Free Google Software Kicks Aps

When someone buys something for $1.8 billion and then gives it to you free, there are only two logical questions: (1) What’s the catch? and (2) Where can I get it? We got it. We’re loving it. And we’re still trying to find the downside. We are getting paid absolutely nothing to suggest that you try this one for yourself.

NORM ON TECH

Ever wrestled an oily viper through a one-way mirror? This past weekend I spent the better part of six hours sweating it out on the blind side of my monitor, trying to regain control of Internet Explorer from a wiley beast -- and I lived to tell the tale. Here is that tale.

FEATURED WEB SITE

The biggest event in Portsmouth history is back. One of the world’s bloodiest conflicts stopped dead here a century ago. Now a Portsmouth lawyer and many others are asking – why can’t it happen here again? Was the Treaty of Portsmouth a fluke, or does this event embody a formula that might work in an age of renewed war?

SITE OF THE WEEK

What does Labor Day mean to you? Is it hot dogs and swimming and shopping for school supplies? The history of that holiday goes deeply into what working in America is really about.

REAL LABOR DAY LINKS

SITE OF THE WEEK
GordonCarlisle.com

Each time a great artist gets a great web site an angel earns its wings. Too many top talents look like chopped liver online. Or the artist entrusts his or her reputation to some gallery that also has a web site glued together with Scotch tape. Not here. This site works.

SITE OF THE WEEK

Those of us who live in the three northern New England states cannot imagine how anyone lives elsewhere. Now New Hampshire, Maine and Vermont have their own lifestyle e-zine. It's all about homes, gardening, books -- but with black flies and mountain lions thrown in.

SITE OF THE WEEK
PaulWentworthHouse.org

If ever a house deserved a web site -- it’s this one. Back in 2001 we learned that a small band of preservationists in Rollinsford, New Hampshire desperately wanted to save the town’s oldest house from destruction. There was only one glitch. The house was in Massachusetts.

SITE OF THE WEEK

Who's hot and who's not on the e-Coast in 2004? Don't worry, we won't name names. This week we'retrend tracking. Whcih groups and companies are making good use of the Internet. Who is processing information and who is sitting on their hands? Click on.

Site of the Week
SeacoastPeaceResponse.org

The peace movement is alive and well and living in the Seacoast region. This grassroots site offers an online rallying point for locals opposed to war. See bonus photos at the end of this article.

Site of the Week
DanBrwon.com

Oh, to be Dan Brown of Exeter, New Hampshire in the year 2004! He currently has four novels on The New York Times Bestseller List. His runaway thriller "The Da Vinci Code" has sold 6.5 million copies to date.

Site of the Week
Various Sites

The Web is a pretty funny place if you know where to look. This week marked the kick-off of a number of national comic sites. We check them out and toss in some funny local sites for good measure.

www.commonsensemedia.org
Site of the Week

Don’t blame Janet Jackson. Blame us. TV was going to hell in a hand-basket long before Janet acted like a total boob in front of 100 million boob-tube viewers last month.

www.howstuffworks.com
Site of the Week

I have been migrated. Grammatically, that is impossible, but the Internet makes a mockery of correct English. This week, for the first time in eight years online, my web site was moved from one host server to another.

www.calefs.com
Site of the Week

Cleve Horton led the Internet on a mighty chase. Like the last stray maverick in a great herd, he managed to elude the hard driving webmasters, spurning even those who promised to build him a web site for free.

SITE OF THE WEEK

To the victor goes the web site. Whether you are the President or the Governor, the official news is always in your favor. NH's state site has lots of data if you dig deep and lots of gubernatorial PR if you don't. Too bad some of the best material (formerly WEBSTER) seems to be missing.

Many people mistake SeacoastNH for the chamber of commerce. We're not. There are 9 separate chambers in our region, 7 more in nearby South Coast Maine. As a service to you, we offer a free link to each because we believe in free access to info. A list of ALL the NH chambers follows. For 3,000 MORE local links see our Business Search Engine.

SEACOAST NH AREA CHAMBERS (click to visit)

Barrington Chamber of Commerce
PO Box 363 Barrington, NH 03825 (603) 664-2200

Greater Dover Chamber of Commerce
299 Central Avenue Dover, NH 03820 (603) 742-2218

Exeter Area Chamber of Commerce
120 Water Street Exeter, NH 03833 (603) 772-2411

Hampton Beach Area Chamber of Commerce
490 Lafayette Rd Hampton, NH 03843 (603) 926-8717

Hampton Beach Village District
Hampton, NH 03842 (800) GET-A-TAN

Greater Portsmouth Chamber of Commerce
PO Box 239 Portsmouth, NH 03801 (603) 436-3988

Greater Rochester Chamber of Commerce
18 South Main St, Rochester, NH 03857 (603) 332-5080

Greater Salem Chamber of Commerce
220 North Broadway, PO Box 304, Salem, NH 03079-0304 (603) 893-3177

Greater Somersworth Chamber of Commerce
58 High Street, P.O. Box 615 Somersworth, NH 03878 (603) 692-7175

SOUTH COASTAL MAINE CHAMBERS (click to visit)

Biddeford-Saco Chamber Of Commerce & Industry
110 Main Street, Suite 1202, Saco Maine 04072 207-282-1567

Greater Portland Chambers of Commerce
145 Middle Street, Portland, Maine 04101 207.772.2811

