Web Sites Fill Free Time

There are times when I am sitting in front of a computer with nothing to do, having finished whatever task required me to be there in the first place. Sure, with the study-intensive, extracurricular-laden lifestyle of the typical Campolindo student, these times may be few and far between, but when they do occur, there are excellent websites to fill the void.

Here are a few:

Reddit: This massive social news website calls itself “the front page of the internet,” but perhaps a more apt motto is its popular unofficial slogan: “There’s a subreddit for everything.” What is a subreddit, you may ask? Well, Reddit has divided itself into over 6000 (and counting) user-created sections known as subreddits, each corresponding to a  certain interest. For example, the most popular, r/funny, is devoted to all things absurd and amusing. There’s a subreddit for nearly every movie, book, musician, video game, sport, industry, and hobby. And don’t forget the countless, seemingly pointless, pages that make up the vast majority of the website’s large archives. One of them, r/invisiblebicycles, is just what it sounds like: pictures of people riding bikes with the bikes Photoshopped out. Check it out. It’s as stupid as it sounds.

Imgur: Closely affiliated with Reddit is this tightly knit, community-oriented image-sharing sight. Imgur was originally developed by a Reddit user as a standardized platform to which other users could post images and .gifs (looping, soundless video clips). Since then, however, Imgur has developed an identity distinct from its parent site. Some users are known throughout the community and, for the most part, everyone is good-natured (and more importantly, funny.) Browsing Imgur’s front page can be a roller coaster of emotions. A gallery describing a cancer survivor’s tragic journey could be followed by a collection of the absolute lamest dad jokes on the internet. From a design perspective, Imgur is nearly perfect as well. It is easy to navigate and aesthetically pleasing. And the developers are very responsive to the community’s requests.

Everynoise.com: Ever wondered what German death jazz was, or what traditional Somalian folk music sounded like? Well, wonder no longer, for everynoise.com is the website for you. This unique site is nothing more than a massive amalgamation of music genres ranging from the popular to the obscure. Genres are spaced apart from each other depending on the similarities between the two. Click on the name of the genre to hear a sample and view some of the artists who make the type of music. It’s pretty simple, but provides endless hours of entertainment. It’s also a great way to discover new music.

Boil the Frog: Another music-based website, the irreverently Boil the Frog nonetheless provides a different experience than everynoise.com. With Boil the Frog, you put in the name of two artists you like, and a playlist is created bridging the genre gap between the 2. Typing in, say, Lil Wayne and Beethoven yields a playlist 18 songs long, whereas the difference between Mumford & Sons and the Lumineers can be measured with only 3 songs (still longer than I thought it would be).

Google Gravity: A simple yet endlessly entertaining project, Google Gravity is everyone’s favorite search engine subjected to the effects of gravity. The brightly colored Google logo drops to the bottom of the screen along with the search bar and all the other graphic elements. Click and drag an element and it swings around the screen, colliding with other objects. What’s more is that everything remains completely functional. Even when the search bar is buried under hundreds of photos of cats, you can still use it just as with normal Google. Google Gravity sounds dumb, and to some extent it really is, but trust me- it’s entertaining.

Bored Button: Take a leap of faith with the aptly titled Bored Button, a website that will take you to a random interactive game every time you press the titular red button. It’s great for demolishing said boredom and you might even learn something too. Games include an asteroid-collision simulator, where you can learn how big the crater would be if an asteroid hit your house, and a drawing program that allows you to produce Rorschach-esque drawings with a few strokes of the mouse. I don’t actually know how many games are included on the website- it could be in the hundreds or even thousands- but click the button enough times and you’ll certainly have found something you’re interested in.

In my experience, all of the games are Safe For Work [SFW] too, so don’t worry about being caught with something school-unsuitable while browsing in the computer lab. That said, I think that teachers will have their own problems with their student using a website called The Bored Button.