the best of 5

If you're a football fanatic you probably don't need me to tell you that Euro 2004 is the place to be. In fact even if you don't normally follow the sport, it's a great opportunity to unite with your fellow countrymen in support of your national team. And if you've caught the Euro 2004 bug then you should definitely pay a visit to the tournament's official website. It's packed full of enough facts and statistics about the sport and its players to satisfy even the most ardent fan, and with a translation into eight different languages there should be something for everyone, no matter which team they're supporting. Browse the section about the history of the tournament to arm yourself with interesting and amazing facts to impress your fellow supporters. The articles are well written and nicely illustrated with dozens and dozens of great photographs, and a timeline menu allows you to neatly navigate to exactly the era that interests you. As well as all the usual news, views and interviews, within the FanZone section there's also a couple of neat games such as the Tournament Predictor, which could see you winning a prize. Along with the great information and pictures, a team of 40 in Lisbon, plus correspondents with all sixteen teams, will keep you bang up to date with all the latest news and results.

If tennis is more your style then you'll be looking forward to the football being over so you can sit down enjoy the annual delights offered by Wimbledon. A great British tradition, the official home of the All England Lawn Tennis & Croquet Club's famous tournament has the look of a distinguished country club about it. There's a navigation panel on the left that points the way to sections about the history of the club and the competition, together with plenty of stats and pictures to get you in the mood for this year's offering. There's even a section offering advice and contacts for those hoping to visit the Club and watch a match in person. The ticket information in this section is really useful, as it includes tips on the various ways you can net yourself a premium seat at centre court. The News & Photos section is where you'll find all the competition updates as the tournament unfolds - there obviously won't be much in there until it starts, but if their coverage is anything like last year's, expect to see some lively reporting on these pages in the weeks to come.

Next up, some games of a different nature. With more and more homes installing a broadband connection, online gaming continues to grow in popularity, but what is it all about? If this is a question you've ever pondered upon then Online Gaming Hub has all the answers and a whole lot more. It's a great place to go to find out the basics about online gaming, from what games to play and where, to what equipment you'll need and how to get involved in a clan. The layout of the site is clear and colourful with a really useful download section that houses the patches and modifications you'll need to play. There's hints and tips about etiquette and communication, but be warned - online gaming can be very absorbing, and children especially should be moderated in the amount of time they dedicate to it. On the subject of our younger viewers, I'd also suggest that there are certain elements to this website that some might consider a bit risqué, such as the humour displayed in the flash introduction. It's all to do with the culture of online gaming - you might compare it with the skate generation - so take care to moderate your children's access to the website if you're worried.

Following on with the online gaming theme the website was sent in by viewer Michael Price, who created CyberScore to provide a place for the gaming community to get together and show off a little. As with any game, it's the taking part that really counts, but boy it's nice to win! And in Michael's own words it's a lot more fun smashing the speed record on your GameBoy Advance when there is someone around to 'brag about it' to. And that's basically the point behind this site. It's an online forum for the gaming community to post their high-scoring antics for the whole world to see, well, at least for the 1,600 odd members of the site to admire anyway. How to Post your scores is all explained in the Terms & Conditions section of the website - as is how to prove your score if required. Submitting a score is easy - just locate the game and challenge you're competing in and then click to submit your own score. By the way, don't even hope to understand these pages if you're not a hardened gamer, they are definitely designed for the experts.

Have you ever wondered about where you came from? A desire to understand the origins of our life is one of the things that sets humans apart from other creatures, and where better to satisfy that thirst for knowledge than on the internet? Becoming Human was suggested by viewer Arnab Das, who calls it a 'King Solomon's Mine' for evolution and anthropology enthusiasts. It's a bit of a mouthful, but I have to say I agree with you Arnab. It's basically a website that houses an interactive documentary telling the story of 4 million years worth of human evolution. This kind of documentary experience is happening more and more on the web, and this is a fine example of how modern 'net-based mediums can be used to really bring a subject to life, plus the content itself is fascinating. You'll need a broadband connection and Flash 5 to enjoy it, and even then some of the loading times are still quite long, but for your time you'll be treated to a stunning collection of pictures, sounds and diagrams that shed light on every aspect of human development. The bulk of the documentary is made up of still photographs and images, cleverly animated to give the impression of moving footage, with authentic sound recordings and nicely presented voice-overs. You don't have to watch it all at once, as you can flick through the various subheadings by clicking them at the top of the page, and if you want more information at any point just drag your mouse pointer over the Related Exhibits banner at the bottom of the screen.