Kennebunk/Kennebunkport Chamber of Commerce
P.O. Box 740, Kennebunk, Maine 04043 207.967.0857

Old Orchard Beach Chamber of Commerce
P.O. BOX 600, Old Orchard Beach, ME 04064 1-800-FMLY-FUN

Ogunquit Chamber of Commerce
PO Box 2289c, Ogunquit, ME 03907-2289 207-646-2939

Wells Chamber of Commerce
PO Box 356, Wells, ME 04090 207-646-2451

Greater York Chamber of Commerce
571 US Route 1. York, ME 03909 207-363-4422

OTHER NEW HAMPSHIRE CHAMBERS

Baker Valley
PO Box 47, Rumney, NH 03266 (603) 764-9979

Bethlehem Chamber of Commerce
PO Box 748, Bethlehem, NH 03574 (888) 845-1957

Greater Concord Chamber of Commerce
244 North Main Street, Concord, NH 03301-5078 (603) 224-2508

Greater Conway Village Area Chamber of Commerce
PO Box 1019, Conway, NH 03818 (603) 447-2639

Greater Derry Chamber of Commerce
1 North Main Street, Suite 101A, Derry, NH 03038 (603) 432-8205

Franconia Notch Chamber of Commerce
P.O. Box 780, Franconia, NH 03580 (800) 237-9007

Greater Franklin-Tilton Chamber of Commerce
PO Box 464 Franklin, NH 03235 (603) 934- 6909

Hanover Area Chamber of Commerce
216 Nugget Building, Main Street, Hanover, NH (603) 643-3115

Jaffrey Chamber of Commerce
PO Box 2, Jaffrey, NH 03452-0002 (603) 532-4549

Greater Keene Chamber of Commerce
48 Central Square, Keene, NH 03431 (603) 352-1303

Greater Laconia/Weirs Beach Chamber of Commerce
11 Veterans Square, Laconia, NH 03246 (603) 524-5531

Greater Lebanon Chamber of Commerce
2 Whipple Place, P.O. Box 97, Lebanon, NH (603) 448-1203

Lincoln-Woodstock Chamber of Commerce
P.O. Box 358, Kancamagus Highway Lincoln, NH 03251 (603) 745-6621

Lisbon Area Chamber of Commerce
6 South Main St, Lisbon, NH 03585 (603) 838-6673

Littleton Area Chamber of Commerce
P.O Box 105, 120 Main Street, Littleton, NH 03561 (603) 444-6561

Londonderry Area Chamber of Commerce
3 Orchard View Drive, Londonderry, NH 03053 (603) 434-7438

Manchester Chamber of Commerce
889 Elm Street, Manchester, NH 03101 (603) 434-7438

Meredith Area Chamber of Commerce
P.O. Box 732, Meredith, NH 03253-0732 (603) 279-6121

Merrimack Chamber of Commerce
P.O. Box 254, Merrimack, NH 03054 (603) 424-3669

Mount Washington Valley Chamber of Commerce
PO Box 2300, North Conway, NH 03860 (800) 521-2137

Greater Nashua Chamber of Commerce
146 Main Street, Second Floor, Nashua, NH 03060 (603) 881-8333

New London/Lake Sunapee Region Chamber of Commerce
PO Box 532 New London, NH 03257 (603) 536-6575

Newfound Region Chamber of Commerce
PO Box 454, Dept. B, Bristol, NH 03222 (603) 744-2150

North Country Chamber of Commerce
P.O. Box 1, Colebrook, NH 03576 (603) 237-8939

Northern White Mountains Chamber of Commerce
164 Main Street, PO Box 298, Berlin, NH 03570 (603) 752-6060

Greater Ossipee Chamber of Commerce
127 Route 28, Ossipee, NH 03864 (603) 539-6201

Greater Peterborough Chamber of Commerce
PO Box 401, Peterborough, NH 03458 (603) 924-7234

Plymouth Chamber of Commerce
PO Box 65, Plymouth, NH 03264 (800) 386-3678

Rindge Chamber of Commerce
PO Box 911, Rindge, NH 03461 (603) 899-5051

Souhegan Valley Chamber of Commerce
52 Nashua Street, Milford, NH 03055 (603) 673-4360

Squam Lakes Chamber of Commerce
Box 665, Ashland, NH 03217 (603) 968-4494

Twin Mountain Chamber of Commerce
(800) 245-TWIN

Greater Wakefield Chamber of Commerce
PO Box 111, Wakefield, NH 03872 (603) 522-6106

Waterville Valley Chamber of Commerce
RFD #1, Box 1067, Campton, NH 03223 (800) 237-2307

Wolfeboro Chamber of Commerce
PO Box 547, 32 Central Ave, Wolfeboro, NH 03894 (603) 569-2200

SITE OF THE WEEK

For the first time in history, the web is a powerful force in the presidential elections. Howard Dean gets credit for making the Web matter. Now everybody in the race is online. The better the web site, it seems, the better the candidates chances.

SITE OF THE WEEK

Excuse me. Having just read Eric Schlosser’s book Fast Food Nation, I’m a little off my feed this week. Fast food, Schlosser says, is destroying us, not just in body, but in soul, and I’m inclined to agree. If the violent film industry and the raging economy and the terrorists don’t get us, the burgers will.