ART & LITERATURE
BOOKS & PERIODICALS
MUSIC
•Pittsburgh Music Scene
CINÉMA
KID STUFF
HISTORY & SOCIETY
INTERNET RESOURCES
WEB LIFE
COMMERCIAL
POLITICS
CHARITY/NGO
ALTERNATIVE ENERGY
The Fairvale Public Library -- With Flannery at the helm you know there'll always be something worthwhile to connect with. Contains links to the major online collections of literature. Survey the Western canon without leaving your computer. Nothing to buy (although it may lead you to consider that maybe there's something to those eBooks and RocketBooks, after all). No assembly is required (but varying degrees of navigation are).
WebMuseum, Paris -- Don't miss this if you like fine art. Lots of links to tons of great work. A caveat here is that the image size (not just file size) is large -- 800 x 800 pixels and up) and while this provides images of higher than usual resolution, it disables all but those with the largest monitors from seeing the entire image at a glance. This is a small quibble, but nonetheless germane to your experience of this link. That said, you won't want to miss this Cezanne Exhibit, just for starters. Then there's the AMAZING close-up details on some paintings. Check out this look at Pollock's Full Fathom Five. And don't forget to check out Stuart Davis, the most copacetic of them all.
Mark Harden's Artchive -- You could spend quite a while at this site exploring all the art they have available for perusal. Tons of great stuff, decently reproduced and viewable in pop-up windows. A true Virtual Art Museum. There are, however, some glaring omissions. Stuart Davis and Romare Bearden, just for starters...
Artcyclopedia: The Fine Art Search Engine -- Handy resource. Regularly updated. Check it out. You could start with Andy Warhol, Romare Bearden, or how about Wassily Kandinsky?
AbsoluteArts.com -- A web hub for the DIY art world. Check out amateur and semi-pro artworks ranging from the totally obscure to the completely unknown alomg with the occasional, "hey, wait a minute, I know that guy/gal!"; or post your own art work on the site at no charge. Also contains a regurlarly updated section of links to art exhibits around the world and regional art news links to the art scenes in many major cities, including Pittsburgh.
Jim Breen's Ukiyo-E Gallery -- A fabulous selection of full-screen size images of Ukiyo-e prints by masters such as Hiroshige, Hokusai, Utamaro, and about a dozen others. Comes complete with an equally fabulous selection of pertinent links. If you would like to experience and explore the centuries old tradition of Japanese wood-block printing and the "Floating World" from which it received its name, then this is the place to start.
The Woodblock Prints of Ando Hiroshige -- Go here now!
Maxfield Parrish Online Gallery -- Great selection of images along with some good links(although several have expired).
The Rockwell Gallery Collection of Norman Rockwell Art -- Nice site, holding approximately 100 images, each individually enlargeable.
The Loomis Project (now defunct - but still accessible -- see note below) -- Andrew Loomis was one of the all time great instructors of classic illustration techniques. His greatest work for the general public was Figure Drawing for All It's Worth. Sadly (not to mention inexplicably: "Hello, Pearson PLC [who presumably still has the rights]-- WAKE UP!"), this great work has been out of print for over two decades. Now, amazingly-- through the good graces of Yoyodyne Production Systems-- this masterwork has been posted on the web IN ITS ENTIRETY and full-size to boot. PLEASE NOTE: Amazingly, even though the Loomis Project is no more, you can stil access it via the one and only Wayback Machine, by clicking right here. All the links are -- or at least were when we posted this --- still active and take you to a recreation of the entire site. Incroyable!
Illuminated Manuscripts from the Collection of the Bodleian Library of Oxford University --There's about a thousand images culled from one of the world's most important collections of illuminated manuscripts.
The William Blake Archive -- Awe-inspiring William Blake resource. It's all here. It may take you a little while to figure out how it works, but it's well worth the effort.
William Faulkner on the Web --Fabulous All-Faulkner Site with an heavily interlinked site architecture that structurally mirrors the interconnection of Faulkner's literary works.
Tender Buttons: Gertrude Stein Online -- A very nice site devoted to the study and promulgation of Stein and her works.