We had a request from viewer Charles Vella, who enjoyed the tennis coaching website we featured recently and wants to know if there is anything similar for fans of Table Tennis. A thorough search of the web turned up a few good examples of mainly text-based coaching advice and plenty of news, player profiles and extras, at websites like Pongworld and Megaspin. Both these sites are worth a look for their thorough skills and equipment advice, plus community forums and user reviews of plenty of the latest table tennis equipment. But what I was looking for more than anything was pictures or diagrams to illustrate the techniques, as there are dozens of different strokes and plays which can be hard to visualize on the strength of a couple of paragraphs of text. I found this at the home of a Turkish Table Tennis Association. The website is attractive and well laid out, though not especially slick. Due to the general style and the loading time for un-cached pages, I suspect this site was put together by a fairly inexperienced web-designer, but despite the slightly annoying wait for memory hungry transitions, and the occasional quaint mistake in the translation from the original Turkish text, I really found the tips and advice under Technique Info, together with the step-by-step illustrations, to be the clearest out of any of the websites I visited.

If you're serious about your outdoor pursuits, then Survive Outdoors is a great place to go to kit yourself up with all the essential information you need to stay safe as you trek, climb and camp your way to a healthier lifestyle. At first glance you might think this isn't a particularly sophisticated website, as it's definitely functional rather than aesthetic. I think the website creators missed an opportunity to supplement their articles with some great outdoor scenery, but this in no way detracts from the content of the articles. They're well-written and packed with helpful tips and information about every aspect of outdoor fun from where and how to pitch your tent, to getting lost or, perhaps more importantly, how NOT to get lost, and dealing with injuries and ailments out in the wilderness. Use the menu panel on the left to look through the reference guides. Though they're mainly text based they're definitely worth a read, especially if you're headed somewhere where potentially dangerous wildlife might be lurking. One place there are pictures is in the Emergency Photos, designed to help you identify and treat common injuries and bites, but be warned, most of the pictures are not a pretty sight.

Our final website today offers a little light relief, and was suggested by regular contributor to the website line-up, viewer John Tasker. Create Bands is a great little toy that I found myself tinkering with for far longer than I had planned, it's just so much fun. The idea is you create a band, then get them playing in a jamming session that will probably annoy most of the office if you're playing during your lunch break and don't put your headphones on. Start by naming your musical sensation, and then add up to five musicians one at a time by clicking Add a Musician at the bottom of the screen. Choose from Percussion, Rhythm Guitar, DJ, Bass, Keyboard, Horns and Miscellaneous. There are different choices under each section; it's all pretty self-explanatory. Once your band is complete, choose a loop for them to play by clicking one of the buttons under their name, and you'll see them come to life with amusing animations. You can also make other adjustments to their play, style and volume in the mix using the controls beneath each player. You can even set them in a background and add lighting effect using the controls at the top right of the screen, and position each band member in this 3D environment by clicking and dragging the little arrow beneath their animation. They even change in size the further away you place them, which is a nice touch. Just don't say I didn't warn you how strangely absorbing it is - and don't forget those headphones!

Now for a brilliant resource I found for those of you wanting to get into an outdoor sporting activity, but are not sure where to begin. Time Outdoors is put together by a hundred-strong team of sports, health and technology specialists. Their goal is to provide the most comprehensive resource for outdoor sports and activities enthusiasts in the UK. The website layout is clean and easy to follow, always a bonus when you want to be outside enjoying the sunshine rather than inside trawling through a website. From the front page you can access the sections about running, biking, climbing, walking and adventure racing, each of which contain further sub-menus featuring topics like expert advice, venues and events. The blue panel on the front page allows you to click directly through to sections about clubs, events and charities. The club-finder is a brilliant idea, enabling you to search for a sporting club to join using club name, town, postcode or county. Now there really is no excuse not to get up off the couch and get active.

Probably one of the most popular outdoor pursuits worldwide is fishing, and Fish The World is a massive database of information and advice for those thinking of planning a saltwater fishing trip. The site is chock full of information about the best places and seasons for different types of catch, and contact information for various fishing organisations and charters you can book. It also provides weather information and fishing reports from captains all over the world, which should help you to decide where would be a good place to visit with your rod and tackle. The layout of the website is as clear as tropical water, and I love the animation in the left hand menu panel, though I was slightly disappointed to see that on few of the pages this menu reverts back to a standard text-based system. Deliberate, or a bug? Who knows, but at the end of the day it doesn't take anything away from the website's functionality.

