Posted by Site Administrator on June 29, 2009 - No Comments

By Britney Wilkins

Now that President Obama has laid out plans to withdraw troops from Iraq, everyone’s waiting to see what Iran’s next move will be. The Middle Eastern country is acting like a tipping point for economic and political change, and the U.S. has much interest in its influence over other countries in the region in terms of oil production, the current election controversy, and more. In order to understand what comes next for Iran and the Middle East, check out these 50 lectures that will help you understand the country’s religious history, social culture, political traditions, and more.

Religion

These lectures on Iran and Islam shed light on the unique culture, history and political structure of the country.

1. Islam and Constitutional Democracy in Iran: Said Amir Arjomand from SUNY Stony Brook explains how religion and politics are intertwined in Iran.
2. Islamic Law and Feminism: Opening a Dialogue: Listen to this lecture to understand how feminism and Islam are sometimes at odds.
3. Interpreting Islam: Politics, the Media and the Academy: Discover the multi-faceted nature of Islam.
4. Islam and Modernity: The Problem with Paradise: Ziauddin Sardar reflects on how Islam and progress can be reconciled and what modernity means to Muslims.
5. Islam and Modern Science: This lecture from MIT studies the relation between Islam and modern science.
6. Radical Islam and the Western Media: How Accurate is the Portrayal?: This lecture challenges Westerners to be more critical when listening to media interpretations of Islam.
7. Religious and Cultural Politics in Post-Revolutionary Iran: Read summaries of a lecture series from St. Antony’s College about religion’s place in Iran’s new society.
8. Islamic Political Philosophy: Understand how all of these forces work together.
9. Islam: A Truly American Religion?: Jane Smith addresses Middlebury College and considers how Muslims are immigrating to the U.S. and influencing its own religious culture.
10. God, Nature or Man: Whose Law for a Free People? The Experience of Islam: This Princeton University lecture aims to clarify the ideologies of Islam.
11. Unholy War: Terror in the Name of Islam: Learn more about religious extremists and their call to jihad.

Culture and Society

Persian culture has long influenced other societies around the world, and these lectures pay homage to Iran’s literature, music, and more.

12. Iran Musical Culture in Central Asian Environment: Learn about Persian music and how it is a microcosm for a study of Iran’s geopolitical significance.
13. In Search of the Secret of Survival: Reflections on the Khurasanian Cultural Resurgence: This lecture explains how this cultural group survived.
14. The Origins of Literary Persian: Learn about Persia’s strong literary history when you read this lecture.
15. Answering Only to God: Faith and Freedom in Iran: Foreign correspondent Jonathan Lyons explores faith’s place in Iranian society.
16. Freedom of Expression, Freedom of Dissent: Study the American tradition of freedom of expression and dissent, and then consider what it would be like to live in a society without those freedoms.
17. Persian Influence on Literary and Sufi Traditions in South Asia: Consider how the Persian influence stretches from music to literature to politics and beyond.

History and Politics

Check out the lectures in this list for a review of Iran’s political history and its current policies.

18. The Islamic Republic of Iran After 30 Years: Find out how the Iran revolution is affecting other nations in the Middle East.
19. In Sickness and in Power: The last Shah of Iran is used as an example for studying how illness affects heads of government.
20. Europe and the Middle East: Future Partners in a Free World?: This lecture from the American University in Cairo takes a look at the relationship dynamics between Europe and the Middle East.
21. New Trends in Acheamenid History: Learn about this ancient Persian empire and its significance in Mediterranean history.
22. The Current Crisis in the Middle East: Noam Chomsky discusses the Middle East conflict in 2006 at MIT.
23. Is There an Ultimate Use for Historians? Reflections on Safavid History and Histriography: Consider why an understanding of history is relevant to mapping out the future.
24. China and Iran: Ancient Partners in a Post-imperial World: Learn more about the partnership of China and Iran.
25. Iran: War or Peace?: In 2007, Kenneth Pollack speculated about the possibility of war between the U.S. and Iran.
26. Power, Faith and Fantasy: History of the U.S. in the Middle East: Micael Oren, senior fellow at the Shalem Center, gives a crash course in the history of U.S. involvement in the Middle East.
27. Brokering Peace in the Middle East: Middle East ambassador Dennis Ross, along with the Boston Globe’s former London Bureau Chief Kevin Cullen, discuss the history and political dynamics of the Middle Eastern conflict.
28. How War in Iraq Strengthened America’s Enemies: Peter W. Galbraith looks at the failures and effects of going to war with Iraq.
29. How Hyperpowers Rise to Global Dominance: Yale law professor Amy Chua references the ancient Persian empire when discussing hyperpowers and the future of the U.S.
30. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad at Columbia University: Read a transcript of Iranian leader Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s lecture to Columbia University from 2007.
31. Is Democracy a Universal Value?: Listen to this talk as a way to question whether or not democracy could and should work for everyone.
32. Obama’s War: Why We Are Stuck in Iraq: Consider the U.S. presence in the Middle East from another angle, and try to predict what’s next for the region in terms of policy and conflict.

