As a bonified member of the iGeneration, I love all things “hack.” That is to say that I really and truly enjoy websites and communities whose sole purpose is to provide me with simplistic or technological ways to make my life easier. I think, perhaps, we could all be fans of these sites — if we only knew about them!
So, if you are not familiar, take a look at these websites. I subscribe via GoogleReader, because frankly, there is nearly always something that I think I can learn from these.
LifeHacker: This can be a pretty technical website more often than not, with hacks such as Firefox add-ons, Windows Vista tips and tricks, how to build your own Macintosh Hackintosh Computer… the list goes on. But Lifehacker isn’t only for us technophiles. You can also find information on how to get to sleep faster, how to motivate yourself to get things done, even the best tactics for getting a raise or recession-proofing your career or even getting a career in a recession. (Remember, the best parts of this type of website are the user comments. Lifehacker has a very active user community).
Ikea Hacker: For those of us living on a budget (uhh, Hi Everyone!) it’s handy to have a few ways to make that dollar stretch. Welcome to Ikea, my friends. I frankly don’t have $300 to spend on a bench for my hallway, an extra closet for my infant, or cool looking modern art. That’s grocery money. If there’s any left over, that’s “feed my technology habit” “invest in new technology” money. But I do like to have a home that I can be proud of (still getting there. Anyone been there? Is it nice?) so that I don’t have to try and keep everyone at arms length and outside the front door when they come to visit. Ikea hacker is dedicated to getting cheap, mass-manufactured furniture to work for your needs. It’s creative people, doing creative things, and then thankfully posting pictures and instructions on the internet so that we can capitalize on their genius.
ParentHacks: This is another favorite website with a really active user community. This is nice and simple — parents finding new (and reminding each other of old) ways to make raising children easier! When I get on this site, I feel like that proverbial shrinking village that should be helping me raise my child is finally back in town. Most recently, I learned about using baby powder to help get itchy little hairs from haircuts off skin (this is actually a great hack for DaddyGeek), how to conserve water when summertime fun = summertime grime, and at one point even how to suck snot out of my infant’s nose most effectively (hint: it’s as disgusting as it sounds — but also incredibly effective!) Oh! And one of my faves — free(ish) business-type cards make it a lot easier to plan playdates, give out your family information, and generally make friends.
So now it’s your turn. What are your favorite go-to websites? What’s your homepage? Where do you live online?
