Site Seeing

This weeks favourite - Echo Genesis

2006-07-18T12:16:00.000Z

Echo Genesis is an interactive experience which throws you into a world where you can explore five unique environments. It is a digital media feast for the senses with a heavy emphasis on aural stimulation. Each of the five environments has it's own musical composition. Each musical composition is made up of three separate audio tracks and these tracks are manipulated by your interaction with each environment. Let your mouse guide you as you float dreamily through each environment while interacting with the elements contained within. A simple click, drag or mouse-over is all you will need to explore the variety of ways in which each environment may be dynamically affected. This is an immersing experience which surrounds you with pleasant sights and sounds while you play. Stereo headphones strongly recommended.

This shopping site - Podzone

2006-07-18T08:58:00.000Z

Podzone brings you the very best iPod accessories out there. On this website you'll find a huge range of speakers, headphones, skins, remote controls, cables and much, much more. PodZone is THE place for all the best iPod stuff! They are constantly sourcing all over the world for the newest accessories at the very best prices. So keep going back - there's something new almost every week.

This game - Professor Fizzwizzle

2006-07-02T17:18:00.000Z

Professor Fizzwizzle is a fun, mind-expanding puzzle game, where you take control of the diminutive genius, Professor Fizzwizzle. You must help the professor use his brains and his gadgets to solve each level. Do you have what it takes to get past the Rage-Bots and bring the prof back to his lab? Professor Fizzwizzle is quite possibly the best puzzle game I have played. It manages to balance fun game dynamics with a genuine mental challenge. Great animation and sound - and you don't need speed and agility!

This time waster - Blue Suburbia

2006-06-20T08:46:00.001Z

In Blue Suburbia artist and flash designer Nathalie Lawhead creates a magnificently dramatic world filled with dark atmosphere and haunting scenes. The application is an experiment in interactive poetry - there's no real goal, purpose or progression. As you move around in this dark, disconnected world, you'll discover Nathalie's writing embedded in objects or fading between various short scenes. With no clear path, you simply explore by moving the mouse and seeing what happens and you're never really sure about what you'll stumble across next. Walking through doors, clicking on words or otherwise discovering a new area initiates a short scene interspersed with text. They're all different and fascinating to watch.

This game - The Privacy

2006-06-20T08:46:00.000Z

The Privacy is another Flash point-and-click adventure. This game is set in a high-tech, big-brother world where even the watchers are watched and elaborate security systems are commonplace. Many literary references can be found within this game, such as George Orwell's "1984", and are used as an easy means of channeling a narrative into well-traveled territory without having to actually provide much narrative content, using the power of suggestion to its full advantage. Photo-realistic environments and the high-tech theme of the game sets the stage for some absolutely stunning visuals. Every puzzle has a logical solution and none were too difficult to solve on ones own.

This viral - the home of Zing

2006-06-18T17:42:00.000Z

Welcome to MPFreedom, the home of Zing. This is the site Samsung have developed to promote it's Z5 Mp3 player. Join the Zinging community, create your own space and share your style, taste and personal playlists with the world. View other members videos as they 'zing' to their favourite music and upload your own. You can also download exclusive tracks and videos from the 'free zing' section.

This useful site - I Want One of Those

2006-06-18T14:56:00.000Z

The name says it all. This site serves up the hottest gadgets and apparel for all gadget addicts and early adopters. Even browsing here is quite entertaining. Consider offerings like the Walkie talkie watches, Shockballs, Robot Guinea Pigs, or Sudoku loo roll.

Designer essentials - The Design Directory

2006-06-18T14:45:00.000Z

The Design Directory is more than design, more than inspiration. directory.designer.am is made by designers for designers and other professionals, who are involved in different spheres of design - photographers, illustrators, architects, artists, web programmers, designers, etc. It is a multi-profile design site for anyone looking for state-of-the-art and creative ideas. The site is packed with loads of inspirational resources.