Economics

Understand Iran’s economic significance when you read, watch or listen to these lectures.

33. A Perspective on Iran’s Post-Revolution Political Economy: Jahangir Amuzegar lectures about Iran’s economic status after the revolution in 1979.
34. Religion and the Market: Are They in Conflict?: By studying how religion and economics impact one another, you may have a better understanding of how Iran’s market operates.
35. The Perfect Economic Storm: Ron Cooke credits Iran as "storm cell 3" in the perfect economic storm that is to come.
36. The Rise of "The Axis of Oil" — Big Trouble for the United States: In 2006, Richard Bell includes Iran in the big fight for oil.

Global Relationships

This group of talks considers how Iranian politics and culture influence and are influenced by other countries like the U.S.

37. The World’s Third Space: Neither Global Nor National: Saskia Sassen’s lecture considers the effects of globalization, including terrorism, politics and more.
38. PW Singer on military robots and the future of war: Discover the future of technology’s impact on war, including how it will be used in Iraq and Iran.
39. After Liberation: The Challenge of Iraq: Consider what could happen to Iran if the U.S. decided to send troops to Iran.
40. U.S. Policy Toward the Middle East: Take a look at how the U.S. addresses countries in the Middle East.
41. Noam Chomsky Lectures on Modern-Day American Imperialism: Middle East and Beyond: Noam Chomsky addresses a student group at Boston University and discusses the American influence over the Middle East.
42. Challenges for U.S. Foreign Policy in the Middle East: Hillary Clinton addresses Princeton University and discusses U.S. foreign policy.
43. Islam and Open Societies: Emory professor Vincent Cornell discusses how Islam identifies itself in open societies.
44. Inside the Pentagon at the Dawn of the War on Terrorism: Discover how Iran was viewed by the Pentagon after September 11, 2001.

Future

These lecturers aim to predict what’s next for Iran and the Middle East.

45. Bruce Bueno de Mesquita predicts Iran’s future: Find out Bruce Bueno’s methodology and ideas on what Iran is going to do in the next few years.
46. The Future of Iran: Ken Pollack from the Brookings Institution considers the future of Iran.
47. The Future of Islam in the West: Discover how Islam is influencing Western culture.
48. Iran: Grand Bargain, Grand Ambition: Ted Galen Carpenter from the Cato Institute discusses Iran’s "nuclear ambitions."
49. Iran: We Will Know Soon: Richard Heinberg’s lecture ponders a potential conflict between Iran and the U.S.
50. Iran: Another Puzzle Piece: Read this lecture to get a hypothesis on Iran’s defense strategies in the future.

Posted by Site Administrator on June 10, 2009 - No Comments

By Caitlin Smith

Just about everyone is on Twitter these days-celebrities, businesses, and even astronauts. You’ll also find lots of people that work in and support science, and they have lots to share. Check out our list to find 100 of the best scientific people to follow on Twitter.

General

These Twitter folk offer a general look at science.

1. @sciencemuseum: @sciencemuseum works to bring science to life and life to science.
2. @TheCuriousMind: @TheCuriousMind asks, "Got Science?"
3. @sciandthecity: @sciandthecity is the public gateway to the New York Academy of Sciences.
4. @dailyplanetshow: @dailyplanetshow offers a daily science show.
5. @sciencejobs_uk: Find science jobs in the UK and science news from around the world. here.
6. @NOVAonline: NOVAonline promises to blow your mind.
7. @2020science: @2020science is the science advisor to the Project on Emerging Nanotech.
8. @EuroSpaceAgency: Here you’ll find the stream of Europe’s space agency.
9. @PacSci: @PacSci is a not for profit foundation that works to inspire interest in science, technology, and math.
10. @SFScience Museum: South Florida’s science museum discusses exhibits and more.
11. @nysci: This museum encourages visitors to explore biology, chemistry and physics.

