Bar humbug
You might say artist Scott Blake is scanning the possibilities of online images on his clever bar-code site at www.geocities.com/barcodesite. The lowly barcode aspires to high art as Blake takes cultural icons from Jesus to Ronald Reagan to Bill Gates, and renders them in bar codes. Appropriately, Andy Warhol gets the zebra-stripe treatment as well. There's a zoom feature that enables an extra close-up look at the structure of the images, and even the visitor counter is in the form of a bar-code.
Body politic
The New Statesman's Fantasy Politics site lets you create your own fantasy cabinet and submit it to their judging panel to win a bottle of booze. The judges' fantasy cabinet includes Harriet Harman as PM, Tony Benn as deputy PM and England rugby captain Martin Johnson as foreign secretary, with Prince William heading up culture and Eminem as treasury chief secretary. Competitors have also suggested Alan Greenspan, Bob the Builder and the Guardian's Polly Toynbee as ministers without portfolio. Wouldn't it be great to see them all in the same room at the same time?
Skip off
Are you a Palm fanatic? Blue Squirrel software in Utah has come up with a free program and a Palm portal called Skipwire that lets you download and manage Palm applications wirelessly - if your Palm is Internet-enabled. One advantage is that applications can be stored in a personal Skipwire account and reinstalled as needed, which keeps device memory clear. There are plenty of applications available directly from the site.
Score draw
Allegroassai is an Italian software company that markets music notation programs in five languages for composers and music students. Now, the company has created a portal www.allegroassai.com where you can download a free application that lets you listen to digital scores archived on the site. The site also has other music resources, including a wide range of directories on topics such as genres, instruments, music organisations and performers.
Smash hit
If the "blue screen of death" or the little Macintosh bomb has appeared once too often on your screen, you may need the computer hammer from www.computerhammer.com. A frustrated computer user is selling the 20-inch inflatable hammer on this website for $6.99 (Canadian). He says: "The Computer Hammer version 1.0 was designed specifically for striking computer screens when aggravation sets in." He is also holding a competition for the best - or perhaps that is worst - computer let-down story. Winners will receive an autographed computer hammer.
Pay UK
Web users have not flocked to the idea of alternative online payment systems, but new company UK Smart is betting its "Smart creds" will do the job. The system is based on smart cards worth £20, which can be bought from participating post offices around the country in the same way as pay-as-you-go cards for mobiles. Users sign up for a Smart Wallet account at the UK Smart website and load in the value by entering a 16-digit number from the card. Members can then spend their Smart creds at participating online vendors. These include Countrybookshop, Obsessions, Wicked Colours, e2save, Lush, Skates Direct, Top-up Shop, Fastbeat.com, Fashion Nightmare, Laden Online, Cap factory and Watch Heaven. The company hopes to attract under-18s without credit cards and those who prefer not to use credit cards online.
New & noted
• Virgin mobile customers can shop by Wap. Register at www.virgin.com/mobile
• Maporama is offering maps and itineraries through www.WAPPUP.com
• The BBC's Good Homes site has had a spring cleaning: www.beeb.com/goodhomes
* Make it personal with an email address of yourname@yoursurname from www.YOURemail.tv
Six of the best Anthropology sites
Human roots
www.mnh.si.edu/anthro/humanorigins
Anthropology eMuseum
http://emuseum.mankato.msus.edu
Palaeolithic Diet Page
www.panix.com~paleodiet
The Dung File
www.ualberta.ca/~abeaudoi/stuff/dung/human.htm
The Genus Homo
http://sciences.homepage.com/genus.htm
Neanderthal Museum
www.neanderthal.de