This weeks favourite - Orisinal

2006-06-15T06:10:00.000Z

Current works of Ferry Halim, freelance Flash designer. Orsinal is a collection of his Flash games, effects, experiments! Enjoy.

This shopping site - Boden

2006-06-15T05:52:00.000Z

When was the last time you…
…got your flips flopped?
Summer is here, which means that Union Jack shorts, and sandals with socks are too. We must resist this clothing unpleasantness. We must be strong, we must be bright, and we must be stripy. Boden, Summer range 2006. Good times, great clothes.

This game - Four Second Fury

2006-06-13T18:59:00.000Z

Four Second Fury is a blazingly fast-paced four-second microgame collection. You are bombarded with selection of 20 games that last for no longer than precisely four seconds. All the games are simple, yet when you've only got a few seconds they become fiendishly difficult. To clear all the tasks, you need to be quick enough in analyzing the scenario and use your skills wisely to escape from failure. Also the games are loaded in random order, so always expect something different!

This time waster - City Love Street

2006-06-13T18:26:00.000Z

There's nothing like diving into a new city and getting lost in the lanes and alleyways. Lonely Planet's Cities Book highlights a whole clutch of incredible cities to lose yourself in. For a bit of fun, they've invented a mythical cityscape and peppered it with symbols of other cities. Just roll your mouse over the hotspots and have a guess. There are 45 cities to discover. They may not be immediately obvious, but you'll get there. Each correct guess rewards you with a snippet about the city and a link to more information and fast facts. As well a playing the game you can preview the 'Cities' book itself and download any of 25 free European city guides in PDF format.

This viral - Baarmy World Cup Sheep

2006-06-11T12:24:00.000Z

A Real-life flock of singing sheep from the Lake District have recorded a World Cup anthem for the England team to inspire its players and fans to glory this summer."The "Baarmy Sheep" have released a version of the nostalgic English classic "Land of Hope and Glory" to unite the country behind the national team as the eagerly-awaited competition gets underway. The free single is available here and there is an accompanying pop video showing the world's first ever football game between sheep!

This useful site - Local Live

2006-06-10T11:25:00.000Z

Microsoft has launched a UK version of it's online mapping service Local Live, which lets you view cities from a 45-degree bird's eye view. This stunning looking service currently only covers Portsmouth, Southampton, Cambridge, and 230 square miles of London but is soon to be expanded. You can also choose to look from North, South, East or West viewpoints with superb detail. Local Live also offers local searches, driving directions and great aerial views. Improved aerial views and real-time traffic data will be added in the future.

Designer essentials - Tutorialized

2006-06-10T08:33:00.000Z

You will be well tutorialized by the time you've got through what's on offer here - all 7,073 tutorials. The content for web builders are just a fraction of the total, but there's a lot here to make this a useful site. The great thing about it is that all tutorials are submitted and rated by registered users. So, you can share your skills and tips as well as gain from other users - there's an active forum too.

This weeks favourite - Pjotro

2006-06-10T07:09:00.000Z

Pjotro - the man with the musical suit. Pjotro loves music, he loves dancing and he loves engineering. Combining these passions he has created a suit which allows him to become music. You can create a musical, dancing performance and e-mail a copy to your friends. Alternately if you want to download your creation, leave your e-mail for Pjotro to contact you when it is ready to download. The performance will be generated in a quicktime or MP3 format or as content for your mobile phone.

This shopping site - Hush Homewear

2006-06-07T08:05:00.000Z

hush sells stylish women's nightwear, loungewear and beachwear - pyjamas, nightshirts, nighties, bed shorts, lounge trousers, cotton knit jumpers, t-shirts, vest tops, singlets, sarongs, kaftans etc. Everything in short for those long lazy summer days...and nights.

This game - Soccer Challenge

2006-06-07T07:42:00.000Z

Soccer Challenge is a set of 8 mini games based on the theme of soccer (football) that has been developed to celebrate FIFA World Cup 2006. You control a small blue footballer with the mouse and must accomplish 8 challenges against time. Your global score is the sum of the 8 scores. The skills required to enter the highscores or even to become the world champion, are ability, strategy, and quickness (and being registered).

