Amiga Technologies Homepage
They still make Amigas? That' about all I learned here. It doesn't get any more basic than this. No fancy graphics, not much text, few links (not that there are a lot of other Amiga sites to link to). Some parts are only in German, but I doubt non-speakers are missing much. I did learn that the Amiga "is the first choice of graphics professionals." Yeah, sure. If you're an Amiga fan or owner, you probably don't have a lot of sites to choose from, but for the other 99.9 percent of the population, stay away.-BB
D-

Apple Computer
I'm a big Apple fan, so I expected a lot from this site. I found it had very solid, in-depth information about Apple and its programs. But after looking around for an hour, I felt something was missing. Style. The site is just plain dry. True, there's a good support section, lots of ra-ra Apple info, and a nice special exhibit containing excellent pictures and extensive annotation. Don't miss the "Open Doc" section in the technologies and research area; if you have the time and bandwidth, download the example. But all of this needs to be better presented.-BB
B

Citicorp Citibank Home Page
Too bad Citibank didn't spend as much energy on its front-end home page (boring boring boring) as it did on the product/service pages or credit card information page (very well done). They weren't accepting online credit card applications when I last checked, but it's a possibility by the time you read this. They also have student loan information (which you *can* apply for online, though heed the warning - it's not secure yet.) Also of use is the searchable database of Citibank branches worldwide - just in case you need a cash advance from Argentina.
-SK
B

Corbis
Excellent. I could spend an entire day at this site, an enormous, well-organized archive of images, many available in high resolution. Especially worthwhile is the Almanac under the Corbis Media section. The Gallery Plan in the Gallery section is done so well I forgot it's useless. You can set up an account that somewhat personalizes your home page screen to account for your bandwidth and interests. The hi-res images are encrypted, so you have to download their viewer to access them. It always gives me a warm feeling to know that Bill Gates (founder of Corbis) is vigilantly protecting our copyright laws.-BB
A

Eastman Kodak Company
Dang, it's slow! There's plenty of information and nice enough graphics here if you can stand the wait. Search through heaps of press releases, corporate data (mission, background info, etc.), and photography tips, or enter one of the scheduled live chats with a professional photographer. (Transcripts are available, too, for those who missed the chats.) But if you aren't a photographer or fanatical about Kodak, I can't really think of many reasons for you to visit the site. It's just O.K.
-SK
C+

MasterCard International Pointers
Here's an example of how to keep a corporate site interesting. Sure, Mastercard will bombard you with company information and, of course, an opportunity to apply for a credit card (online in several countries). But Mastercard ups the ante a bit and adds in a hot spot link - complete with clever quotes, contests, a story archive, and an interesting article about secure online transactions (to ease paranoia and spread a little education). It's not a super-fancy-looking site, but it's pretty enough, and the content value certainly is high enough to create a nice balance.
-SK
A

MCA UNIVERSAL CYBERWALK
In its usual fashion, MCA/Universal has given an impression of substance to almost non-existent content. I found myself spending 20 minutes trying to figure out the impressive-looking home video library, only to realize there were only images of videocassette covers surrounded by lots of useless buttons. The site does boast some movie clips and actual information about many of their books in the Putnam/Berkeley section, but the music and film sections are quite bare. Overall, you have to search through a lot of fluff to find a very moderate amount of substance.-BB
C+

MCI
MCI has an outstanding site. It's huge, with everything from news releases (updated very regularly) and long-distance information to entertainment, customer service, and online paging capabilities. Yes, you can page someone with an MCI or Skytel pager from the Internet - it's easy. The graphics are great (and not bandwidth bandits), and the content is well-organized. While you're browsing, link to InternetMCI (http://www.internetmci.com), which houses all the fashion, entertainment, and misc. fun stuff.
-SK
A+

Merrill Lynch
Merrill Lynch has fallen into the trap of thinking that having a Web site is enough; if you build it, they will come. This site could have been developed as a great resource to investors and planners. Instead, the homepage has lots of investment buzz words linked to a 250-word statistics-laden info sheet that, in turn, is linked to a form for visitors to fill out. Merrill Lynch uses the info from the form to s-mail glossy advertisements. If you're looking for Merrill Lynch brochures, this is the place for you. For anything else, look elsewhere.
-BB
D+

Microsoft Corporation
I was expecting quantity and quality from Microsoft's site. I got the former. There's an incredible amount of information here, all extremely well-organized. You can get an outline of the entire site, or more detailed outlines of parts of it. Alternately, the entire site can be searched with a good search engine. Perhaps best of all, Uncle Bill discourses on the office and school of the future. The graphics are pretty dull image maps, although the forms are cool and the pseudo pull-down menus in the support section are kind of interesting, though a bit silly.-BB
A-

OZ Interactive Inc
This company is a leader in computer graphics, an imaging company that seems very interested in VRML (Virtual Reality Markup Language). There's not a whole lot at this site yet, but it's very nice-looking and there are some interesting things coming. They have a VRML gallery already, and are working on a VR record store. The plans for it are laid-out, and are worth a look now if you're interested in Icelandic computer graphics. Definitely bookmark it for later reading; it could be a fascinating site, especially if you have a VRML reader.-BB
B-

