1_ Twitter - Twitter is a service for individuals and

							1) Twitter - Twitter is a service for individuals and organizations to
communicate and stay connected through the exchange of quick,
frequent messages. People write short updates, often called "tweets" of
140 characters or fewer. These messages are posted to your profile or
your blog, sent to your followers, and are searchable on Twitter
search.

2) SKYPE - This is a wonderful service that you can download in a few
minutes. Skype allows you to call, chat or do conduct a
videoconference to any other computer in the world (for free) that also
has skype. There are also some features that you can pay for (such as
calling from a computer to a phone or setting up voicemail).


3) PLAXO - Plaxo is a program that you can download and use to keep
your address book, calender and other items in sync across multiple
computers and online. I have this to be incredibly useful when I am
traveling and need to find a contact's phone number of e-mail
address. The system also has an automatic up-date feature to stay
current on your colleagues addresses. They do have some options they
charge for, but I only use the free system.


4) FOXMARKS - Is an interesting program that allows you to
synchronize your bookmarks across multiple computers and keep
them up-to-date.


5) Download.Com - This is a site sponsored by the technology
site CNET and a wonderful resource to learn about various programs
(anti-virus, firewalls, system tools, educational programs, etc.) The site
rates programs and also has user and editorial reviews. Many of the
programs here are available for free.


6)OPEN OFFICE OpenOffice.org is a multiplatform and multilingual
office suite and an open-source project. Compatible with all other
major office suites, the product is free to download, use, and
distribute. This is a great alternative to some office programs that cost
money.


7) FIREFOX This is an open source Internet Browser (and they have
Thunderbird a very useful e-mail program). I have found Firefox to be
much more flexible, fast and user friendly than many of the
commercially available programs (and they are always doing updates).


8) NING This site is hosted on a Ning Platform. Ning is the only online
service where you can create, customize, and share your own Social
Network for free in seconds. Thus if you would like to create your own
social networks you can do this for free and experiment.



9)SPYBOT - This is a very useful and free tool to help keep your
computer spyware and adware free.


10) CharityFocus A wonderful community that provides free webdesign
tools and in some cases (through an application process) free
volunteer webdesign to select nonprofits.


11) NETSQUARED - Our mission is to jumpstart the leading edge of
online technological change -- and to help nonprofits use that edge to
change the world. Netsquared is a venue for learning skills, sharing
experiences and developing expertise.


12) Music and Networking Sites - There are several sites I personally
enjoy using that provide access to online streamable music from all
over the world. Through using the sites you can learn about many
different genres of music and listen to new artists, network with other
listeners and much more. These include Grooveshark (I think free in
most countries),Pandora (I think it is only accessible to people in the
US), and Lastfm (free in select countries).


13) ZOTER0 - is a free, easy-to-use Firefox extension to help you
collect, manage, and cite your research sources. It lives right where
you do your work—in the web browser itself.


14) GOOGLE Grants - is a unique in-kind donation program awarding
free AdWords advertising to select charitable organizations. We
support organizations sharing our philosophy of community service to
help the world in areas such as science and technology, education,
global public health, the environment, youth advocacy, and the arts.


15) Dimdim.com - Free web conferencing that actually works well!
16) Foursquare.com - A mobile application that allows users to "check
in" to physical locations.


17) EduFire.com - Teach a class or take one online. Non-credit courses
in anything from test prep to cooking!


18) Yola.com - Basic website construction software that's very easy to
use


There are many other sites out there. What are your top
recommendations?