The Ralph Ellison Webliography -- A good place to start to learn more about one of the most insightful thinkers and writers of the 20th century.
Online Center for Gidean Studies-- If you're into André Gide then chances are you're already familiar with this site; if not, then you're in for a treat. If, on the other hand, you're only superficially aware of Gide and would like to learn more, then this super site by local web-whiz Todd Sanders, is certainly the place to start. And while you're at it, you might want to check out his other site, french lit. research
Blackmask.com -- Did you ever wonder where all the old pulp novels went? Yes, you've guessed it, they're now on-line. The Shadow, Doc Savage, The Avenger and many others, along with much, much more in the way of literary production are all available to read-- at no cost-- online from Blackmask.com. Check it out!
SCIENCE FICTION
Majic 12 -- Describes as well as promotes the integration of science fiction into society in general and popular culture in specific. Created and managed by Pittsburgh-based pop-culture maven, Phillip Shropshire-- who does not shy away from expressing his own views in essays, fiction and art as well as in his many reviews (including those for Locus.com)-- Majic 12 will link you to many of the facets of SF on the web. To experience the full brunt of Shropshire's rhetorical onslaught, check out his dissenting opinion on Harlan Ellison's latest lawsuit. Full Disclosure: You might notice a plug for this site on Majic 12, as Phil is an old pal of ours; if Spy magazine were still around we would qualify for "Log-Rolling In Our Time."
Science Fiction Resource Guide -- Links to all things SF, last updated 13 November 2000.
Dr. Sparks' Science Fiction Site at Clemson , 2001 Edition -- An engaging amalgam of Professor and student SF Sites.
James Tiptree, Jr. World Wide Website -- Good introduction -- with time-line and bibliography -- of the science fiction author whose works address crucial issues that are currently being almost totally ignored; to our great peril. While practically all her works are currently -- and criminally -- out of print, they are easily found on ABE and half.com.
American Pulp Magazines Cover Gallery -- This site offers a mind-boggling selection of American Science FIction, Fantasy & Horror pulp magazine covers from the 1920s through the 1950s. Included are huge runs of such seminal pulps as Amazing Stories and Weird Tales. The site is hosted by L'ENCYCLOPEDIE FRANCOPHONE DE LA SF, so the text is all in French, but it's fairly easy to navigate as the titles are still in English. Just click on the thumbnail images for a full size scan of the cover. It's amazing! And, if you feel like even more, scroll to the bottom of the opage for even more!!!
Arts & Letters Daily -- This is a really, really great site -- one of the best on the web -- it links to EVERYTHING. Check it out!
Yes! -- This quarterly print magazine also has a strong online presence, and both are dedicated to "Building a Just and Sustainable World." Highly recommended to anyone interested in building a better tomorrow (which should be everyone, right?). For starters, check out this excellent climate solutions resource guide prepared for the Spring 2008 issue.
The Ganzfeld Online -- The companion site to The Ganzfeld, a quite interesting journal that manages to situate comics in the world of literate, artistic culture in a way that makes it all seem so natural, like the way it should be, like... hey! maybe it is... Neat stuff galore here. Don't forget to check out their links page.
The High Hat -- A great online magzine that provides excellent critical studies of so many facets of American culture that it manages to put to rest once and for all the whole notion of high and low; if it's good, it's good, and that's all there is to it. Includes Chris Lanier's superb comics critiques on the likes of Fort Thunder/Matt Brinkman and Ron Rege's Skibber Bee Bye.
PopMatters -- Yes, this is a big budget, commercial, advertising-driven site, but, that said, it's about as hep as they come, and has a regular comics feature, so we have to say: it's worth a look. On what other commercial site will you find in-depth pieces on Julie Doucet and Harvey Pekar, as well as Brooklyn-based troubadour (and ex-pat Pittsburgher) Reid Paley?
Rain Taxi: Online Edition -- A well written online journal that covers areas likely to of interest to Copacetic Customers. This link will take you to the archive. For the latest issue, click here.
