A new kind of Web -- don't miss these 11 sites

April 11, 2008, 04:19 PM —  Computerworld — 

Call them Web 2.0 sites or mashups -- or come up with your own trendy term. Whatever
you call them, there are sites popping up all over the Web that process information
in new ways rather than just present it.

Some of them work with information you supply, letting you manipulate, track
and share data, such as your schedule or your to-do list. Others, so-called
mashups, draw data from different sites and reassemble it to make something
new. They're all part of how the Web is evolving beyond just a bunch of point
sources for information. Here are 11 examples that show what the new Web can
do, from helping you organize your life to adding some personalized fun to it.

Personal assistants

GrandCentral

Ever wish you could exercise the same control over incoming phone calls
as you do over e-mail? GrandCentral
-- now a Google operation -- gives you a new phone number and forwards incoming
calls to any other number or numbers you specify.

Depending on who the call is from, you can have it ring through to your work
phone, home phone, cell or all at once. You can also direct some calls right
to voice mail -- with different greetings for different callers -- and retrieve
your voice mail via any browser. Perhaps best of all, you can permanently block
calls from anyone you don't want to hear from ever again.

Highrise

Highrise is an online
CRM tool. Basically, it's an easy-to-use database for contacts, reminders and
notes. Because it's online, you can share it across your company or team anywhere
there is access to a browser.

Highrise offers a free account for up to two users that can store 250 contacts,
a Max account at $149 per month for unlimited users and 50,000 contacts, and
several levels in between. You can even forward e-mails to a drop box associated
with your account, and Highrise adds it as a note on the sender's or recipient's
contact page, along with any attached files.

Jott

Jott is for those
times when you're away from your computer -- but not from your phone -- and
you think of something you need to do the next day or want to be reminded of
next week. You just call Jott and dictate your message. Jott translates your
message to text and e-mails it to you or anyone else whose name and address
you've registered.

If the event is in the future, you can tell Jott to send you an e-mail or text
message as a reminder. You can also use Jott to post to your blog or to Twitter,
or to add tasks to your to-do lists

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