This time waster - Tangram

2006-06-05T13:30:00.000Z

The tangram is an ancient game which originated in China. A square is divided up into seven smaller pieces. The player tries to re-create a given shape by using all of the seven pieces and without any pieces overlapping. Although this may sound easy it can be pretty difficult....

This viral - Smirnoff Diamonds

2006-06-04T19:50:00.000Z

Who wants a diamond? The makers of Smirnoff are giving away a diamond worth £2000 every week for five weeks. All you have to do is enter the word 'ME' more times than anyone else! Only 7 days left....

This useful site - Planzo

2006-06-04T19:37:00.000Z

Planzo is an online calendar that makes planning your day simple and easy. What's so great about Planzo? ... check it out and see for yourself. Create a personal calendar of events for yourself and share it with your friends. Record meeting times, share party info with your friends, or notify your family about an upcoming gathering, Planzo lets you stay on top of your life while having fun at the same time. Planning and remembering events has never been easier!

Designer essentials - WebDesignersBookmarks

2006-06-02T11:49:00.000Z

The simple desire to keep web designers updated with current great resources available on the internet is the motivation behind this site. On it's cleanly designed, easy to navigate pages, you'll find links to a variety of resources tailored for web site designers, grouped into helpful categories. You don't even have to type out the URL's yourself - just click on a link and go.

This weeks favourite - Strictly Sudoku

2006-06-01T07:35:00.000Z

Play Sudoku online for free. With its easy to use features, ability to record player stats, player ratings and solvers (not to mention a hundred thousand sudoku) Strictly Sudoku is the only Sudoku bookmark you will ever need. There is a new puzzle daily, four levels of difficulty, and with it's easy to use ring selector, it's one of the best online versions of the puzzle available. It also offers a sudoku solver and sudoku tutorials to help you improve your skills. You can also receive a player rating, based on both the number and difficulty of the sudoku you have solved, if you register.

This shopping site - M and S

2006-05-31T14:19:00.000Z

M & S - you've got to admit that M&S have sorted themselves out and are once again a top retailer in the UK. Food, fashion and home ideas abound. Their sophisticated 'Autograph' collection, on-trend 'per una' range and up-to-the-minute fashion boutique 'Limited Collection' are all available along with their vintage 'Blue Harbour' range for men. Another bonus - whether you’ve seen your favourite items in the latest issue of 'Your M&S' Magazine or simply want to update your home or wardrobe, they’ve pulled together all the featured items from key articles in the magazine so you can find and buy them easily online.

This game - Base Jumping Beans

2006-05-30T07:15:00.000Z

Work your way up the base jumping leagues to become king of extreme sports. Make your bean a champion base jumper by not opening the parachute until the last moment. Most beans don't tend to do much other than sit on top of toast and wait to be eaten, so it's nice to see some more adventurous pulses live a little - although it may not be for long in this danderous game.

This time waster - Pavlov's Dog

2006-05-30T06:16:00.000Z

If you've ever fancied replicating a Nobel Prize winning experiment, but lack the time, money, resources, education, patience or any other trifling obstacle, then this is where you need to be. In this game, you will find out if you can train a dog to drool on command! Ivan Pavlov's description on how animals (and humans) can be trained to respond in a certain way to a particular stimulus, has drawn a tremendous amount of interest ever since he first presented his findings. His work paved the way for a new and objective method of studying animal and human behaviour. You can also learn more about Pavlov and his experiments along the way. There are a number of other 'educational' games to be found here too so if you've ever wanted to perform an ECG, wondered what would happen if you had a split brain or were curious about the female mosquito then take some time to look around here - you'll be surprised at what you'll learn.

