Webupon

For many years I’ve written about how to use the Internet for research, and I’m always looking for useful Web sites. In fact, I wrote an e-newsletter called “Really Useful Sites”, so you know I would never waste my Web surfing time on a pointless, trivial, or otherwise useless site, right?
Wrong.

Like most people, I can’t resist wasting time at Web sites that have nothing useful to offer me, and I do it nearly every day. I’ve actually become quite a connoisseur of useless Web sites, and there are certain ones I like best because of the sheer joy of wasting time there.
Here are some of my favorites.

Unnecessary Knowledge. I bet you didn’t know that the average person laughs 13 times a day. Or that you are approximately two inches taller when you wake up than when you go to sleep.  You’ll find these and many other completely useless facts at this site. Just click on “generate unnecessary knowledge” to keep reading more of this kind of trivia.

Nailing Jelly To A Wall: Is It Possible?  I’m sure you’ve heard the expression,“It’s like nailing jelly to a wall,” to describe a difficult task. Well, here’s a person who decided to see if it’s actually possible to nail jelly to a wall. There’s a step-by-step discussion here, with lots of pictures, and you can waste a good chunk of time seeing the result of this completely pointless exercise.

Toss A Ball. This one is so simple a five-year-old could do it: which worries me, since I’ve spent way too much time here. All you do is click on the little bouncing ball, move it somewhere on the screen, and let it drop. Then you watch it bounce up and down, until it stops. If it sounds completely idiotic, that’s because it is – but somehow, strangely fascinating.

Logo Motto. Here’s another one where you just keep clicking and funny things show up on your screen. This site mixes up well-known company logos and mottoes, for some amusing results. Just keep clicking on “Refresh” and you’ll see things like: the Deutsche Bank logo with, “Because I’m worth it,” or, the Jaguar logo with, “Don’t leave home without it”.

Literally, A Web Log. I probably like this one because I’m a word person. This blog is devoted to abuse of the word “literally”, and there are some hilarious examples from the media. Like the actress who said she would “literally” implode if she didn’t get to play a part in a movie. Or the You Tube video that has Joe Biden saying “literally” eight times in about a minute.

World’s Most Bizarre Statues. You have to wonder who would pay good money for an upside down statue (Australia); a huge shark sticking out of a roof (United Kingdom); and a giant piece of. . . oh, well, see it yourself (Brazil).

Weird Converter. Here’s another treasure chest of useless facts. At this site you can find out how many kegs of beer you can fit in an Airbus A380; how many Shaquille O’Neals you could put in the Great Wall of China; and how many hockey pucks you could fit in a Blue Whale. There’s really no reason to know any of these things, which is why it’s an excellent site for wasting time.
These are just a few of the many excellent sites on the Web where you can waste hours of your day. As a person who has spent many hours looking for useful sites on the Web, I highly recommend spending at least part of your day on sites that have no redeeming value. Now, please excuse me. . . I have to find out if you really can nail jelly to a wall.