines. The criterion is set by the readers and is not the work of a group of literary movers and shakers. Many of the lines are the ones you expect to see while others may introduce you to writers and novels you've never heard of before. My one complaint with the site is that there are so many typos. I'm sure they were not all intended by the authors.

That Sounds Very Familiar

You've created a web site and you want to be certain your copyright is being respected--at least on the Internet. How can you possibly search all the web for infringements of your material? You don't have to. Let Copyscape do it for you. Type your URL in the entry box click on the Copyscape Search button and in a few moments Copyscape will come back with a list of those sites that seem to be using your words. I tried it with this blog and sure enough it came back with the sites from which I quoted (with appropriate citations) text for honorable reasons right here.

Buddhist Art

For those interested in Asian art, specifically Buddhist Art, Visions of Enlightenment is the place to go. The site contains various images that display the culture, beliefs, and artifacts of Buddhism. There is even a mini Buddhism Trivia game called Fact? or Fiction?. The reward for correct answers is enlightening. There are resources for teachers, timelines and more.

Before Their Time

Every year the folks at Beloit College in Wisconsin come up with what they call Mindset List for the incoming freshman class. One can speculate as to why they do it. Perhaps it is an attempt to let faculty view the new student body in the proper perspective. The Mindset List for the Class of 2008 (born in 1986) tells us these students never knew a world without Prozac, there has always been a Comedy Channel, have always been comfortable with gay characters on TV, never knew Wrigley Field before night games.

In the Shadow of the Bomb

Everyone has heard stories of Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the atomic bomb. The Atomic Veterans History Project has over 600 documents about memories and military responsibilities from service men who were on duty at the atomic and hydrogen tests. There are photos and newspaper articles. Another 500 files have been declassified by the DOE as well. There are over 2,500 files and documents available at this site.

Atari Lives!

For those of us who have been around computers for more than a couple decades, the Atari computer is legend. To its owners it was "The One." Then Atari closed down. And for awhile there was silence. But fans of this machine would not let it die. Enter AtariAge. This site has the latest information about Atari systems, emulators, software and history. If you still have that old Atari in the attic, it might just be time to dust it off and boot it up.

Font From Middle Earth

I'm constantly amazed when I hear fictional languages that have been made up for movies, television or literature. What amazes me even more is when an alphabet is created for the made up language. The main font you will find at PCWorld's Tengwar Quenya Font Pack is the language of the Rivendell elves. Scroll down the page and you'll find even more unusual fonts. All are available as either shareware, freeware or demoware. Knights Templar, Hot Pizza, and Boyz R Gross are just a few of the fonts you will find at this site.

Turkey Season is Coming

Just in time for Thanksgiving and the Winter holidays. The Alberta Turkey Producers site has a multitude of publications to choose from. Most of them are free. The site offers a number of books on the topic of turkey as food. Booklets and pamphlets are: Barbecue with Alberta Turkey, Fresh Ideas for Turkey, Let's Talk Turkey: Nutrition, Recipe Card, Heartsmart Turkey Recipes. I think you get the idea. There are more. It takes time for these items to ship so you should get out there soon and place your order.

World War II: Camp Ruston Louisiana

The Camp Ruston Collection of the Louisiana Digital Library Collections Online provides information about its use as a prisoner of war camp during World War II. It contains the following information and more.

• Copies of National Archives records pertaining to Camp Ruston.
  
• Official maps of the camp and USGS aerial surveys of the area.
  
• Contemporary snapshots of Camp Ruston.
  
• Books from the camp library Drawings, wood carvings, and other artwork
  crafted by the prisoners.
  
• Items unearthed during Tech's archaeology survey of the site.
  
• Camp Ruston script, Christmas cards, dinner menus, musical concert
  programs, athletic equipment, and dinnerware.
  
• Letters from former prisoners.
  
• Taped oral history interviews of former prisoners and staff.
  
• Articles, theses, and books relating to Camp Ruston

It's A Jungle Out There

I don't know what it is but this week I've been running across all sorts of animal web sites. The ones listed here may be useful. Be sure to check out my other blog, I Found the Strangest Things on the Way Here, for some unusual animal sites that are well... different.

You're going on a trip and there's always the question of: "What do we do with the dog/cat/turtle/lizard...?" At petswelcome.com they list over "...25,000 hotels, B&Bs, ski resorts, campgrounds, and beaches that are pet-friendly." Take the family pet with and don't leave him/her to friends, relatives or boarding kennel.

It's late at night and your pet is in distress. Your local veterinary office is closed. What to do? Check out HealthyPet. They have listings for "...more than 32,000 veterinary care providers committed to giving you excellence in small animal care."

You like your animals a little more cold-blooded. Try Frogs: A Chorus of Colors. It has photographs of frogs (surprise), sound files of frogs, information about various species of frogs, and even a frogcam. Neat site for those of us that like our pets served up cold--cold blooded that is.

Depending on how exotic you want to get, about.com has an information service for this as well. Information on choosing an exotic pet, caring for exotic pets, and even picking appropriate names for exotic pets. There is information on birds, reptiles, crustaceans (usually crabs & shrimp), and others.