This viral - Tango'ed

2006-05-28T13:55:00.000Z

Fruit Feast in Swansea. Things got fruity on two streets in Swansea, when a film crew arrived to produce an advert for a soft drinks firm. Actors were involved in throwing fruit in the air and rolling it down Cambridge Street. One resident Jean Harries volunteered to have her window smashed by a watermelon. To be replaced afterwards of course. An actress in Hazel Street was buried in apples and lemons. Whatever a part calls for! The crew finished filming late in the afternoon and donated all the unbruised "prop" fruit to residents. See the video and hear the residents reactions to the fruit invaders!

This useful site - Protopage

2006-05-27T18:01:00.000Z

Protopage gives you your own personal start pages. Using the power of Ajax technology and lots of little widgets you can:

Use it to catch up with news from hundreds of sources (including the BBC, CNN, Reuters, New York Times, London Times, CNET, ESPN, ...). Put colour coded sticky notes, to do lists and reminders on it. Keep your frequently accessed bookmarks on it. Name it. Share parts of your page with friends, or keep it private. Use it to share photos. Set it as your browser 'start page' for easy access .... and whatever else you can think of. You can create your own free page without registering but you'll need to register (it's quick and painless) to keep your pages for longer than 48 hours.

Designer essentials - Design Addict

2006-05-26T19:27:00.000Z

Design Addict is without doubt a leading design portal online, targeting the international community of design professionals and private consumers.It is an excellent resource for modern, post-modern and contemporary design of the 20th-21st centuries where you'll find information on designers and producers, on furniture, lighting, dinnerware and accessories. Browse the Design Index - an outstanding tool which will help you to discover the world of historical and contemporary design.

This weeks favourite - Puzzle Road

2006-05-25T15:33:00.000Z

Explore a neighbourhood of opposite landscapes, complete numerous challenges and learn of the wisdom of Mamie Denise. "As contrasted and as far away from each other as destinations may be they are united by roads. It is only the distances between geographical locations which create the appearance of separation. With this separation removed, all destinations become as accessible as a photo in an album and the most foreign places become neighbours. All roads lead to one destination and all destinations at once." Pictures taken alongside different roads, across different countires, are segmented and it is up to you to explore the destinations of Puzzle Road by shuffling the pictures back into place using the buttons on each side.

This shopping site - Net-a-Porter

2006-05-24T06:24:00.000Z

NET-A-PORTER is presented in the style of a fashion magazine and offers the visitor unprecedented access to the world’s cutting edge labels that fill the pages of the leading international fashion publications via worldwide express delivery.The fashion on the site represent the best looks by the trendiest labels from London, Paris, Milan, New York and Los Angeles in a prestigious line-up that includes Miu Miu, Chloé, Jimmy Choo, Bottega Veneta, Fendi and Marc Jacobs.

This game - ClickDragType

2006-05-23T19:39:00.000Z

ClickDragType presents a collection of 10 intriguing, mind-bending puzzles for your pure and unadulterated pleasure. Each puzzle is entirely independent of the others and none of them provides any instruction as for what to do. As the name implies, you will need to click the mouse, drag the mouse, and type on the keyboard to solve each of the puzzles. One of the most refreshing and enjoyable aspects of ClickDragType is that each puzzle is entirely different in concept and design to any other in the collection. A brilliant collection of puzzles - study each one carefully and observe the behaviour of each of its elements as you interact with them. Persevere and you will prevail.

This time-waster - Planarity

2006-05-22T16:50:00.000Z

Planarity is a real brain-twister. The concept is simple - you start out with a tangled series of connected dots. You have to unwind this entangled web so that no lines cross each other. Click on the little blue dots, which are called vertices, and then drag them to a new position trying to arrange the vertices so none of the lines intersect. When none of the lines intersect, you click on the "Check Solution" button. If your solution is correct, you will go to the next level. While the idea is straightforward, actually straightening things out is quite another story. In later levels the task becomes maddeningly difficult, and yet so gratifying when you finally untangle the mess. Simple but addictive!

