CLICL AND DOUBLE CLICK: WEB PUSHES ENVELOPE FOR IMAGINATIVE TECHNOLOGIES

The fascinating thing about the Internet is that it's always changing and improving. I like the fact I can go to a Web page and be surprised by the free service offered.

I'm going to share several of those imaginative sites that I've stumbled across lately. To be honest, I haven't tried out most of them, so you'll have to let me know if they really deliver on their "free" promises.

www.callwave.com

Have you ever wondered what calls you've missed when you're online? This site says you should wonder no more. It offers an Internet answering machine of sorts without the cost of an extra phone line.

Instead of getting a busy signal, your callers leave a message that you hear over your computer speakers. This site received high marks from both CNET and ZDNET, which are two solid sources.

You do have to activate the Busy Call Forwarding feature of your phone to use this device that can be installed in less than five minutes. It works with your existing dial-up Internet or AOL service. It runs on Windows 95/98 or NT.

The company also offers FaxWave, a free fax number that is re-routed to your e-mail inbox as an attachment.

You'll see banner ads for both, which is how it remains free to consumers.

www.ering.net/home_e.htm

With eRing, anyone using an ordinary telephone can talk to you directly at your PC connected to the Internet. This again is a free service, which doesn't require a second phone line.

The software is free, but you need a personal computer with a sound card, speakers and microphone. The software runs on Windows 95/98 or NT.

You can call a toll-free number to access eRing. Ironically, there are only eight local access numbers, mostly from California and Ohio and one in Thayer, Mo. Thayer, Mo.?

It is free, but you will see banner ads. If you don't want the banner ads, you must subscribe to Option Plus, which is $4.95 a month.

dialpad.com

This site boasts that you can make unlimited free long-distance phone calls to anyone in the United States. There's nothing to download or install. It uses the Java-based technology already available in your Web browser.

You can read the most recent press releases and reviews of the service. With 5 million registered users, it calls itself the nation's leading free Internet phone service. Since the Dialpad.com's inception in October, users have logged more than 300 million call minutes.

Members log in, pop up the applet and punch in a phone number. A headset with a microphone is recommended for better sound quality. You need MS Windows 95/98/NT and Internet Explorer 4.0 or better or Netscape Communicate 4.5 or later. You also need a sound card in your computer.

www.recordtv.com

This is a very unusual site. This site boasts that it does most everything your current VCR can do and then some.

You can record any show you want with simple "One-Click Recording" and then come back and watch your show with a click.

The site also says you can even record multiple channels at the same time. Instead of flipping back and forth between multiple sports shows, you can watch one and then use RecordTV.com to record the rest. The site even lets you rewind, replay, pause and fast forward just like your current VCR.

Apparently, the site was somewhat overwhelmed by articles in major press, which lost most of their shows recorded so far.

I wouldn't throw away your VCR, quite yet, but it might be fun to experiment with.

www.radiospy.com

This is an interesting site that can locate, sort and connect you to hundreds of audio feeds. It can also help you broadcast your own radio show.

However, they are quick to point out there are legal issues connected to being your own DJ. There's an interesting story on Webcast licensing and royalty payments.

This site is also affiliated with gamespy, which searches for all kinds of games on the Internet.

It also hooks together music lovers or potential DJs with forums and chat.

www.ziplip.com

E-mail is not private. It's more like a postcard than a sealed envelop and it's foolhardy to transmit confidential information unless the e-mail has been encrypted.

Ziplip.com is a powerful e-mail site that is encrypted. The free service allows you to track your e-mail, shred it, lock it and block it.

You can read dozens of "thumbs up" from major news outlets. However, all you get is a one-liner. Time Magazine calls it "snoop-proof" e-mail. Business Week said this is "e-mail that won't come back to haunt you."

ZipLip is free and needs no special software or hardware. The company also takes the precaution of encrypting all stored messages, thus eliminating the possibility of hackers gaining messages to stored e-mail.

Another encrypted e-mail service is hushmail.com.

The last interesting site I want to mention today is MessageX, which is where the Web meets wireless.

www.messagex.com

This site boasts that it allows you to stay in touch by making your pager or cellular phone into a wireless messaging center. Anyone who has access to the Internet then can reach you 24 hours a day.

This technology sends a message using your regular e-mail from the MessageX.com Web site. You don't need to know pager or PIN numbers or special access codes. There's no special software to install.

It's easier to send a message to someone who's already registered. But if they're not, you can link to the particular company they're using and follow the instructions.

There are so many people out there pushing the edge of the envelope for Internet uses. What will they think up tomorrow?

See you in Cyberspace.

Joni Adams is managing editor of the Southeast Missourian. Contact her at 335-6611, Ext. 121 or jadams@semissourian.com.