Featured Links
June 26, 2001

Featured link of the week: The Straight Dope

I have something of a reputation for knowing things. Many people assume I will know the answer to their questions, whether it's "what does FTP stand for?" or "What's that song, it ends, 'Ooh ooh ohh, I love you?" (Still working on that one, Leah.) And it's true to a certain extent: I do know a lot of facts. But more important, I know where to look up the stuff I don't know.

The Straight Dope is an invaluable tool for any know-it-all wanna-be. Cecil Adams has been dispensing the truth about everything from the caloric content of sperm to why cheddar cheese is orange for twenty years, and recently he's unleashed a number of Cecils-in-training to answer some of the easier questions on the Straight Dope website. Cecil and the Straight Dope Science Advisory Board have helped me with many esoteric questions over the years.

Other links for the aspiring know-it-all:

• eHow - eHow has hundreds of short essays with detailed information about how to do almost anything. It's come in handy on several occasions, especially with regard to home improvement projects. The site does not, unfortunately and inexplicably, have a search engine, so you need to either be prepared to browse or use another search engine to find what you need. (I use Google.)
• World Wide Words - I just discovered this site recently, but it's wonderful addition to my toolkit. Michael Quinion provides short articles about the origin of popular phrases and unusual words. Very useful.
• All-Music Guide - The All-Music Guide is sort of the musical equivalent of the venerable Internet Movie Database. It's not perfect, but it has detailed information about almost every recording artist imaginable. I've found it handy when trying to track down a half-remembered song or artist.

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