This viral - Fone Shui

2006-05-21T16:29:00.000Z

To reflect the unique design of its newest range of home phones, particularly it's Zenith Flip SMS digital cordless phone, BT has combined the traditional rules of Feng Shui – governing object placement, environment and design – with usability and comfort to create this unique e-mail viral guide to the art of Fone Shui… are you ready to follow the path to enlightenment?

This useful site - 30Boxes

2006-05-20T16:52:00.000Z

30 Boxes was created for people looking for a robust yet simple social calendar that is easy to share with family and friends. You can:

make a calendar
add family and friends as Buddies
share all or parts of your calendar with Buddies
follow your Buddies' web stuff (like flickr, myspace, webshots, livejournal, heck, any personal blog)
customize your calendar's look and feel
publish some or all of your calendar (put it on your blog)

Try out the "sample" account. If you like it, you can sign up for your own free account.

Designer essentials - Colorcombos

2006-05-19T11:25:00.000Z

Built to help web developers quickly select and test colour combinations, Colorcombos offers a huge library of colour combinations to choose from, plus the facility to grab the colour palette from any website you enter the URL for. Particularly useful is the colour tester which allows you to see how colours work together on screen. You can then make a template from you choices of these colours to see which combinations appeal.

This weeks favourite - A Scanner Darkly

2006-05-18T06:32:00.000Z

Everything is not going to be OK. This is the official movie site and it immerses the user in themes of paranoia,surveillance and conspiracy. "A Scanner Darkly" is set in suburban Orange County, California in a future where America has lost the war on drugs. When one reluctant undercover cop is ordered to start spying on his friends, he is launched on a paranoid journey into the absurd, where identities and loyalties are impossible to decode. It is a cautionary tale of drug use based on the novel by Philip K. Dick and his own experiences. The film uses live action photography overlaid with an advanced highly stylized animation process which brings great emotional impact to create a haunting vision of the future. As well as the usual preview release trailer, gallery,etc. you can take part in a "creative expression therapy" session. You download an 'art kit' to create your own art piece using either the assets provided, your own assets or a mixture of both. You can then upload your artwork for others to rate and view.
image (c) warner independent pictures

This shopping site - Seasalt

2006-05-17T12:08:00.000Z

SeaSalt. Bright and Breezy organic cotton clothing. Seventy percent of their clothes are manufactured using organic cotton. They also produce other products like wellies, waterproof jackets and pullovers (although these are not currently available on the website). As well as their own products they also stock other brands such as Oska, Keen and Camper. They choose suppliers who make beautifully designed, functional clothing and footwear, not throwaway, disposable fashion.

This game - Fancy Pants Adventure

2006-05-16T09:14:00.000Z

Fancy Pants Adventure is a platform adventure game with excellent animation and interesting gameplay. Fancy Pants himself is an unusual stick man with a fine head of hair and bright yellow trousers. However, you won't have much time to admire his looks when you're jumping over spiders and trying to find the door to the next level. You'll be glad to hear that all the platforms you need to use are invisible!

This time-waster - Guess the Google

2006-05-15T14:10:00.000Z

Guess-the-Google is an image guessing game that uses Googles image search. Guess-the-Google picks a keyword for you and generates a montage of images related to the keyword. The player must then guess the keyword that was used to make up the image - it's surprisingly addictive!

This viral - Red JigSaw

2006-05-14T09:33:00.000Z

On Tuesday May 16th the Independent will be supporting the RED brand and 50% of all revenues will be donated to help eliminate aids in Africa. The RED brand is the initiative launched to raise money for the Global Fund to finance Aids relief projects in Africa. RED products - which stream a percentage of their profits to the Global Fund are already available from American Express, Converse, Emporio Armani and Gap.

On Tuesday the Independent will be guest edited by one of the founders of the RED initiative. To find out who, re-arrange the pieces of the jigsaw of the front page of the Independent to reveal who the guest editor is.