Smokebox -- a non-profit, bimonthly e-zine. Much interesting reading.
McSweeney's -- Well, most people seem to fall into two camps concerning McSweeney's: either they're into it or they aren't; those who are into it probably already know about their site, and those who aren't probably wouldn't care to know; but, as always, there are some people who fall into neither camp -- if you consider yourself one of them, then this link's for you!
The New Yinzer -- Pittsburgh's very own online magazine. And it's all archived online! with a user friendly interface!
Ladyfriend Zine -- Learn more about Christa Donner's zine about ladies and their friends.
Gearhead Magazine -- Whether you suffer from LaVella nostalgia, or are interested in his freewheeling amalgamation of muscle cars and Let-The-Good-Times-Rock-'N'-Roll music, all done in the DIY spirit that is punk rock's greatest legacy, this is the site for you. And don't forget to check out Gearhead Radio™.
Wayne Wise's Web-Site -- Learn more about Wayne Wise-- the Pittsburgh area comic book store clerk who made good-- and his new novel, King of Summer, which is now available for purchase at the Copacetic Comics Company and other fine retail establishments, as well as direct from Wayne himself.
Slate -- "Why Slate?" you might well ask. "Everybody already knows about Slate. And, doesn't, like, Microsoft™ own it, or something?" Well, the answer to "Why Slate?" is pretty much this: they gave James Sturm a week-long Journal to plug the launch of The Center for Cartoon Studies. It's archived, so you can still read the whole thing, starting here.
TV Radio World: Your Internet Broadcast Directory and Listing of Radio Television Stations on the Web -- Whether you want to locate a particular station on the web, or just want to explore what's out there, make this site your first stop. And despite the fact that this is listed under music, there's a lot more besides that you can connect with here.
The BBC -- While we're on the subject of the world of radio, we would be quite remiss not to provide you with a direct link to what is, in all liklihood, its single most important broadcasting source--The BBC. This page will not only fill you on what's happenning but will allow you to immediately connect and listen in to BBC 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and more.
Classical Net -- An exhaustive database of classical music. Whether you're a life-long devotee, an afficianado, or a novice, it's worth your while to check out this site when in search of anything pertaining to classical music (at least, of the Western world, anyway).
The Classical Music Department of the WWW Virtual Library -- This is a hub site with zillions of links to the world of classical music.
Bob Keller's Jazz Page -- An amazing array of links dedicated to furthering your awareness of all things jazz. Well worth a visit.
The Red Hot Jazz Archive -- Jazz before 1930. An awesome site with viewable short early jazz films, essays, info on early jazz pioneers, and... OVER 2000 CLASSIC JAZZ TUNES in Real Audio 3 format for your listening pleasure! These are complete recordings, NOT excerpts. If you don't know where to start, we suggest getting in on the ground floor with Louis Armstrong's Hot Five.
JazzDisco.org -- If you have a discographical question concerning jazz, make this your first stop. Who played what, when, with who, for what label? Trying to find a record can't remember the label? Trying to find a song and can't remember the record? Trying to find a record, can only rembmer the name of the song? These and many other questions maly be answered here. This fully indexed and searchable database is a labor of love compilied and maintained by the Jazz Discography Project (Nobuaki Togashi, Kohji 'Shaolin' Matsubayashi andMasayuki Hatta). All Reet!
Satchography.com -- The Louis Armstrong Discography and more. Excellent site dedicated to the recordings of Louis Armstrong. Amazing cut by cut and take by take details of every single one of Louis's recording sessions. There's enough info here to keep you checking the bins at Jerry's Records for the rest of your life. It's very comforting, in a way, going through this site, knowing that no matter how much Louis one might manage to get a hold of there will always be a new surprise waiting.
The Duke Ellington Society -- This one has moved around a bit and is currently being reconstructed. There's an older version, here.
The Official Raymond Scott Site -- Learn more about the composer of Powerhouse and other quirky unpigeonholeable compositions. If you don't know anything about Scott or want to learn more, here's where to start.