Technology

You’ll get a look into technology by following these Twitterers.

12. @newscientist: This publication is the world’s only science and technology weekly.
13. @Padmasree: @Padmasree is the CTO of Cisco.
14. @Wired: Here you’ll find the official Twitter feed of Wired magazine.
15. @NextGenScience: @NextGenScience is all about the intersection of science, technology, and information.
16. @krelnik: @krelnik is a software engineer, skeptic, and fan of science.
17. @glwallace: Larry Wallace is a professional executive in the wireless and online media industries.
18. @cheeky_geeky: @cheeky_geeky is a writer for O’Reilly and a number of other technology publications.
19. @thetechherald: This online magazine specializes in tech, science, security, and more.
20. @AmericanElement: Follow @AmericanElement for nanotechbiology, alternative energy, lasers, robotics, and more.
21. @alexismadrigal: This Tweeter is a Wired energy and science staff writer.

News

Stay on top of science in the news with these Twitterers.

22. @sciam: Scientific American Magazine has been sharing science news for over 150 years.
23. @sciencebase: @sciencebase is a writer in sci-tech journalism.
24. @geologynews: Follow @geologynews to get the latest and greatest geology news from around the world.
25. @scottdodd: Scott Dodd is a NRDC web editor and freelance science writer.
26. @nytimesscience: From NY Times Science, you’ll learn about science, environment, space, and cosmos news.
27. @chronsciguy: @chronsciguy offers interesting and level headed science reporting.
28. @NextwaveRay: Nextwave offers news aggregation in science and technology.
29. @VeronicaMcG: Veronica is a NASA-JPL news journalist.
30. @ScienceChannel: The Science Channel offers breaking science and technology news.
31. @science: @science offers science news from Science News Blog.
32. @DiscoveryChPR: @DiscoveryChPR offers news from the Discovery Channel.
33. @danwhnt: @danwhnt is the guy who interrupts your TV for tornado warnings.

Research

These Twitter users are involved in scientific research.

34. @argonne: Argonne is one of the Department of Energy’s largest research centers.
35. @peterschick: The Peter Schick Foundation researches for the eradication of HIV/AIDS.
36. @attilacsordas: @attilacsordas is a research scientist, biotech geek, and a coder.

Environment

Stay up to date on the environment and green living by following these Twitterers.

37. @GreenProgress: @GreenProgress has the latest green technology and environmental science news and resources.
38. @KQEDScience: Here you’ll find science and environmental coverage.
39. @greennews: @greennews offers information on the latest in green developments.
40. @ClimateChangeFx: Find climate change facts with links to major organizations from @ClimateChangeFx.
41. @globalwarming: Follow @globalwarming to learn about global warming, climate change, and environment news.

Educational

These Twitter users are involved in science education.

42. @SciSolutions: Through @SciSolutions you can get help with your research and experiments.
43. @mabsj2: @mabsj2 is a science and technology enthusiast working toward a BSc degree in bio chemistry, zoology, and botany.
44. @MDWSmith: @MDWSmith has made the move from IT consultant to molecular biology PhD student.
45. @AHAScience: Learn about science news from the American Heart Association.
46. @cephalopodcast: The cephalopodcast shares science education and ocean information.
47. oBryan: This higher education admin wants to talk about gadgets, science, outer space, statistics, technology, and more.
48. @Robert_Peterson: Robert Peterson is a scientist at UNC-Chapel Hill.
49. @Boraz: Find science communication through @Boraz.
50. @ScienceChicago: @ScienceChicago works to help connect kids and parents to fun family educational events and activities in science.
51. @pulseproject: @pulseproject podcasts university lectures and courses.
52. @calacademy: @calacademy explores, explains, and protects the natural world.
53. @ColoScienceMom: This mother of two loves science and works at a science education company.
54. @samharrelson: Sam Harrelson is an 8th grade science teacher, dad, geek, and Einstein fanboy.
55. @cbrannon: @cbrannon is a learning facilitator of 6th grade earth and space science.
56. @starstryder: @starstryder communicates about astronomy in academia.
57. @atAMNH: Find a sense of discovery in @atAMNH.

Physics

Check out these Twitter users if you’re interested in physics.

58. @AboutPhysics: Here you’ll find the About.com Physics guide.
59. @sgourley: @sgourley is a physicist, decathlete, and political advisor.
60. @materion: @materion is a common sense quantum physicist.

Astronomy

Explore space through these Twitter users.

