June marks a month off from my newly created column, “The Dalin Exchange.” I hope you have enjoyed my interviews with some of the most interesting dentists across the country. I have tried to make these discussions fun, yet filled with practical information that you can put to use immediately in your day-to-day practices.
This month, we are going to revisit the World Wide Web. I am always surfing around, checking out new sites. Instead of going with one theme, I thought I would use this column to provide you with a list of some new and exciting sites I have discovered. This is a column for all of you to have fun with. I am sure you will find many sites you will want to save to your list of “Favorites.”
◆www.gethuman.com - How many times have you called a company, only to find yourself entering a computerized maze of numbers? Wouldn’t you like to reach a human being quicker? Try this site for “codes” which will make this task quicker and easier.
◆www.pandora.com and www.last.fm - These are music discovery services that allow you to listen to streaming music online. Our patients can easily choose an artist or style of music to listen to while we are performing their dental work.
◆www.flightviews.com/traveltoolsandwww.travel.airwise.com/arrivals - These two sites come in very handy when you are supposed to pick someone up at the airport. You can track a flight and determine exact locations of the plane as well as accurate times of arrivals.
◆www.mammahealth.com - This is a meta search engine dealing with health questions.
◆www.websudoku.com - This is the rage of puzzle games. I guarantee your brain a tiring workout!
◆www.number2.com - This site will help students prepare for the ACT, SAT, or GRE exams.
◆www.foodieview.com - This is a super recipe search engine.
◆www.fatfingers.co.uk - There are thousands of items listed on eBay with typos. This site helps you to find these hidden gems that would not come up under a normal, accurate search.
◆www.babelfish.altavista.com - This is a super translator site. You can type in single words or sentences and have them translated into 12 different languages.
◆www.blifaloo.com - This site bills itself as temporary boredom relief. You will find games, useless information, magic tricks, cartoons, jokes, and more.
◆www.mattfischer.com/ramen - This site will give you a multitude of recipes that use ramen noodles, a food staple of students and new graduates across the country.
◆www.thatsthespirit.com - Here is a great reference site for drink recipes.
◆www.sorrygottago.com - When you have to get off the phone, this site will provide you with all sorts of sound files that will help you accomplish this goal. Check these out!
◆www.michaelbach.de/ot - At this site, you will find a collection of optical illusions and visual phenomena.
◆www.reversephonedirectory.com - This is one handy site. Do you ever get a telephone number on caller ID and you want to know who it is before returning the call? Type in the phone number here and you will find out where the call came from.
◆www.fuelcostcalculator.com or www.fueleconomy.gov - With gas prices going through the roof, these sites help you keep things in perspective.
◆www.howtocleananything.com - This site does just what it says, with items in just about any category you can imagine.
◆www.doityourself.com - You will find all sorts of helpful ideas on this site.
◆www.surprise.com - This site will provide you with all sorts of gift ideas, organized in a number of categories.
◆www.roadfood.com - Here you will find listings of local eateries and great regional foods.
◆www.komando.com - Kim Komando’s site gives you a lot of good information to help as you explore the Internet and work with your computer in many different ways.
◆www.snopes.com - If you need to check out any urban legends floating around, here is the site to visit.
◆www.stupidvideos.com and www.jibjab.com - I’ll end my list of fun sites to visit with these two gems. There are no words that can describe them other than “have fun!”
I hope that you will have fun surfing around checking out this list of sites. There is something for everyone here. I am sure many of these will find their way into your list of favorites.
Jeffrey B. Dalin, DDS, FAGD, FICD, practices general dentistry in St. Louis. He also is the editor of St. Louis Dentistry magazine and spokesman and critical-issue-response-team chairman for the Greater St. Louis Dental Society. Contact him by e-mail at [email protected], by phone at (314) 567-5612, or by fax at (314) 567-9047.