If all this talk about medical issues and symptom diagnosis is making you feel a bit poorly, then I've picked out an alternative selection of healthcare websites this week, which should help put you back on the path of well being. Where better to start than a visit to The Virtual Hospital? This is an information resource managed by the University of Iowa, an online digital health sciences library that was started in 1992, and whih aims to provide useful medical reference and health promotion information for health care providers and patients alike. The website contains thousands of textbooks and booklets for health care providers and patients, all laid out in an easy to follow menu system. On the front page you can choose what category of user you are - a care provider, patient, or specialist - and how you want to search. Within each section there are detailed indexes, which will lead you to a seemingly endless array of documents and texts to help you understand an illness or treatment, or put your mind at rest about a drug you have been prescribed. From the point of view of a healthcare professional, I would think it's difficult to keep up with the everyday developments in the world of medicine, so the pages of up-to-date treatment advice and prescription definitions could prove very useful indeed.

Anyone who knows anything about staying healthy will tell you that it starts with your diet. If you want more information about the kind of foods you should be eating more or less of get yourself along to Healthy Eating. This is a portal website, meaning it has very little self-generated content, but contains links and bookmarks to pages on external websites that contain the information you require. Use the straightforward menu panel on the left to navigate to various sections, then click a link that interests you. External sites will always be opened in a new browser window, so you can clearly see the source of the information and navigate around that website with ease. This system also makes it quick and easy to return to the Healthy Eating web pages if you didn't find what you're looking for. There are food guides, recipe tips, meal planners and nutritional information from some of the most respected sources on the web, such as the famous Mayo Clinic.

Regardless of how seriously you take your own good health, the chances are, if you're a parent, you will spend the best part of the rest of your life protecting and nurturing your children. Our next site, Growing Well addresses the issues surrounding raising a child. In particular it focuses on the Indian family culture, but the advice offered in these pages is relevant to anyone wanting to provide the best care for their child. It's not one of the best laid out websites I've ever seen, but it does the job. There are features you can jump to from the front page, such as Growth and Development, Bringing up a child, or what to expect if you are pregnant. Or you can navigate to the Mothers corner, or support groups and forums using the menu panel on the left. If you have a few minutes to spare then the pictures pages are predictably cute. There is also great news for those Indian netizens who prefer to read and communicate in Hindi - a full translation of the entire website is currently under way.

For some people the idea of alternative therapies and holistic treatments can be very attractive, especially if you suffer with a condition that you feel traditional medicine is having a problem sorting out. But this is probably one of the areas in medicine that you need to be most careful about, and so I would suggest you start at a place like Alternative Health News Online. Another portal, this website has been put together by a group of journalists, whose aim is to present credible and emerging alternative healthcare practises, with a really good dose of down-to-earth realism, and strong advice at every step about the dangers of not being too careful. It's worth reading through the welcome note and disclaimer, as it reminds you in plain and simple English about the nature of some alternative therapies, and the fact that they should be considered a supplement to, not a replacement for, traditional medicine. The operation of the site is all pretty self-explanatory so I won't bore you with the details - just click through to read articles on anything from Naturopathic to Ayurvedic Medicine, or Chinese Qigong to Reflexology and the Alexander Technique.

The internet is just one massive archive of information, an archive that will be around in some form or another for as long as the internet exists. But what if there had been web pages created hundreds of years ago, imagine what kind of insight that would provide into the way our ancestors lived their lives. It would seem that the Institute of International Studies at the University of California at Berkeley have wondered this too, and come up with the idea of creating an archive of information that historians of the future will look to as their holy grail. It sounds a bit dramatic I know, but I am seriously impressed with the intent behind this website. Conceived in 1982, its aim is to capture and preserve the intellectual climate of our times, through conversational interviews. filmed by the University itself. There are currently over 300 unedited interviews in the archive, with people from every walk of life and every corner of the globe. Scientists, historians, writers and foreign correspondents, discuss everything from politics to the social issues which are shaping our world. If every University in the world was to start an archive like this, even just with members of the local community, imagine what a broad vision of the past the world of the future would have. In the meantime, it makes an excellent and highly informative watch, even today.

Jim McCafferty has offered up Chess World, which describes itself as a friendly online chess club where you can play chess with players from all over the World. Jim says he is a novice himself, so you don't have to worry about being overwhelmed by this site, which offers a wealth of additional hints, tutorials and guides to help analyse and improve your play. If you're a complete beginner like me then there's a really simple guide to the basics under the Help and Feedback menu called Introduction to Chess. Who ever said they had no imagination in the chess world? But the main appeal of this site is definitely the play. Choosing Quick Guide under the Play menu is the place to go when you're ready to start a game. As a guest - i.e. non-paying - member, many of the more advanced options, such as making a detailed opponent search, or joining a team or tournament, are not available to you, but starting a standard match couldn't be easier. Choosing Suggest an Opponent under the Opponents menu is probably the fastest way to get the ball rolling, so to speak. Click the piece you want to move, and where you want to move it to, and once you click Confirm your move will be logged and emailed to your opponent. Don't expect an immediate reply, as this is more like an email gaming correspondence than anything else. But you can leave a quick message with your move, and be running up to 5 games at one time, or an unlimited number if you become a paying member, so there's still plenty of fun to be had.