Miles Ahead: The Miles Davis Website -- Everything you wanted to know about the work of Miles Davis. It also has incorporated the Charlie Parker Discography.
BobDylan.com -- The All-Bob Site, including complete song lyrics and one minute RealPlayer™ music files of many (all?) his Columbia Records/Sony Music releases. An excellent site definitely worth checking out.
The Internet Beatles Album -- A fairly interesting and well designed Beatles site.
Axis: A Jimi Hendrix Experience -- The best place to start for Hendrix on the web. Includes a Lyrics page, although it's unlikely to be complete as Hendrix's releases are so scattered that a few invariably seem to fall through the cracks.
Independent Lens on Parliament Funkadelic: One Nation Under a Groove -- This is a link page for all things Parliament Funkadelic, one that will help bring you up to speed on the truly amazing conglomeration of musical and spiritual genius that is P-Funk. Of special note is The Motherpage, an jam packed info page full of funky facts and figures.
David Bowie Wonderworld -- All you ever wanted to know about David Bowie and then some. Up to the minute account of everything Bowie. If you suffer from a Bowie obsession, then this could be the site for you. Including the complete lyrics (However,this page takes a long time to load. For an alternative, you could try the complete searchable lyrics from Teenage Wildlife: The Interactive David Bowie Fanpage.)
A Patti Smith Babelogue -- The All-Patti Site, including complete lyrics.
Gillian Welch's Official Home Page -- Take a few moments to familiarize yourself with one of the best. Click here for her discography, which includes not only her four studio albums -- Revival, Hell Among the Yearlings, Time (The Revelator) and Soul Journey (All currently in stock at The Copacetic Comics Co.), but numerous appearances on compilation and soundtrack albums. Gillian Welch and her musical partner David Rawlings are producing some truly moving music. If you'd like to know more, click here for a Gillian Welch capsule bio wriitten at the time of the release of her first album, Revival, in 1996.
Joe Henry -- Do yourself a favor and get hep to this cat. There's a lot on this site, including videos -- one of a complete live show -- sample tracks, blogs, liner notes, archived NPR shows, and more reviews of his latest LPs, Civilians and Blood from Stars, than you can shake a stick at.
PITTSBURGH MUSIC SCENE (BAND & LABEL) SITESThe Deliberate Strangers -- Corrallng spirits driving hard out of Appalachia and points unknown, The Deliberate Stangers mix it up with the Dark Side to save your soul.
Reid Paley -- Well, yes, technically, The Reid Paley Trio is not a Pittsburgh band; but seeing as how Reid both penned and continues to sing the line, "I must've left my heart in Pittsburgh," after having resided here for over a decade, we'd say that he continues to be a part of the Pittsburgh music scene, if only in spirit, wouldn't you?
The Modey Lemon -- Check out these crazy rock 'n' roll kids!
Anti-Flag -- These guys have moved beyond the category, but since they're rooted in and still based in the 'burgh, here they are. Punk's not dead!
Cenotaph Audio -- Yes, it's true: A local label specializing in music that is quite off the beaten path, some of which is actually produced here in the 'burgh. Check it out and see if you think it's up your alley.
CINÉMA
The one and only Internet Movie Database --One of the best resources on the web. If it's information pertaining to any and all films you are looking for, it's all here. Everything. Really. On the other hand, most films available for sale have links to Amazon.com, trying to lure your business away from your friendly neighborhood retail outlet, such as, for example, The Copacetic Comics Company. So before clicking on "add to cart" at Amazon.com give us a call or send us an email and see if we can meet or beat their price on DVDs.
The Big Cartoon Data Base -- Doing for cartoons what IMDB does for movies. If you're into cartoons, you'll definitely want to bookmark this one. Tens of thousands of cartoons are indexed. Awesome!
The Prelinger Film Archives -- Well, for all of you folks out there with"fat pipes" -- otherwise known as high speed connections to the internet -- have we got a site for you! This one archives tons of obscure gems from the hidden history of American cinema. It truly boggles the mind. Better put in a good supply of food and drink before connecting to this one; it may be awhile before you can tear yourself away.
