Mr. Modem
Subscriber Log in
Email:
Password:
Remember me
Forgot Your Password?

Your Computer Questions Answered Personally by Email
Newsletter subscribers get FREE access to Mr. Modem's searchable archive. More>>
Order Now
Sample Newsletter


Mr. Modem's Library

Click to View Alphabetical Index of Articles
A-C | D-F | G-I | J-L | M-O | P-R | S-V | W-Z | View All

Christmas on the Web

Long-time readers know that I like to close out every year by presenting a list of best Web sites for the holidays, chock full of holiday gift ideas Moms, Dads and the whole family can enjoy. This year will be no exception. As a professional Web site profiler, a job for which I am eminently qualified by virtue of being able to sit for prolonged periods of time, it is my responsibility to review thousands of sites each year and create a list of best Web sites. Yes, it’s a big responsibility and one that I take very seriously. If, through my vigilant diligence, I can prevent even one innocent person from squandering one precious moment by avoiding a worthless Web site, then my life’s work will not have been in vain. Here then, presented in no particular order, is a list of the best Web sites for the Christmas, Chanukah, Kwanzaa, and Festivus holiday season:

Santa’s Net is one of the best Internet sites because it is always good for general Christmas cheer, including Christmas activities, songs, recipes, and traditions. Click the Christmas Facts links for—well, some fun Christmas facts. For example, did you know that Conrad Hilton and Humphrey Bogart both died on Christmas Day? Are we having fun yet? When it comes to fun, I think you would agree that we would be hard pressed to find any more fun-loving people than the Druids. Yes, the wild and wacky Druids gave us the tradition of the Christmas tree. It actually heralds back to pre-Christian celebrations when hanging gifts (and occasionally peasants) on trees was considered a tribute to the almighty tree which was perceived to be the giver of all good things. (I said they were fun facts, not life-altering facts.)

Also on my list of best Web sites for the holidays, is Chanukah on the Net which provides a history of the Festival of Lights, plus songs, games, recipes, music, and a digitized dreidel. Go ahead and take it for a spin.

If you celebrate Kwanzaa, you won’t find any more official site than The Official Kwanzaa Web Site. Here you’ll explore the origins of Kwanzaa, which is a celebration of family, community and culture. In addition to the usual assortment of greetings, gifts, decorations and other celebratory tchotchkes, you’ll find information about Kwanzaa’s Day of Meditation, and a fact-filled Kwanzaa FAQ. Is there any doubt why this is one of the best Internet sites?

Festivus followers won’t want to miss the Festivus Web site which features Festivus essentials, movies, songs, pole selection, and guidelines for the traditional “Airing of Grievances” ritual.

Keeping track of calories this time of year is—well, disturbing behavior to say the least. Highly trained computer athletes like myself, with six-pack ASCIIs and ripped routers, know a better way: Flex on over to the Calories Per Hour Web site. Just enter an activity, its duration, your age and weight, and you'll learn the number of calories burned and their equivalent in food. For example, did you know that eight hours of computing burns up 791 calories, which equates to 9.9 apples, 3.7 Krispy Kreme donuts or 1.3 Big Macs? Select activities from a list that includes everything from accordion playing to Yoga (what, no zither?) and even includes Mrs. Modem's favorite pastime, Anishinaabe Jingle Dancing. Am I a lucky guy or what?

Now that you’re in the holiday spirit, what better time to find holiday gift ideas Moms, Dads and the entire family will love? You’ll find interesting, creative gifts at ChristmasGifts.net; unique gifts at the similarly named ChristmasGifts.com; wholesome, homemade, and extraordinarily cheap gifts at Christmas Gifts Kids can Make; or you can purchase a few always-popular holiday gift baskets from GourmetGiftBaskets.com.

With the holidays bearing down and seasonal stress mounting by the minute, how about a fast get-away vacation, or perhaps you’d like to get out of town and not return until after the holidays? If you’re into skiing, snow-plow over to GoSki.com which features more than 2,000 ski resorts in 37 countries. If you’re looking for the best airfares, check out Qixo, an exclusively airfare search engine. Perhaps you’d like to steal away with that special someone and blow the kids’ college money on a luxury vacation? If so, have your butler navigate to Luxury Link and review the hottest deals in luxury travel.

Last, but not least, perfect holiday gift ideas Moms, Dads and every computer user have been dreaming of are closer than you think! For the first time in the history of mankind, I have carefully selected more than 1,400 of the most interesting, informative, and entertaining Web sites and included them on my new, destined-to-become-a-classic, Mr. Modem’s Web CD-ROM. This list of best Web sites is segregated into 19 categories, ranging from Art, Music, Literature & Film to Wining & Dining. View an excerpt of best Internet sites from the CD or place your order today! The CD (for Windows PCs) retails for $19.95, but when placing your order online, enter MMCD in the Promotional Code field and you’ll receive this CD treasure-trove for only $12.95. All CDs are autographed and shipped (free shipping and handling) within 24 hours.

Wishing you a happy, high-tech holiday season!

Mr. M.

A-C | D-F | G-I | J-L | M-O | P-R | S-V | W-Z | View All