Zeus of the ‘NetReviews of the Coolest Sites on the Net

If you own a business, or are in charge of the legal aspect of things for a business, there’s a website that might be able to help you out…and for free!  LawPivot.com is a question and answer site, similar to Quora, except that this site is focused on business legal issues.  And since everyone knows hiring a lawyer (even for a small issue) can be expensive, this site can help ‘treps and others save lots of money.

The process is pretty simple and straightforward.  There are two options; you can either ask a confidential question or a public question.  If you ask a confidential question, LawPivot will suggest relevant lawyers to answer your questions and then you can send your questions to those lawyers or others that you hand-select.  If you ask a public question the LawPivot community lawyers will answer your question in a public forum where others will be able to benefit as well.

I think it’s a great idea for a site that will definitely be able to save business owners lots of money while also helping to find a good lawyer if the issue is a more complex one.  As always I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments!

Similar to Flipboard in terms of aesthetics, Zite is different in that content is compiled using automated algorithms that find & deliver articles that have “buzz” (i.e. pieces of content that are being discussed on websites, blogs, and social media).  According to their website Zite “is a free, personalized iPad magazine that understands what you like and gets smarter every time you use it.”

Since content isn’t chosen by a person on Zite, personalization plays an important role.  This means that when a user engages with a piece of content, shares it on Twitter, and/or (most importantly) when they give it a “thumbs up”, that user will be more likely to see similar content in the future.  On the flip side, when they don’t engage with certain pieces of content or when they give content a “thumbs down” they will begin to see less and less of that type of content in the future.  This personalization based on user interaction is what differentiates Zite from all of the other news reader apps (very similar to what Pandora does in the music space).

So if you’ve got an iPad, I’d recommend downloading Zite to test out for yourself.  And as always, I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments!

*Update* Yesterday (12/9) Zite released their new app for the iPhone. After downloading it I definitely recommend checking it out if you’re an iPhone owner!

For those who’ve already selected the destination(s) for their big trip, the next step is deciding what to see & do once you get there.  A new site called Tripomatic makes planning your trips a whole lot easier by allowing you to create a personal itinerary.  With deep Google Maps integration this site allows its users to create a day by day sight-seeing schedule with directions from one location to the next location on their itinerary.  As a quick side note, the Google Maps integration is quite impressive and probably one of the best I’ve come across.

In addition to showing all of the more popular things to see/do in a particular city, Tripomatic also has a “must see” filter (pretty self explanatory).  They also have a “Hotels” filter which shows all of the hotels in the area in which you are currently looking at on the map.  The only downside I saw as of right now is that there are only European destinations available.  However I’ve been told that destinations in the U.S., Canada, and the Caribbean will become available by the end of this year, with countries on other continents coming sometime early next year.

I have to say this site does a really good job of balancing features and functions with a clean looking design that’s intuitive and easy to use.  So next time you’re planning a trip, go prepared and plan it all out ahead of time using Tripomatic!

If you are then this site is definitely for you!  Listverse presents a new and unique list every day that covers topics from Crime & Mystery, History, and Bizarre.  With a total of 15 different categories, there’s bound to be lots of interesting things to read!  For example this article, “Top Ten Shocking Historical Firsts” is a fascinating look at some lesser-known ‘firsts’ that have taken place in history.

So if you’ve got some extra time on your hands check out Listverse and let me know what you think in the comments!

If you’ve ever tried to keep up with the endless number of blog posts, articles, video clips, etc. that are out there on the web, you know it can be a daunting task.  I’m sure there are many like me who try but often are just unable to keep up with the flood of information that is published on a daily basis.  Instapaper tries to address this issue in a simple and straightforward way.  First create an account, second click the “Read Later” button when you come across something you’d like to read at a later time, and third come back to read the article, blog post, etc. when you have time.  It’s a simple process and their website speaks to that simplicity.  They also have apps for the iPhone and iPad ($4.99/app).

With Instapaper you can now read that article, watch that video, or read that interesting blog post, when you have the time to do so.  For those who use this site or one with a similar service, I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments!