61. @BadAstronomer: Follow @BadAstronomer to learn about the latest interesting happenings in astronomy.
62. @RobertCurrey: Robert Currey is an astrocartographer and astrologer.
63. @SpaceCenterHou: Check out Space Center Houston, the official visitors’ center of the NASA Johnson Space Center.
64. @AronSora: @AronSora loves space habitation and shares news about the field.
65. @UniGalactic: This print magazine covers space tourism, space travel, and exploration industries.
66. @SpaceFellowship: The International Space Fellowship is dedicated to the development of the aerospace industry.

Health

Follow these Twitter users to learn about the world of health.

67. @PharmaDeals: Find the most comprehensive pharmaceutical and biotechnology deals database from @PharmaDeals.
68. @NIHforHealth: The NIH works to make important medical discoveries every day.
69. @thpeppermntleaf: Amanda Snead works on nutrition research and biochemistry.
70. @KarenLangston: Karen Langston is a nutritionist and functional medicine expert.
71. @JohnsHopkins: Follow the tweets of Johns Hopkins University here.
72. @ctorgan: @ctorgan is a health scientist, and eHealth strategist.
73. @komenforthecure: Komen for the Cure is an organization that works to end breast cancer forever.
74. @drsalzmann: Dr. Daniel Salzmann is a physician in medical transalation interested in science, medicine, and traveling.
75. @thefuckingcure: This team of people has the cure for cancer.
76. @PharmaTV: PharmaTelevision is an online TV channel for pharmaceuticals and biotechnology.
77. @HutchinsonCtr: @Hutchinson is a cancer research center.
78. @wholescience: This online magazine is all about the potential power of the human mind.
79. @stanford_humsci: Here you’ll find the Stanford University School of Humanities and Sciences.

Biology

You’ll learn all about biology from these Twitterers.

80. @BiologyAnswers: Find answers to your biology questions from @BiologyAnswers.
81. @wjjessen: @wjjessen is a cancer biologist and bioinformatician.
82. @Biotechnology: This Twitter feed offers information on all things biotech.
83. @archaeology: @archaeology is an ex-archaeologist and About.com guide.
84. @rvidal: @rvidal is a biological engineer, DNA Network co-founder, science 2.0 enthusiast, and community liason at Medeley.com.

Psychology

These Twitter users offer a unique look into psychology.

85. @BetterMinds: Dr. Bruce Alexander is a hypnotherapist and former medical research scientist.
86. @PsychBrownBag: This online magazine discusses the use of science in clinical psychology.
87. @DrShock: Dr Shock is a Dutch psychiatrist working in a University hospital.

Entertainment

These Twitter users are science people you might recognize from the media.

88. @donttrythis: @donttrythis is Adam Savage from TV’s Mythbusters.
89. @WeirdSciBlog: Learn about weird science facts from @WeirdSciBlog.
90. @scifri: Science Friday is a science radio program for NPR.
91. @astroengine: @astroengine is a producer for Discovery Space.
92. @BBC_Earth: @BBC_Earth is a one stop shop for science and nature news.
93. @carlzimmer: Carl Zimmer is a science writer whose most recent book is Microcosm.
94. @BrianDunning: Brian Dunning is the host and producer of Skeptoid, a podcast that analyzes pop phenomena.
95. @Horselover_Fat: Phillip K. Dick is an American science fiction novelist, short story writer, and essayist.
96. @grantimahara: Grant is a robot builder, modelmaker, and TV host on Mythbusters.

Government

See how government is using science through these Twitter feeds.

97. @ArmedwScience: The Department of Defense shares science and technology topics through @ArmedwScience.
98. @oceanservice: The NOAA National Ocean Service is the US federal science agency for oceans and coasts.
99. @CDC_eHealth: CDC eHealth Marketing offers science based health and safety information.
100. @BILL_ROMANOS: Bill is an attorney specializing in science and related subjects.

Posted by Site Administrator on June 9, 2009 - Comments Off

Whether you’re a blogger, journalist, or writer, you know that the days of pen and paper alone are long gone. These days, you have a huge arsenal of tools at your disposal, from word processors, to content management systems, open courses, organization, and more, many of them open source and even free. Read on, and you’ll learn about 100 open source tools that can make your life as a writer easier, or even just as a student pursuing an online degree program.