UbuWeb Online Film & Video Archives -- Included are complete viewable-on-line films by the likes of Maya Deren, George Kuchar (almost all his classics are here!), Jack Smith (Flaming Creatures!), Dziga Vertov and many, many more! Yes, the quality of the viewing experience leaves a lot to be desired, but still, c'mon -- this is quite a resource.Mondo Digital -- This is a great site for anyone looking to expand their cinematic horizons and/or dig deeper into the cinematic underworld. Mondo Digital focuses on the "weird and wild cinema" and does a good job of it. There are hundreds of reviews accompanied by choice screen shots of a wide variety of films from off the beaten path. The home page features the latest reviews, but at the bottom there are links to the archives and more. Worth a look.
Really Good Films -- This is a really good site for any film fanatic or cinephile. Really! It's hard to believe. There must be a catch somewhere. Enjoy it now before they are forced to either sell out or close down.
Scope -- An entirely free online journal of film studies. Lots of interesting articles that you can sink your intellectual teeth into. Full text of all articles online!
BUBL LINK / 5:15 Catalogue of Internet Resources: Film studies -- A great link page for film resources on the web.
The Roland Collection of Films & Videos on Art -- We weren't sure what category to list this under, but put it here because these are films, after all. There are an amazing 48 programs on art and artists stored on this site, with -- even more amazing -- a special focus on comics! Requires an up-to-date RealPlayer to view.
The Criterion Collection -- The DVD label for connoisseurs. We're doing our best to get and keep their titles in stock, so check with us after you check with them.
Derek Malcom's Century of FiIm
Moulin Rouge -- Great film, fun site.
The Unofficial Monty Python Home Page -- Well, Monty Python may not exactly qualify as cinéma, but it certainly rates as one of life's joys. This is probably the best place to start for Python on the web.
The ALA Great Sites for Kids page -- Here's a hub page of sites recommended for children put together by the folks at the American Library Association and the Association for Library Service to Children.Chelmsford LIbrary: Children's Page - Book recommendations, links to kid-friendly sites, learning resources and more.
Elder Scrolls Online: Guide to Internet Resources for Kids - A selection of links to kid friendly sites; each with a description (a bit like what is here at Copacetic Links, but even more in depth).
Technology and Young Children - Online resources are listed here to help parents and caregivers find information on best practices regarding technology use with young children in the home.
Dav Pilkey's Web Site O' Fun! -- Extreme silliness from the author/illustrator of Captain Underpants,Cat Kong, Dogzilla,and many other books for kids.
HISTORY & SOCIETY WorldChanging.com -- They say: "WorldChanging.com works from a simple premise: that the tools, models and ideas for building a better future lie all around us. That plenty of people are working on tools for change, but the fields in which they work remain unconnected. That the motive, means and opportunity for profound positive change are already present. That another world is not just possible, it's here. We only need to put the pieces together." Renowned author, Bruce Sterling says: "The most important web site on the planet." Check it out and see if you agree.
The Martin Luther King, Jr. Papers Project at Stanford University -- This is a really great site that everyone could stand to visit at least once.
Wikipedia -- Well, we kinda' figure that you probably already know about this one, but, if not, you'll be happy to learn that it is a multilingual project to create a complete and accurate [a claim that is highly controversial] free content encyclopedia. The site started in January 2001 and -- as of 15 February 2008 -- had posted 2,239,877 articles in the English version, all of which are, theoretically at least, constantly being updated and revised. Visit the help page and experiment in the sandbox to learn how you can edit any article right now.
WordReference.com -- And, speaking of multilingual. If you need help tranlating a word from French, Italian and/or Spanish into English -- or vice versa -- this site is your boy!
FreeTranslation.com -- This site actually translates entire blocks of text -- we're not sure what the upper limit is -- for no cost. The translation is what they term a "gist" translation in that it should be enough to give you an idea of what the text is saying but it will be very clunky -- like it was written by someone who takes pleasure in flouting the rules of grammar and has some serious pronoun issues. But hey, it can be very helpful when you're in a pinch.