While there's a lot of commercial stuff at the Dog Breed Info Center (breeders, t-shirts, trainers, and even custom mouse pads), there's also a lot of information about dogs. Find information about rare breeds, how to choose a breed of dog that matches your life style and more.

The Cat Fancier's Association claims to be the world's largest registry of pedigreed cats. Information tends to focus on how to pamper the little fur ball, prepare him/her for shows, winners of cat shows and the like.

Civil Rights of the Common Man

The description below is given by the sponsors of the Voices of Civil Rights web site.

"AARP, the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights (LCCR), and the Library of Congress have teamed up to collect and preserve personal accounts of America's struggle to fulfill the promise of equality for all. We invite you to explore this site, which serves as both a living memorial to those who were a part of the civil rights experience and a tribute to the quest for equality that continues today."

Cheap Cooking

The name of the site is Cheap Cooking and that's what the author provides. Advice on economical cooking and a large collection of recipes make this a valuable visit. The author, Ellen Ferlazzo, has written an ebook on the topic and you can get the details from her site.

Quizzes for the Kids and Adults Too

Sometimes students need a little practice studying for a particular subject. TriviaPlaza has a series of 10-question multiple choice quizzes in a number of different subject categories like computers, geography, Science, Pop Music, Classical Music. Each of these subjects are broken into sub topics and there are quizzes for each. There are well over a hundred quizzes at this site. Students and adults can both gain something from an occasional trip to this site.

Please Don't Let Me Get Stuck with the Q or X

This is not where you go to play Scrabble. This is where you go to get help with Scrabble. Scrabble Helper has you enter your current rack tiles and then the letters on the board where you would like to use your rack letters. This is all fine and good but I don't know too many players that would be willing to let an opponent partner with an Internet site during game play. Scrabble Helper also has links to other word game sites such as: Crossword Challenge, Boggler, Jumble Words, Crypto Cracker and more.

What is That and How Do I Fix It?

So you say your house is old enough to apply for Social Security and qualifies for Senior Citizen Discounts. What a site we have for you. At the Old House Web they don't only show you how to fix that old house but where to get the materials you need to keep it looking its age and not some type of remuddled mess. The site deals with all sorts of restoration problems; tin ceilings, slate tools, glass doorknobs, and milk paint are all covered.

Word Games

Crosswords, Cryptograms, and Anagrams. This is what One Across specializes in. It provides online assistance for playing these games. Running the crossword helper requires the user to type in the definition and then the word with known and unknown letters. The cryptogram aide allows the user to enter the plain text and then substitute letters as requested by the user. For anagrams all you have to do is type in the word/s and it finds other words that make it happen.

A Word A Day

The A Word A Day (AWAD) web site is the complete collection of all the AWAD newsletters, sans extraneous advertising and hype. Every day AWAD Newsletter will deliver a new word and a quotation of wisdom to your email. If you don't like the daily email, go out to the site once a month and look through the archives. You can also search by words and quotations. If you like what you see, subscribe.

For Parents of Children and Young Adults With Disabilities

The Parent Advocacy Coalition for Educational Rights (PACER) is located in Minnesota but has helpful information for parents regardless of where they live. PACER has a collection of brochures and flyers available in online PDF format. These brochures run the gamut from titles like "Acronyms and Abbreviations," "Teasing and Harassment," "Adolescent Depression," and "Ways Parents Can Help Their Children Learn to Read." Several of the documents are available in Spanish and Hmong. While the organization is located in Minnesota it claims to be national in its scope and contacts.

Lycos Beta Testing Discussion Search

Lycos, a popular search engine, is launching a beta version of a new search called Lycos Discussion Search. Type in a topic you are interested in and Lycos will find forums, newsletters, etc. that deal with your topic. I tried it and found a number of forums and newsletters to visit and subscribe to.

Country Specific Search Engines

Wotbox is a search engine vendor. It has just launched eight new country-specific search sites. They are: Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, New Zealand, Spain, and the United States. In this article from Internet Week the web sites of all eight search sites are posted. I don't know how long Internet Week keeps its posted articles so if you attempt to read the article and don't find it, leave a comment so I can remove it from the blog.

Frederick Douglass Papers

Going to the Library of Congress (LOC) web site is something everyone should do regularly. The special collections available online are amazing. Case in point: The Frederick Douglass Papers. Frederick Douglass was many things during the course of his life. He was a runaway slave, abolitionist, lecturer, writer, publisher, and public servant.  The LOC has amassed a collection of over 7,400 items relating to Douglass' life.

Another Trip to the Ball Park

I know I just posted a baseball site a short time ago. But this is the season so there will probably be a few more in the weeks ahead. This is the Baseball Almanac. It contains historical information, hall of fame, quotations, ball park info and more. The quotations are my favorite section. The words that flow from the mouths of managers and players cannot be described. Play ball.

American Highway Project - A Photographic History

The American Highway Project is dedicated to providing a photographic history of the early American Highway system. Most of the photos are in black and white. With today's modern super filling stations and mini malls it's sometimes difficult to believe that things weren't always that way. A ramshackle garage with an outdoor soda pop cooler was something to look forward to in the day. Excellent documentation of a world that doesn't exist anymore.