1. Open Source Writers Group: Join this group to get lots of great writing resources.
2. OpenOffice Writer: OpenOffice Writer offers a fully featured, familiar, and easy to use word processor.
3. wikidPad: Use this wiki-style notepad to keep your ideas and notes together, and even cross-reference information.
4. AbiWord: AbiWord is one of the most popular open source word processors available.
5. WordIt: WordIt is a simple, small word processor with advanced features.
6. Amaya: With this web editing program, you’ll be able to update and edit your content right on the Web.
7. Bean: Use this lightweight word processor to easily write and edit.
8. PDF Creator: PDF Creator offers a simple way to create new PDF files.
9. Scribus: Use Scribus as a writing tool and desktop publishing solution.
10. yWriter: Designed specifically for writers, yWriter will keep you focused and organized.
11. Jarnal: Jarnal offers a great way to take notes, annotate documents, and more.
12. Kword: This tool offers frame-based word processing.
13. RoughDraft: This tool is great for organizing stories or screenplays.
14. NotePad++: NotePad++ is the open source version of Microsoft’s NotePad.
15. NeoOffice: In this open source suite, you’ll find a word processor for Mac users.
16. TiddlyWiki: TiddlyWiki is a wiki style notebook that makes it easy for you to take notes or hang onto ideas.

Publishing, Sharing & Content Management

Students and aspiring writers can share their writings with these useful tools.

17. MediaWiki: You’ll be able to easily publish and edit your webpages with MediaWiki.
18. Joomla!: Joomla is a very powerful open source content management system.
19. Cabos: Cabos is a simple, easy to use program for filesharing.
20. FireFTP: This FTP program works directly with Firefox, so it’s easy to get your content online.
21. Gnucleus: Gnucleus offers Gnutella search and download filesharing.
22. Drupal: Drupal is a powerful open source content management system, supporting websites, blogs, communities, and more.
23. Sun Weblog Publisher: Make publishing from StarOffice and OpenOffice super easy with this extension for WordPress, Blogger, and other blogging platforms.
24. Plone: This content management system is built on top of Zope.
25. Azureus: Azureus is a very powerful client for BitTorrent.
26. XOOPS: This dynamic web content management system is extensible and object oriented.
27. WebGUI: WebGUI offers a web application framework and web content management.
28. NVU: NVU is a fully featured web authoring system.
29. Filezilla FTP: Put your writing files on the web easily with FileZilla.
30. Opencms: Opencms is a professional and easy to use website content management system usable in open source environments and commercial components.

Blogging

Here you’ll find blogging platforms and more.

31. Thingamablog: This blogging application offers effortless authoring and publishing.
32. Pebble: In Pebble, you’ll find a lightweight open source blogger that’s written as a web application.
33. Juice: Use Juice as a podcasting client.
34. WordPress: Bloggers can use open source WordPress to create a customizable blog.
35. SnipSnap: This free, easy tool offers blogging and wiki functionality.
36. DLOG4J: DLOG4J offers WYSIWYG blogging and comment editing, RSS, and more.
37. Blog: This software allows you to manage a multiple topic blog and create journals.
38. PowerBlog: PowerBlog is an open source, Windows-based desktop blogging client.
39. Blojsom: Get a simple, lightweight blog package in Blojsom.
40. Piwik: Use Piwik to monitor your blog’s stats.
41. Google Blog Converters: This software allows you to easily move blog posts and comments over from service to service.
42. Roller: Roller is an open source J2EE blog platform.
43. Blogunity: Blogunity offers community based blogging software.

Dictionary & Spell Check

Make sure your writing is impeccable with the help of these tools for students of writing.

44. GNU Aspell: GNU Aspell offers advanced open source spell checking.
45. WordNet: Use WordNet, and you’ll be able to look up loads of language data.
46. JaLingo: Look up dictionary words right from your desktop using JaLingo.
47. SpellJax: Make sure your spelling is perfect with SpellJax.
48. WordWeb: WordWeb offers a dictionary as well as a thesaurus.
49. Word Count Plus: Find out how many words you’ve written with the help of Word Count Plus.
50. Bibus: Use Bibus to make sure you’re properly citing your sources.
51. StarDict: Use this tool to look up words in your own dictionary desktop.
52. WBOSS: This open source script will allow you to paste text and find spelling errors.
53. GNU Style and Diction: Use GNU Style and Diction to ensure that your writing is free of cliches and other common problems.
54. Graviax: Get a quick grammar check using this tool.

Organization

These tools will give you the power to keep everything together.