Pacific Bell Web HomePage
Well, Pac Bell isn't going to win any design awards, though the graphics are fine. They probably won't win any content or net smartness awards, either. But it's an all right site if you want information on products and telephone rates for the West coast. The press release database is pretty current (and interesting, as Pac Bell has its hands in many things related to the Internet), and it's searchable - thus saving the Web site from total review annihilation.
-SK
C

Sirius Connections
This is a nice Web site. "Nice" is the most appropriate word since it's neither spectacular nor lacking, but covers the bases of its business well. Sirius, an Internet access provider for the San Francisco/Bay Area, includes all the necessary information about its services. You'll find out about prices, files, account types available, and online registering. There's a reference/help desk for technical and service-related questions. Also, the site looks good, with tasteful icons and a smooth layout. No gimmicks. No frills. Just good and solid.
-SK
A

Sony Online
Instead of taking several months to give Sony different Site of the Month awards - for music, gaming, film, etc. - for its amazing Web site, I thought it would be more efficient to mix it all together and name Sony as the best corporate site of the month. Know in advance that it is superb in all the aforementioned entertainment arenas.
The "Music" section offers sound and video clips of featured artists (the offerings regularly rotate to avoid redundancy), tour information, online catalogs with *stuff* to buy, like t-shirts, posters, etc. (though there's no online ordering yet), and an updated news area - for all the fresh gossip. Actually, most of their news is PR material, but it's entertaining. And no, no no, it's not over. Sony also sponsors at least two, sometimes three, live chats via America Online (Keyword: live) each month with Sony recording artists - with transcripts available on the Sony Web site.
The "Pictures" section traverses though cinema, video, and television, highlighting established, specially featured, and upcoming projects to keep you current and well-informed. There's a listing of how to find a Sony theater near you, as well as what might be playing there. When I last checked the site, the newest movie addition was "Jumanji," a feature film starring Robin Williams. The site for this one movie was several pages thick, with "behind the scenes" interviews and profiles, video clips, and an online contest to win merchandise. These katz know how to market in a fun and creative way.
And let's talk interactive. Yup. The gaming industry's little media darling, the Sony PlayStation, has a home of its own on the Sony Interactive site, complete with game updates and all the technical specifications to leave bits and bytes types drooling. Sony also has screen savers here and every now and then offers a free one! Right now, they've highlighted "Beavis and Butthead" and "PlayBoy" (interesting combination...).
And, though all of these areas have their own separate catalogs, there's a monster behemoth catalog in the "On Gear" section, should you want to purchase more Sony merchandise....
Be prepared to spend a lot of time here, especially if you're heavy into entertainment culture. The graphics are smooth, the layout is easy to navigate, and the content is never ending.-SK
A+

The IBM world wide web home page
This is kind of your standard corporate page. The support section is very extensive. The IBM plugs are ever-present. The Stretch (just for fun) section is surprisingly good. They have also done a very nice job of integrating their "Solutions for a Small Planet" campaign with the Web. There's not much reason to go here unless you just happen to be a Big Blue developer or fan (does IBM have fans?), but it's a very solid site.-BB
B+

Welcome to Bulldog
This group is very fond of itself. There are some interesting pictures here, and the video is somewhat interesting, though it may take you an hour or more to download it. Overall, though, the site is quite dull and lacks much information. Want to take an extensive photo tour of their office? I didn't either. But I did find out that the CEO is a new media genius, wine expert, and gourmet cook. Who cares? I found myself saying that a lot.-BB
C-

Welcome to Macromedia
For people who use Macromedia products, this is a very good site. There's a good range of software and plug-ins for use with Macromedia products. There's also a wide range if items, such as industry gossip and demos, that would be of interest to multimedia aficionados. There isn't a great amount of depth to the material, but hopefully, it will fill in over time. Perhaps the coolest feature is the ability to download a file of bookmarks for the Macromedia site that you can import into your browser.-BB
B

Welcome to NutraSweet
NutraSweet, indeed, has a sweet site. It's loaded with health tips, a news area (though it wasn't quite finished when I last checked), a library, which is actually a reference shelf for NutraSweet-related questions, and a market place to distribute NutraSweet-enhanced recipes (yes, cakes, cookies, and pies, guilt-free.) And the super bonus: you enter in your personal data - age, gender, activity level - and receive in reply a custom calorie/nutrition recommendation chart. The graphics are great ,and you'll never guess who's starring as the site's mascot - Mr. Magoo! Very clever.
-SK
A

Winterland World's Greatest T-Shirts
Winterland has all the flavors in concert t-shirts, from The Beastie Boys to Hole to Pantera. The Web site has great graphics and a smart layout, but unfortunately, they don't do such a great job showing off the merchandise. The site only displays one shirt for each artist, even though in the paper catalog, several shirts are listed for each band. (Did they run out of space or time?) So, it's not very complete compared to what they actually offer. And yes, you guessed it, no secure transactions yet. Call the 800-number to order.
-SK
B-