Our next site was suggested by viewer Arnab Das from India, who sent us an email using a free application he'd downloaded from the internet, from a website called Incredimail. Incredimail is a piece of email software that looks like Microsoft Outlook, but provides a host of additional bells and whistles to help enhance the emailing experience. I have to admit to being sceptical when I first looked into this, as I couldn't imagine how tacking a corny sunset backdrop could really enhance anyone's experience to be honest. But, I have to admit, since loading up and trying out the software I have been rather won over. The installation process is well explained in the FAQ section, and was the epitome of polite simplicity. It even helped me effortlessly through that "oops I've forgotten my password" moment - but I won't go into detail, as the software is so intuitive you should be up and running in no time. Once set up you'll be able add backgrounds, sounds and animations to your emails. From fun to professional, subtle to in your face. There's dozens and dozens of ways to express yourself.

Finally a site that despite its vaguely unexciting looks is rather funky deep down. theWebMachine is dedicated to helping you to spruce up your website. It houses a collection of step by step guides and tutorials dedicated to mastering what is one of the most commonly used suite of web design packages in the world - Adobe. Just click the program name at the top and then scroll down the list in the left hand panel to choose your tutorial. No registration needed. Whether you're a professional, or just someone who wants to make a good first impression, you'll probably find a tip or two here that will make you exclaim "it can do that?"

When was the last time you saw a website that made you go 'Cool!' Hopefully you see at least one every week on this page, but this one is the coolest of the cool sites, and be warned, this site will take up all your time without you even realising. Sodaplay is the home of a phenomenon that started out life as an attempt at learning the web programming language Java, so you'll need to have the Java plug-in installed before you can experience this website. Suggested by viewer Zaeem Ahmad, this is a place to play and learn. You make moving objects out of springs and joints, and then set parameters such as gravity, friction and muscle strength. It may look a bit overwhelming, but click onto SodaConstructer and then launch and you'll be able to play with someone else's creation to get a feel for things before attempting to build your own. When the constructer is in simulator mode you can click any junction and drag it across the page to apply a new stress to the springs, thereby setting it off wiggling and rolling about the screen. You really need to go through the tutorial from How to get Started to fully understand all that's possible with this educational toy. But it really is worth the effort. There is so much more to this website than the addictively entertaining activity of building your own robotic critters and mad mathematical mechanicals.

The next website I'd like to show you is actually an extension of the one above, but I thought it worth a mention in its own right as it can take your Sodaplay enjoyment to new heights. Sodarace is where you can pit your critter building creativity against machine learning in a competition to design robots that race over 2D terrains. Think of it as the Sodaplay Olympics. There's a really useful guide under Tips to get you started that I didn't find from the Sodaplay homepage itself, plus a tutorial on making your own amoeba. Check out the race under Artificial Amoeba Maker Beats Humans to see the results of a hotly contended race in the amoeba category if you're thinking about giving it a go yourself. If you're more interested in the educational properties of this pastime, then this site has a comprehensive section under Education, which offers ideas for "Modelling and Variables lessons" and a soda constructor master class for the truly dedicated creator. When you're ready to step up to the starting blocks, you'll find everything you need to know clearly stated under Race, but be prepared for a bit of a read because it is rather a lot of information.

From science-fact to science-fiction - or is it fiction? - as we join the team at the Paranormal Research Organisation, who are dedicated to professional and authoritative research into ghosts and other supernatural phenomena, in the South West of England. The design of the website is not particularly sophisticated, but I found the simplistic graphics had a strangely quaint authenticity, and you can't fault the level of commitment. Check out the News section to find out the latest from the world of spookiness. Here you can click through to full reports from all the latest investigations, like a weekend spent at Pengersick Castle where there were coins moving, phantom dogs scratching, and even the odd self-propelling kitchen door! I'm not sure any of you hardened sceptics will be converted by the content of these pages, but you have to be impressed by the amount of equipment they lugged up the stairs! The photographs section might provide more solid evidence as to the existence of the paranormal should you need it, but for anyone who is already a believer, this website is an absolute treasure trove of ghostly happenings. Myself, I'm undecided - I want to believe in ghosts but I'll need some pretty conclusive evidence to be convinced so I was pleased to see an apparently objective and even, dare I say it, sceptical attitude expressed by some of the investigators.