55. Research Assistant: Keep your research organized with this useful tool.
56. EverNote: With EverNote, you can store and organize your writing information.
57. Celtx: Celtx makes it easy for you to keep all of your writing organized, especially if you use lots of special formatting.
58. Sonar: Use Sonar to keep track of your publishing submissions.
59. LyX: Using LyX, you can organize and format your writing.
60. StorYBook: Keep all of your data coherent and organized with the help of StorYBook.
61. Tellico: Use Tellico to easily manage any collection, whether it’s your writings or reference materials.
62. TreePad Lite: With the help of TreePad, you’ll be able to keep track of your notes, reference materials, and more.
63. SAMM: Stay on top of your writing submissions and more with SAMM.

Inspiration

These tools will help you explore and become inspired.

64. XMind: Map out your concepts with the help of XMind.
65. Prompts: Use Prompts to get inspiration and get your creative juices flowing.
66. Freemind: With this mind mapping tool, you’ll be able to explore all of your great ideas.
67. Comapping: Comapping allows you to map ideas in real time with multiple users.

Communication

Stay in touch and collaborate with the help of these tools.

68. Zimbra: Use this email solution that offers backup and recovery, anti spam and anti virus, and more.
69. Pidgin: Use Pidgin to connect multiple IM accounts at once.
70. Rubrica: Rubrica is an address book manager for GNOME.
71. Asterisk: Asterisk is a complete telecommunications platform.
72. Gaim: You’ll be able to chat on just about any platform with this tool.
73. Mozilla Thunderbird: Mozilla Thunderbird has lots of great features for email, including powerful spam filtering.
74. Miranda: Miranda is an instant messenger that supports loads of different systems.

Media

Prepare videos, audio, images, and more for the web and beyond with these tools.

75. GIMP: With this powerful image editor, you’ll be able to prepare images for publication.
76. VirtualDub: VirtualDub is a video capture and processing utility.
77. Miro: Miro is a fully featured video tool for you to use.
78. ImageMagick: ImageMagick makes it easy for you to create, edit, and compose bitmap images.
79. Gallery: Gallery is an open source photo sharing project with basic photo manipulation.
80. Paint.NET: Paint.NET is a graphics editor that offers a great interface.
81. Pencil: You can create hand drawn animations with the help of Pencil.
82. MediaCoder: MediaCoder: MediaCoder is a free universal batch media transcoder.
83. Inkscape: Bring your writing work to life with original drawings, maps, and other illustrations.
84. Artweaver: Get creative and add artistic effects with Artweaver.
85. Audacity: Audacity is a simple sound recording tool.

Utility

Here you’ll find a variety of tools that make working easier. 

86. Launchy: Launchy will make it easy for you to get all of your important programs open with just a few keystrokes.
87. ZManda: Make sure you back up your important information with the help of ZManda.
88. Mozilla SeaMonkey: Mozilla’s Sea Monkey offers an all in one solution for web editing, chatting, email, and browsing.
89. Spreeder: Do all of your reading faster with the help of Spreeder.
90. Docvert: With Docvert, you can convert old files into a new, more usable format.
91. ASuite: ASuite offers a great way to keep your important documents and more on your USB drive.
92. Writer’s Tools: This all around tool will help users of OpenOffice with document backup, translation, and more.
93. TrueCrypt: Using TrueCrypt, you’ll be able to send material in a secure way.
94. Eraser: With Eraser, you can remove sensitive data from your hard drive.
95. Mozilla Firefox: Use this open source browser for research and more.
96. phpMyVisits: Use this software for website statistics, audience measurements, and more.
97. PeaZip: PeaZip is a great tool for extracting and packing writing file archives.
98. EyeOS: EyeOS makes it easy to create a mobile desktop, so you can work from anywhere.
99. SuperShredder: Make sure your sensitive files are shredded with SuperShredder.
100. txt2tags: Get your text coded easily with this open source program.

Posted by Site Administrator on June 3, 2009 - No Comments

By Caitlin Smith

Whether you’re into classics, mysteries, or a fluffy romance novel, it can sometimes be a challenge to find new books to fall in love with. However, the Internet is full of great sites that can help you get connected with books that you’ll really enjoy reading. Check out these communities, review sites, and other outposts of quality books to discover great stories.

Communities

Discuss books you love, swap titles, and share your opinion on these sites.