The Internet Archive -- Use the Wayback Machine™ to visit 85 billion web pages that have been digitally archived. Miss an old website that's no longer around? It's here! All you need to know is the original URL and you're good to go. AMAZING!
BUBL LINK / 5:15 -- Selected Internet resources covering all academic subject areas. You could spend every waking moment of the rest of your life and still not exhaust all the resources assembled here in a simple to navigate, easy to understand, and efficiently organized site that presents an astounding collection of primo links to resources informing a truly stunning array of topics and subjects.
Voice of the Shuttle: Web Page for Humanities Research -- An excellent complement to BUBL Link. A bit less elegant but a lot more personal as it is primarily the work of one man, Alan Liu. A fascinating resource.
Questia.com -- The World's Largest Online Library; or so they say...
Digital Librarian: a librarian's choice of the best of the Web -- A great selection of links well organized and thoughtfully presented.
The San Antonio College Library Learning Resource Center Page Devoted to Art, Architecture and Fashion History -- A links-page that will connect you to interesting web sites that give background information and (even more) links to art and artists, art history, clip art, digital images, museums, architecture and architects, fashion history and costumes, comics and cartoon strips, and handicrafts and home improvement. A great resource, that's regularly updated.
UbuWeb -- This is a truly awe inspiring site filled with a hard-to-believe abundance of all things avant-garde and outsider. Art, poetry, mp3 sound archives, and so much more. Make sure you visit their truly mind boggling selection of classic avant garde & experimental film. Included are complete viewable-on-line films by the likes of Maya Deren, George Kuchar (almost all his classics are here!), Jack Smith (Flaming Creatures!), Dziga Vertov and many, many more! Yes, the quality of the viewing experience leaves a lot to be desired, but still, c'mon -- this is quite a resource.
Feel like exploring online? These sites are designed to provide you with a place to start your trek:
-- Yahoo Picks
-- Yahoo Directory: New for the Day
-- Memepool
-- Metafilter
-- Internet Scout Report
-- Librarian's Index to the Internet
-- Multimedia Educational Resource for Learning and Online Teaching
BoingBoing - A Directory of Wonderful Things is how they describe themselves, and it's an apt description. Most wonderful of all is the amount of new material they manage to post every single day. Whenever you're feeling zoned out and looking for a distraction, this is a site to keep in mind. And if you're looking for some serious distraction, you can really go to town here as it's fully archived!
Retro Lounge -- There's something for everybody here in this endless online remembrance of things past.
Gravity Lens -- "Observations from a Distance by Jeff Patterson." This is what blogging is about: A daily digest of fully interlinked bits from all over the web that are found to be of interest by the Blog's author and those whose interests overlap at least at some point. Well done and, well, interesting.
World Wide Words -- Michael Quinion's site on the wide world of the English language is, in our opinion, the best site going for word freaks. Many an idle moment can be profitably spent here by anyone with a passion for language and language history; or, for that matter, by anyone who is just curious about words, their origins, their history and their usage. There are so many fascinating examples here that we feel confident that just about anyone who likes to read will benefit from partaking in Quinion's joy of exploration and discovery in the wide world of words, which is, when all is said and done, perhaps the widest world of them all. Be sure to check out topical words, turns of phrase, and our personal favorite, weird words
The Amateur -- Pete Blegvad strikes again with another brilliant website. Mind expanding.
Virtual Parks -- If you're ever in the mood for a five minute virtual nature retreat this may do the trick. Note: might be more trouble than it's worth for those without a broadband connection (on the other hand you could imagine that the download time is the virtual equivalent of the leisurely drive to your vacation getaway).
BugGuide.net -- If you're interested in insects, then this site will boggle your mind with the immensity of its resources -- especially all the great photographic images -- all assembled just for you, and available to access 24/7. The navagation is multi-levelled and may take a moment or two to figure out, but it is designed to provide insight into the interconnectivity of the species, genera, families, etc. Bug out!
