Where I've Been Surfing
Home Star Runner. This extraordinarily clever site features a lot of simple (yet effective) Flash animation, including humorous songs, skits, and cartoon features. The "stars" of the site include the slow-witted Home Star Runner, his effervescent girlfriend Marzipan, and local meany Strong Bad (who dresses like a Mexican wrestler). Work in roleplaying R&D grinds to a halt every Monday morning as we listen to the latest Strong Bad e-mail, and RPG category manager Charles Ryan even dressed as Home Star at last year's Halloween party. And it's even clean enough for the kids! Make sure you click the "First Time Visitor" button when you get to the menu page. "Somebody get this freakin' duck away from me!"
PvP. As I've mentioned on my message boards, this is a witty comic strip published online by Scott Kurtz. Ostensibly about the world of computer gaming, it's really about a bunch of geeks like us, and takes potshots at everything from online gaming to Trekkies to the latest sci-fi movies to hit the theaters. It's now also being published in print form by Image Comics (issue #2, which hit the shelves this summer, was a whole D&D-themed issue). Check it out!
Salon.com. So far, I've resisted the growing temptation to use my website as a platform to voice my political views. I do, however, recommend this site to those of you interested in news and commentary that isn't quite as interested in foaming over fake controversies and manufactured stories as, say, Fox News or even the major networks. You don't have to pay a cent to read every single story--just sit through a brief commercial and you're in for the day. (Or subscribe and bypass the ads entirely.) I believe that it's never been more important for every American to be informed about the activities of our leaders.
Tactics (Demo). This simple-looking game proved remarkably addictive to many in RPG R&D for several days, as each of us vied to be the first to survive with all our characters intact. On the surface, it looks like a turn-based CRPG-style game, with several fantasy characters under your control (including a wizard, archer, ninja, and the like) facing off against a similar group of computer-controlled characters in a ruined dungeon-style room. But it's really more like a fantasy chess game, as each character has its own "rules" for movement, attack, defense, and magical powers. Winning isn't typically a challenge, so the goal quickly becomes "how soundly can I beat the computer." Since it's entirely web-based, you don't even have to download anything to your computer. (Easter Egg: See what happens when your healer is the last character left on your side!)