This useful site - Webaroo

2006-05-13T13:07:00.000Z

Take the web with you? Despite the increasing frequency of Wi-Fi hotspots, internet access anywhere, anytime is still not a reality for the average laptop user so Webaroo could offer an easy solution for offline browsing. It is a little tool which has been developed to fill the void between access and hotspots. Webaroo is a free software program and service that lets you search and browse real web pages without a connection. It scours the web and creates 'web packs' of searchable web content which you can then store on your laptop, PDA or smart phone. You can then search the content anytime anywhere without a connection. As Webaroo is offline it can't be truly up to date even though it does update content every time you do connect to the web. You don't get audio or video content with it yet either. For all that it's still a handy tool for offline browsing when you can't find a hotspot - and it's free!

Designer essentials - CssZenGarden

2006-05-12T10:43:00.000Z

O.K. so I'm not the first to discover this showcase site, and I won't be the last but if your'e a budding web designer you have to start somewhere and it should be here. Zen Garden allows you to apply different CSS style sheets to a single page - the code stays, the page is transformed, but only the external .css file changes. It's a great demonstration of what can be achieved visually through css based design, succeeding in it's attempts to excite and inspire.

This weeks favourite - Sony Ericsson's Da Vinci Code Trail

2006-05-11T18:48:00.000Z

Promoting the Da Vinci Code film Sony Ericsson have come up with their Da Vinci Code trail. Prove your worth by completing six games as fast as you can. Will you be the master codebreaker who solves the games and qualifies as a contestant in the live Sony Ericsson Da Vinci Code Trail in Paris? Finalists will be chosen according to the time taken to solve the six games so you need to think fast. Sixteen finalists will be chosen from 5 global regions. The finalists will spend four days in Paris sightseeing and visiting some of the locations from the movie. All sixteen will receive a Sony Ericsson mobile phone which they must use to keep a photo blog record of their stay in Paris. At the end of the week they will compete against each other in a live Da Vinci Code treasure trail around the city. Points will be awarded for solving clues the fastest and getting back to HQ first with bonus points for extra challenges along the way. The finalist with the most points will win the grand prize - a tour of the main cities from the Da Vinci code movie. I really enjoyed trekking my way through the puzzles and didn't find them too much of a challenge - so if you fancy your chances why not have a go. You only get one chance to enter so make sure you've got a few moments to spare when you're not going to be interrupted before you begin. Good luck!

This shopping site - Simply Beach

2006-05-10T12:29:00.000Z

Simply Beach offers designer swimwear including bikinis, tankinis, swimsuits, boardshorts and beach cover-ups. From top brands like Moontide, Seafolly, Speedo Beach; international imports such as Wahine, Sunseeker, Island Company and Banana Moon; to top fashion designers such as Gideon Oberson and Melissa Odabash. They have got beachwear for the whole family including sun protection for babies and toddlers from Sposh, Speedo and Zoggs and a great range of footwear from Reef, Aquashoe and Speedo. There is also a good range of beach towels and beach bags and a huge range of travel accessories from Design Go, Lifeventure and Od-ities.

This game - Warbears

2006-05-10T11:00:00.000Z

Warbears is a unique and original Flash point-and-click game that is played differently from anything I've seen so far and is already generating a huge interweb following.

The game puts you in control of a team of specialist agents called in for duty because of some trouble down at the local bank. You find all of the bank's employees have been taken hostage by a bunch of very mean bears with very large drill bits, and it's up to the Warbears to rescue them.

Use the different skills of the four special agents (Kla, Lucas, Ryoh and Steve) to carry out the mission to save the Bedtime bank from the robbers who have taken hostages. Rollover a Warbear to show the actions he can do. Solve all the puzzles to complete the mission. When you go wrong take the chief's advice, then start again. Warbears is a great game with beautiful graphics and stunning gameplay. Prepare to be hooked!

This time-waster - Box Clever

2006-05-09T12:29:00.000Z

The basic concept is simple - re-arrange a box to make any kind of figure or object. Paint your work on one of the images of flattened cardboard boxes. When you've finished, screencapture your masterpiece and send it in to be included in the gallery. The box doodle project is a strange but simple idea which works nicely and is addictive!