Going back to the early days of the web, and even still today, a popular place to ask questions and get answers were and still are forums.  Simple, straightforward, and usually niche specific, forums allow users to post questions and get answers.  But that’s pretty much it.  Not to mention the issue of SPAM.  Luckily there are a couple of sites out there that are trying to revitalize the world of Q&A  (see my previous post on Quora).  Recently I came across a new site in this niche called Namesake that looks very promising.  Namesake initially caught my attention because, number one I think they selected a great name and number two the design, usability, look and feel, and colors used on their site look very professional and work really well.

This site is still in its early stages so there’s not a ton of questions and answers or conversations yet, but I’m sure that will change as it begins to catch on with more and more people.  I think this site has a ton of potential and I’m excited to see what the future holds in store for them.  I recommend joining and checking the site out for yourself…and then come back and leave a comment and let us know what you think!

With the economy slowly chugging along it may not seem like the best time to buy a house, but it actually is (at least for those who are in the financial position to do so).  However because of the large number of houses on the market, many potential buyers are quickly realizing that finding the right house is a very time consuming process.  That’s where Redfin.com can help out.  This site helps to make gathering important information about a particular house easier.  Redfin also offers brokerage services, which is something that none of their competitors can say.

Launched in February 2006, Redfin provides quite a bit of data as well as maps, of houses located within the geographic areas they currently serve (which includes most major metropolitan areas in the U.S.).  This data includes basic information like square footage, number of bedrooms, bathrooms, etc., but also things like how much you can expect to pay in property taxes.

If you’re looking to do some research for that next (or first) house you might want to pay a visit to Redfin.  They just might have the information you’re looking for!

If you answered yes to any of these, then you should check out a site called Betterfly.com.  Basically Betterfly helps you to find service providers such as hair stylists, language coaches, massage therapists, and Zumba instructors that are in your local area.  Their website is easy to use and the search and filter options work very well.  In addition to having a great looking site, they also have many cool features.  The first and most important thing that a service provider site needs is reviews!  Thanks to Yelp reviews are a MUST especially for service related offerings.  The nice thing about the reviews on this site is that they are categorized according to the service that’s being provided, which ensures that they are relevant (this is important if a provider offers multiple services across several domains).

Another thing that I think is a great idea is the ‘Availability’ feature.  Betterfly allows providers to show their availability with the option for potential client’s to book directly online!  You can’t ask for a more quick and easy process!  So if you’ve been wanting to learn a new language, find a new hair stylist, treat yourself to a massage, or get back in shape, then go check out Betterfly today!

Do you enjoy waking up early on a Saturday or Sunday and driving around your neighborhood looking for yard sales?  I would totally be one of these people if it wasn’t for the waking up early part.  Me and mornings don’t get along.  For those of you who are like me, there’s a website that can help take care of this aversion to the AM.  The site is called Yardsellr.  The genius of this site is the social aspect and the deep integration with Facebook (and Twitter, but the focus is more on FB).  Once logged in (through Facebook Connect) you can begin buying and selling things online in a little as 60 seconds.  It’s that easy.  No more getting out of bed, brushing your teeth, or showering…at least before 9am on a weekend.

One of the other things I like about this site is what they call “blocks”.  They have over 4,000+ blocks that range from Jewelry, to Star Wars, to Baseball Cards and everything in between.  Also when you put something up for sale they will not only spread the word on your block, but also in the news feeds of millions of Yardsellr fans on Facebook.

There are tons of items just waiting to be bought (and if your closet, garage, storage room, etc. is like most there’s probably tons to sell too!).  So what are you waiting for?

I know that may sound like a weird question but if you think about it, your brain is a muscle like any other (bicep, deltoid, pectorals, etc.) and needs to get a good workout to stay in tiptop shape!  So in addition to working on those “guns” (or for some “water pistols”… but hey who’s judging?) you should also be working out your brain!  Who knew?  Apparently a guy by the name of Lindsay Gaskins, who started a company called Marbles: The Brain Store.  They have a website as well, where all of the products they sell in their Chicago area stores can be purchased.

I think this is a great concept for a business.  There are lots of people of all ages, not just aging baby boomers, who could benefit from regular brain stimulation.  I really like their website too, it’s clean, easy to navigate, and has a lot of brain fitness related information.

So what do you think?  Would you buy something from Marbles: The Brain Store?  Looking forward to your comments!