{"id":2838,"date":"2011-12-18T09:24:56","date_gmt":"2011-12-18T16:24:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/gillin.com\/blog\/?p=2838"},"modified":"2017-11-15T13:48:42","modified_gmt":"2017-11-15T20:48:42","slug":"cool-useful-sites-for-the-holidays","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gillin.com\/blog\/2011\/12\/cool-useful-sites-for-the-holidays\/","title":{"rendered":"Cool & Useful Sites for the Holidays"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Webby<\/a>The folks at the Webby Awards<\/a> sent along a super-helpful list of Web resources to use over the holidays. They range from social shopping to gift recommendations to real-time TV and music sharing. While I was familiar with several of these sites, I hadn’t heard of gems like Yap.tv, Wantful and Trippy. Definitely bookmarkable. The descriptions below were provided by the Webby Awards. <\/p>\n

1.\u00a0Skype\u00a0<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Video chatting is now a standard activity for most Internet users – in fact, earlier this year, Skype reported that their users log 300 million minutes of video calls daily. Skype has recently added a new multi-party platform that allows up to 10 people to video\u00a0chat with each other, which is a great way to get the family together, even if you’re all far away from each other.<\/p>\n

2.\u00a0Google+ Hangouts<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Yet another way to connect groups of people over video chat – but\u00a0Hangouts also enable the chat participants to share and enjoy digital content like YouTube videos in\u00a0real time.<\/p>\n

3.\u00a0Crackle<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Sony has brought together two of its popular platforms by creating virtual\u00a0movie theaters on Playstation 3 that stream content from\u00a0Crackle\u00a0– and it’s planning to add more\u00a0digital hangouts later this year.<\/p>\n

4.\u00a0Turntable.fm<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Turntable.fm brings together the social\u00a0experience of the Web and music. Users can create or join listening rooms for friends – or\u00a0strangers – and DJ their favorite songs for each other.<\/p>\n

5.\u00a0YapTV<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

A great app that brings people together around their favorite TV shows – it\u00a0shows every program on television at any moment and lets you socialize with other viewers. It\u00a0pulls in tweets about the show and has a built-in chat functionality so you can talk while you\u00a0watch. This is especially useful for every \u201cElf\u201d re-run on TBS or if you\u2019re sucked into another \u201cA\u00a0Christmas Story\u201d 24-hour-marathon.<\/p>\n

6.\u00a0ShopWithYourFriends.com<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Through sites like this, shopping online is no longer an\u00a0isolated event. Shopping online is now social. These sites allow you converse with friends (through\u00a0Skype and chat), compile lookbooks for your friends and family’s seal of approval, and most\u00a0importantly, buy online.<\/p>\n

7.\u00a0SocialVest<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

SocialVest is an online retail platform that allows customers to buy and give at the same time. With SocialVest, you can make purchases at your favorite stores\u00a0– like Target, Walmart, Bloomingdales, and more – and a percentage of all your purchases will go to a charity of your choice.<\/p>\n

8.\u00a0GiftaStranger.net<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Make\u00a0someone’s day brighter\u00a0with this site that allows\u00a0you to\u00a0send a lucky person a gift of your choosing. All you need to submit is your first name, general location, and a picture of the gift you’re sending, and the site will generate a random address.<\/p>\n

9.\u00a0Wantful.com<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

The site suggests an array of thoughtful gifts based on information you\u00a0provide\u00a0about the recipient – everything from age and relationship status to how often the cook\u00a0and their level of neatness.<\/p>\n

10.\u00a0HipMunk.com<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

With a well-designed, streamlined interface and smart use of filters, Hipmunk\u00a0makes it\u00a0easy to find the right flight or the best hotel. The site also has\u00a0an app available for your phone or tablet device.<\/p>\n

11.\u00a0Trippy.com\u00a0<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

It makes it easy for you to get recommendations and tips for what to\u00a0do (whether you are heading home for the holidays or on a dream vacation and have a nice picnic and bring your cooler from Survival Cooking List of Best Coolers<\/a>) from your friends\u00a0who already know you and your interests and needs, helping you travel better.<\/p>\n

12.\u00a0Amazon.com<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Whether it\u2019s a 6-hour flight home or over-the-river-and-through-the-woods, every trip is a little shorter with good book. Now, Amazon allows you\u00a0to share your\u00a0favorite books\u00a0with your friends. Each loan lasts 14 days and are automatically\u00a0returned to your library at the end.<\/wbr><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The folks at the Webby Awards sent along a super-helpful list of Web resources to use over the holidays. They range from social shopping to gift recommendations to real-time TV and music sharing. While I was familiar with several of … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":""},"categories":[15,25,28,348],"tags":[459,451,456,45,450,454,105,455,458,452,457,449,453],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pTy95-JM","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gillin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2838"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gillin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gillin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gillin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gillin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2838"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/gillin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2838\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3782,"href":"https:\/\/gillin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2838\/revisions\/3782"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gillin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2838"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gillin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2838"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gillin.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2838"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}