The young lady surfers among us might enjoy this feast of flash-powered girlie fun, I know my young niece does because it was she who suggested it. If you know someone who is between the ages of about 6 and 10 years old, and is into all things girlie and princess-like, make her day and point her towards What's Her Face. The characters on the website are based on a branded doll, but there is no reason why it can't be fully enjoyed without having bought one. There is also information about the dolls and accessories available tucked away in these pages, so if you're prone to pester-power then I suggest you guide the experience in the direction of the really fun and funky games that are completely free. To get you started, click the Show Off link and try out Make a Whatever, a cute game where you can create your ideal fantasy pet. Choosing 'Where's your WHF' is also tons of fun. Pick a location then drag and drop items to fill up your world from the panels either side. To be honest, I spent way too much time playing on this site, so I'll leave you to find out the rest for yourself, after all, there's only so much I can get away with in the name of research.

Have you ever wished you had the time or the money to do more travelling? Well, for me one of the really exciting things about the web is that it brings the spirit of adventure into your front room, and our first site today offers a real globe-trotting experience. Wildlands was created by young New Zealand filmmaker James Franklin, and started out life as an extension to his book chronicling his 1000-day circumnavigation of the globe aboard the Starship. The Starship, a specially designed scientific vessel, set sail from Seattle in 2000 with the aim of documenting every corner of the globe at the turn of the millennium. During their voyage the crew visited some of the most remote and culturally diverse places on the planet. Once on the site you can access video footage, sound recordings, pictures and written accounts of this extraordinary journey. A good place to start is the radio interview with the man himself. This will give you an insight into the purpose behind the trip, and how it was funded. For me it brought James' personality alive, which added an extra dimension to browsing the many glorious and colourful pages of information. Clicking the link to Active Pages will open a gateway to dozens of stunning videos, sound recordings and pages of text and pictures linked to chapters of the book that will enhance your reading pleasure, but can also be fully appreciated as a stand-alone experience. If you get a chance I recommend you take 10 minutes out of your day to watch the Starship Video which condenses this amazing 3-year voyage into 10 action-packed minutes full of exotic sights and sounds from around the globe. The forum pages are the place for surfers to share their own thoughts and experiences of global travel, and you can even chat with the website's creator and ask any questions that might come up whilst browsing these pages. If reading about James' experiences gets you fired up to find out more about important environmental issues then click through to the Conservation section. This is one of those websites you can get lost in for hours, so sit back and enjoy finding out more about James' travels. I got in touch with James, who is currently exploring Afghanistan, and not only will he continue adding material to the website but will soon be putting up information on a recent trip he took kayaking in the wilds of Tasmania... it's a tough job, but someone has to do it.

The next site definitely has a narrower appeal, but what it lacks in global scope it more than makes up for in what it offers music enthusiasts, who, I might add, have been emailing me asking for web resources for the modern musician. Since the 1990's, tracks created in bedrooms on a shoestring budget have been no stranger to the pop charts, and Sampleswap personifies the spirit of this revolution, as musicians from every level and genre gather to swap ideas, experiences and, perhaps most importantly, music samples. This website has hundreds and hundreds of apparently original sounds samples for you to download and share. Now I say 'apparently' original because the terms and conditions of posting a sample state very clearly that you must only upload samples that you have the legal right to redistribute, that is stuff you've recorded yourself, but when you join up to download a sample you'll see a very clear disclaimer in case those rules haven't been adhered to, so beware. There are some really good tips about electronic music production in the forum threads. Check out the Tips library thread on the front page to read the best questions and answers posted on these pages. You can check out a low quality taster of the samples before joining up though, and you'll find anything here from a gunshot or footsteps crunching across the gravel, to a grungy electro drum loop or some old school break beats. As I said, this is one for the enthusiast.

While we're on the subject of enthusiasts, I got an email from Syed Adeel Ali from Sindh Pakistan, who is one of a number of more advanced computer users who have requested our help, in this case to find a good free tutorial on the web that will help him learn the C++ programming language. C++.com is where it's all happening in the programming world. It's a no mess manual for the construction and uses of C++, and if this is your first dabble into the world of programming I suggest you start at the beginning and work your way through. There's easy to follow tutorial exercises throughout, and before you know it you'll be getting all excited because you got your computer to say hello to you.