1. LibraryThing: Join this community of book lovers to catalog your books and find out what others are reading.
2. BookTalk: On BookTalk, you’ll find an online reading group and book discussion forum that can help you discover new books.
3. Goodreads: Use Goodreads to get book recommendations, keep track of what you’re reading, and socialize over books.
4. Listal: On Listal, you can list, rate, and discover books and other media.
5. Scribd: Find out what documents others are reading on Scribd.
6. BookMooch: Using BookMooch, you can exchange books with other members.
7. BookJetty: BookJetty will help you keep track of your books, see what others are reading, and check availability at your local library.
8. BookCrossing: BookCrossing offers "catch and release" used books, allowing you to share what you’ve read and discover new reads along the way.
9. SwapTree: In this community, you’ll be able to trade your books and other items.
10. Shelfari: Build a virtual bookshelf, see what others are reading, and discover new books through Shelfari.
11. BookMesh: Use BookMesh to experience your city’s book culture by connecting with other book lovers, book clubs, events, and more.
12. Reader2: You can find new books to read and put your reading list online with Reader2.
13. lib.rario.us: This site makes it easy to create a social catalog of your favorite books and discover what others love.
14. aNobii: You can create and find book lists within this reading community.
15. WhatsOnMyBookshelf?: This site offers readers a way to trade books with a simple point system.
16. Revish: Read, review and share books with other Revish members.

Search

Use these search sites to carefully locate the book you want to find.

17. WorldCat: Through WorldCat, you’ll be able to find items in libraries near you.
18. Google Book Search: You can search, collect, share, and discover new books with Google Book Search.
19. BookHitch: This gateway to books will allow you to search through thousands of publishers and authors to find a great read.
20. AddALL: AddALL offers a smart way to search and compare prices on books.
21. Bookspace: Hennepin County Library’s bookspace offers a smart way to search for books based on authors you like, and great links to even more resources that can help you discover books.
22. BookFinder: With the help of this site, you can search for new, used, out of print, and rare books.

Book Finders

With the help of these websites, you can find the book you’re searching for.

23. Shortcovers: This book is designed to make it easy for you to find your next great read.
24. Scholastic Book Wizard: Using this wizard, you can find the perfect book for a certain grade level, topic, and more.
25. Book Sale Finder: This site will help you keep an ear to the ground for book sales.
26. Based on the Book: You’ve seen the movie, now read the book. Find your favorite books that became movies with this tool.
27. The BookHive: The BookHive features books for kids ranging from beginner chapter books to science fiction and summer reading.
28. DailyLit: Use DailyLit to browse for books by author, title, category, and more, and then read daily through RSS or email.

Lists

Get recommendations for award winning books, bestsellers, and more.

29. Overbooked: This resource for ravenous readers offers booklists, hot lists, starred reviews, and more.
30. Great Books Index: Check out this index to find online great books in English.
31. New York Times Best Sellers: Here you’ll find the New York Times Best Seller List.
32. Booklist Center: You can find the world’s largest collection of book lists right here.
33. Great Books and Classics: Great Books and Classics offers a gateway to great books online.

Freebies

Read and download books for free on these sites.

34. Bored.com: Bored.com features more than 10,000 free books to help you pass the time.
35. Authorama: Authorama features more than 100 free books from a number of different authors.
36. Librivox: LibriVox offers recorded chapters of books in the public domain.
37. Questia: Questia boasts more than 5,000 free books, including rare works.
38. Spoken Alexandria Project: This audio book library offers public domain classics and more.
39. Chest of Books: On Chest of Books, you’ll find hundreds of free nonfiction books.
40. Ebook Lobby: You can find lots of free nonfiction books through this site.
41. World Public Library: Get thousands upon thousands of PDF eBooks in more than 100 languages.
42. Ficton.us: Visit Fiction.us to find full length novels, poetry, and more.
43. The Online Books Page: Check out this page to find over 35,000 free books on the web.
44. Public Bookshelf: Check out this online library to find classic and modern works.
45. Books Should Be Free: You’ll find an excellent collection of audio books on this site.
46. FullBooks: This site offers thousands of books in fiction and nonfiction.
47. Public Literature: Public Literature is full of free books, plays, and more, from the classics to modern works.
48. Book Stacks: On Book Stacks, you can find a number of ebooks that can be read online or by using PDF.
49. Project Gutenberg: Be sure to pay a visit to Project Gutenberg, where you’ll find an impressive collection of open source and copyright expired works.
50. Classic Authors: Check out Classic Authors to get access to a bunch of free, HTML classic books.
51. The Literature Network: You’ll get access to thousands of pieces of literature, author biographies, and more through the Literature Network.
52. Gilead: Pay a visit to Gilead for translations of fairy tales and stories by Hans Christian Andersen.
53. ManyBooks: ManyBooks boasts a collection of more than 20,000 free books that can be read on a PDA, iPod, or other mobile device.
54. Page by Page: Visit this site to get access to hundreds of classic books.