Tree of Life Web Project -- "The Tree of Life Web Project is a collection of information about biodiversity compiled collaboratively by hundreds of expert and amateur contributors. Its goal is to contain a page with pictures, text, and other information for every species and for each group of organisms, living or extinct. Connections between Tree of Life web pages follow phylogenetic branching patterns between groups of organisms, so visitors can browse the hierarchy of life and learn about phylogeny and evolution as well as the characteristics of individual groups." All we have to add is, "WOW!"
The Philosophy of Pattern: The Philosophy Homepage of Jaap Bax -- Look out Loretta! If you like to be intellectually stimulated and/or challenged and you have a block of free time you're not sure what to do with, you might want to check this one out. But beware! There's a vortexical quality to this site that might pull you in deeper than you expect.
Modern Tales -- The professional indy comics web-site. For $2.95 a month-- about the price of one indy comic-- you can read the work of 30 independent comics creators who submit (at least in theory) new work every week, or, in the case of James Kochalka-- whose sketchbook diaries are now available at www.americanelf.com for an additional $1/month-- every day. Is it for you? There's only one way to find out. Modern Tales has now been joined by SERIALIZER, a newer sister site. It too has a subscription fee, but it will be reduced if you already subscribe to Modern Tales, and vice versa. Check it out!
Paperboy -- If you're interested in what all the different newspapers around the world have to say, or even if you just can't get enough news: give this site a try. It links to over 5,000(!) newspapers from around the world. Not only that , but it links to other news-related sites to connect you even more. It costs $2.95 per month to get the full treatment, but when you think about it, that's not a whole heck of a lot. On the other hand, if you're a news junkie, this site may cause you to overdose.
eMusic -- The real, legitimate downloading service that offers a gigantic catalog of music ranging from the totally obscure to the the totally great, all of which is legally licensed from the copyright holders. All the tracks are mp3s encoded at 128mbs and they download at terrific speeds. You will only derive the full benefit from this last feature, however, if you have a broadband connection to the internet. Their site architecture is excellent and you can search the site by song title, artist/performer or composer (although only classical and jazz composers are fully indexed at this point). They currently have over 600,000 tracks from 750 different labels-- all by signed artists, mind you-- and they're (currently) adding thousands more every month. They offer music from pretty much every genre, from classical and jazz to punk and electronica to country and gospel to blues and world. Furthermore, shocking as it may seem, the people who run eMusic-- or, at the very least, some of them-- actually know something about music; as a result there's some real gems to be had here if you know what to look for. And, finally, the crucial distinction that sets eMusic apart from the other legitimate downloading sites present and planned is that you can download all you want anytime and once you download a track it's yours to keep and do with whatever you like (except, of course, sell it) and it won't ever expire. The best thing about this site is that the cost structure: a subscription allowing you 40 downloads of your choice per month for $9.95 -- less than the cost of one CD -- encourages you to check out music you otherwise never would because of the expense involved.
If you sign up, and you're into jazz, you can't do better than to start with this page. You may also want to consider using this opportunity to download the complete Reid Paley. While you're at you could pick up the Ghost World Soundtrack. Are you a collector of the finer things punk? If so, you might be interested in the Tim/Kerr Records catalog, which is just about entirely out of print and includes some real gems by the likes of Pere Ubu and Peter Laughner. And if that's still not enough, how about the entire Matador Records catalog, which includes-- among artists too numerous to mention-- The Pizzicato Five.
Your Vote Matters -- Here's a site where you can register to vote, right now. It's a secure (https://) site brought to you by the folks at Working Assets. If you're already registered to vote, great! If not, you owe it to yourself, your country and your world to not just register, but to vote as well. Thanks!
Federal Election Committee -- This is their official site, where they have .pdf files of all the information and forms you'll need: to get registered to vote yourself, and, if you're interested, to help other people get registered as well; and not only that: you'll gain some insight into the entire process as well. This is how it works.
Are you trying hard to make informed political decisions but having trouble getting straight, unfiltered information from the mainstream media outlets? These sites may help:
http://c-span.org/
http://campaigndesk.org/
http://mediamatters.org/
http://dailyhowler.com/
Check them out and see what you think.
