Top 100 Web 2.0 products 2008

What's it about: an assortment of the 100 most popular Web 2.0 sites and tools, courtesy of Webware.com/CNet. Comments: If you're looking for useful websites and web-related software this is definitely worth a look. CNet is traditionally geared towards big names, so the biggies were obvious (Facebook, Google, Firefox, etc). The less popular ones are the ones to look up. I was very surprised SmugMug.com (an excellent photo sharing site) didn't turn up in the list, though. Check out the Webware summary, the related Download.com blog, and here's the top 100 list.

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20 sci-fi novels that will change your life

Very interesting list from io9.com, although it doesn't include anything from Asimov's famous Foundation series, Arthur C. Clarke or even Ray Bradbury. Incidentally, guess what the title of the Arabic translation of Foundation was? Al-Qaeda... honestly!!

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The Telegraph's 100 must-read books for children

The Telegraph has come up with a list of 100 books that 'every child should read', in order to, of course, make sure they remain readers for life. I think it's poorly compiled. The Telegraph has come up with a list of 100 books that 'every child should read', in order to, of course, make sure they remain readers for life. The list features an introduction by Michael Morpurgo and is divided into three parts: the early years, the middle years and the early teens. I checked out the list: most of the titles are popular stuff, including Roald Dahl, JK Rowling, Mark Twain, Philip Pullman, and CS Lewis.

The whole thing seems to be bordering on fantastic literature, but surprisingly, the Arabian Nights or Hans Christian Andersen aren't on the list. Huckleberry Finn or Oliver Twist isn't there either (although you have Tom Sawyer and Great Expectations); and only one title from the Harry Potter series makes the list (honestly, haven't kids grown up with Harry Potter throughout all three aforementioned stages of childhood?). I was almost hurt to find out Jules Verne or Bram Stoker don't even feature, while Morpurgo himself pops up a couple of times. Do we smell a controversy here? All in all, this pretty much shows how poorly we estimate children's reading. Scrolling through the whole list feels like moving through snapshots of just another boring feel-good movie with little variations in theme. If I were a kid I'd feel cheated.

JK Rowling hit the right chord with kids with Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. It was a children's book that combined horror, Bildungsroman and mystery elements -- and still went on to become massively popular. In other words, kids do think a lot like us adults. Let's hope all those listers and writers learn from this. [image: Telegraph]

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Food hits for 2008

Catherine Jheon came up with an interesting list of food stuff that will make it big in 2008. The sources she cites are azcentral, npr's radio show and GlobeLife. The list with my ideas included.Catherine Jheon came up with an interesting list of food stuff that will make it big in 2008. The sources she cites are azcentral, npr's radio show and GlobeLife; here's her picks:

• We will continue to push aside big plates and chose small, tapas-style entrees. This trend will continue for desserts.
• Bottle water is out, to be replaced flavoured tap water.
• Exotic grains such as amaranth and quinoa are in.
• Gojiberry and pomegranate will step out of the spotlight as blood orange takes centre stage as the new super fruit.
• Artificial is out and authentic is in. That means goodbye aspartame, hello date sugar.
• Cupcakes are out.
• We’ll see a rise of bold flavours specifically from Brazil, Peru, Korea and Africa.
• Comfort food will continue to get a makeover with dishes such as braised veal-cheek burgers topped with Berkshire pork belly. Call it comfort chic.
• 2008 will be the year of the pork.

Jheon believes that this will be the "year of ethical eating", and it will see "a rise of vegetarianism, locally-produced food and sustainable seafood as well as organic wines and local breweries". I personally believe the azcentral picks are more sensible (and the slideshow looks great too!). I have a gut feeling Thai food is going to be 'in' (or perhaps this is just my subconscious gastronomically fuelled by WhiteSpot?); blood orange is possibly already the next superfruit, and I don't think "2008 will be the year of the pork" (reason: everything around is trying to go green, as in 'green tech', 'ecofriendly policies' etc. I'm not suggesting we're all going to start munching vegetables en masse, but with so much ethical-eating-and-living philosophies blowing about, there should be an increased general appreciation of fish. Thai/Vietnamese food here again.)

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TIME's web toplists for 2007

This is fresh: TIME magazine came up with a list of 50 best websites of 2007 today. Lots of sites feature on the list which, I admit, I've never heard of; here's a summary of the list: 1. Mozy.com 2. StumbleUpon.com 3. Last.fm 4. Weebly.com 5. Etsy.com 6. Wotartist.com 7. Fatsecret.com 8. Netvibes.com 9. Chow.com 10. OhDontForget.com ... 46. StarWars.com 47. You Tube's You Choose '08 48. Odeo.com 49. Twitter.com 50. ExpertVillage.com As you've probably noticed, sites like Google or Facebook aren't featured, but they're probably on the list of "Top 5 Most Influential" websites -- I can hazily see the table, but not the entries. TIME tells me I need the latest Adobe Flash Player plugin, which I have; I've tried with both FF (2.0.0.11) and IE(6.0.xx) to no avail. Did anyone face similar results? Crazy: TIME actually lists #10 as "OhDon'tForget.com"! This is certainly an editing blunder or very silly styling (hey, years of journalism taught me that much!). I'm also wondering how they came up with the list (it's supposed to be poll results), particularly the ordering. Anyway, TIME also has a list of 25 sites we can't do without, which seems to be more agreeable.

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Unusual finds of 2007

Okay, not really tech related or specific to any topic, but whoever knew that chimps make their own spears... or that astronauts wear nappies... (and 10% of university work in the UK is plagiarized!). Check out the list: 100 things we didn't know last year. Explanations and some laughs included.

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