Reviews

These sites will provide you with informed opinions about different books out on the market today.

55. Hip Librarians Book Blog: Check out the Hip Librarians blog to find books that librarians like.
56. Book Review: On this site, you’ll be able to find a database of book reviews and author interviews.
57. Booklist Online: Booklist Online offers book reviews from the American Library Association.
58. The New York Review of Books: This site offers reviews of all kinds of books.
59. A Striped Armchair: This blog offers reviews of the blogger’s current readings.
60. NPR Books: NPR offers book reviews, news, and author interviews.
61. BookPage: Here you’ll find the online edition of BookPage, an excellent source for book reviews.
62. Smart Bitches, Trashy Books: Find fun reviews of romance novels on this blog.
63. Salon Books: Read Salon’s Book section to find author inteviews, book reviews, and book news.
64. Shvoong: Find summaries and short reviews for books and more on Shvoong.
65. Sunday Book Review: The New York Times offers a look at new books every Sunday.
66. AllReaders: Find detailed book reviews on the AllReaders site.
67. BookSpot: Be sure to visit BookSpot to find book reviews, awards, lists, and more.
68. Bookideas: Bookideas offers book reviews in all categories.
69. Review a Day: Find a new review each day on this site.
70. ForeWord: ForeWord offers independently published reviews of good books.
71. CNN Book Reviews: CNN takes a look at current books.
72. Amazon Listmania: On Listmania and other parts of the Amazon site, you can find lots of recommendations for great books.

Blogs

Follow these book blogs to find recommendations, news, reviews, and current book readings.

73. Blog of a Bookslut: This popular blog offers reviews, book news, and more.
74. Powell’s Books Blog: Get book news, author guest bloggers, and more from this publisher’s blog.
75. A Work in Progress: Dani Torres shares adventures in reading.
76. Books: The New York Times book blog highlights new releases, best sellers, and more.
77. The Book Lady’s Blog: This blogger works as a bookseller and bookstore event planner, sharing her love of reading and excellent books.
78. Maud Newton: Maud Newton covers literary links, amusements, politics, and rants.
79. Book Club Girl: Book Club Girl shares great books and more with other book club girls everywhere.
80. The Book Oven: This blog is about books and text in the digital age.
81. The Big Bad Book Blog: Find fun commentaries, useful insights, and more from this blog written by the Greenleaf Book Group.
82. BookBlog: Visit Adina Levin’s blog to learn about books Adina’s been reading, as well as social software and other stuff.
83. Bookninja: Bookninja offers a look at the latest happenings in the world of books.
84. Inside Google Book Search: This blog from Google Book Search highlights recent interesting finds.
85. Scandinavian Crime Fiction: This blog celebrates high quality crime fiction that is being translated into English from Scandinavian countries.
86. How books got their titles: On this blog, you’ll learn about the stories behind book titles.
87. Books Blog: Guardian’s book blog highlights authors, literature history, and more.
88. Beattie’s Book Blog: This blogger shares what he’s reading and what is currently impressing him.
89. DogEared Book Blog: Young adults offer their reviews of books on National Geographic Kids.
90. Confessions of an Idiosyncratic Mind: On this blog you’ll find crime fiction and more.
91. Bookride: Bookride offers a guide to the most wanted and collected books.
92. Kate’s Book Blog: Read the blog to learn about books that make the blogger think.
93. Readers Read: Check out Readers Read to find a book blog, book reviews and other book resources.
94. So Many Books: This blog discusses the agony and ecstacy of a reading life.
95. Used Books Blog: Find out what this blogger in the book industry is currently reading.
96. Classical Bookworm: On Classical Bookworm, you’ll find news, reviews, and more for classical books.

Shops

These online bookstores are great resources for finding out what books are for sale these days.

97. AbeBooks: Find new, used, rare, and out of print books on AbeBooks.
98. Alibris: Snap up some interesting finds and share a few of your own in this marketplace.
99. Hard to Find Books: Check out this bookstore to find new, used, and rare fiction.
100. Barnes and Noble: One of the biggest names in books, Barnes and Noble can provide you with an excellent variety of books to check out.