MoveOn.org -- A great site for people who like to get involved. This site also hosts many important texts, none more so than the full text of Al Gore's speech of May 26, 2004.
Oxfam America -- If you want to help make the more copacetic, this is a very good place to start. Pound for pound, dollar for dollar, few if any groups accomplish more with their resources. Working around the world and around the clock, Oxfam works to help people build lives that they will be happy to live.
The International Rescue Committee -- "Founded in 1933 [at the behest of Albert Einstein], the IRC is a global leader in emergency relief, rehabilitation, protection of human rights, post-conflict development, resettlement services and advocacy for those uprooted or affected by violent conflict and oppression." The IRC gets our vote for the best organization devoted to alleviating suffering on the ground.
Union of Concerned Scientists -- If you would like to support smart people trying to make the world a smarter-- not to mention better-- place, then this is your NGO. They are especially focused right now on promoting the understanding of how a simple, technologically feasible step like encouraging consumers to buy and car manufacturers to produce more fuel efficient cars can have so many far-reaching and long-lasting positive effects, such as helping the environment, lowering the gigantic trade deficit of the USA, and lowering our dependence on foreign oil and thereby improving our leverage in the Middle East.
American Indian College Fund -- Of all those organizations that exist to help the American Indian, this is the one we found to be the most direct and efficacious: The money goes to American Indian run tribal colleges to support and assist American Indians as they gain a higher education which they can then in turn use towards rebuilding American Indian society.
and here are some sites to guide you through the charity landscape:
Give.Org : The BBB Wise Giving Alliance
The American Institute of PhilanthropyCharity Navigator
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The Charity Commission for England and Wales
Alternative Energy Resources
EERE: Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy -- Here's the U.S. Department of Energy's official Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy website. You can really learn a lot about what's going on here. Of special note: The Solar Energy Technologies Program.REN21: Renewable Energy and Policy Network for the 21st Century -- REN21 is a global policy network aimed at providing a forum for international leadership on renewable energy. Its goal is to allow the rapid expansion of renewable energies in developing and industrial countries by bolstering policy development and decision-making on sub-national, national and international levels.
Interstate Renewable Energy Council -- The Interstate Renewable Energy Council’s mission is to accelerate the sustainable utilization of renewable energy sources and technologies in and through state and local government and community activities.
The American Solar Energy Society (ASES) -- is a national organization dedicated to advancing the use of solar energy for the benefit of U.S. citizens and the global environment. ASES promotes the widespread near- and long-term use of solar energy.
Solar Nation -- "Where citizens rally and convince their leaders to make America a true Solar Power." This is THE site to go to to join the effort to get involved in shaping the policy debate and encouraging our elected officials to see the light when it comes to the importance, value and necessity of fostering the nascent solar power industry.
NWCC: National Wind Coordinating Committee -- A U.S. consensus-based collaborative formed in 1994, the National Wind Coordinating Committee (NWCC) identifies issues that affect the use of wind power, establishes dialogue among key stakeholders, and catalyzes appropriate activities to support the development of environmentally, economically, and politically sustainable commercial markets for wind power.
SEPA: The Solar Electric Power Association -- SEPA is a collaboration of utilities, energy service providers and the photovoltaic industry working together to create and encourage commercial use of new solar electric power business models. SEPA helps to establish standards for photovoltaic systems and their interconnection to the utility grid, hosts cross-industry workshops, and manages educational and outreach campaigns.
ALTERNATIVE ENERGY BLOG -- News, views and strong opinions on alternate energy resources including wind power, solar energy, wave power, geothermal & other renewable energy sources, plus news on other energy issues including peak oil, strong hybrid cars [PHEVs], hydrogen fuel cells, "clean" coal & nuclear power.
Solar Buzz -- Connect to solar energy companies worldwide, follow solar energy developments. or access their solarbuzz research and consultancy services.
Renewable Energy Access -- The alternate energy business hub site.
Clean Edge -- A commercial/investor alternative energy news site.
Copacetic Pittsburgh -- This is our own na
