The Corner Penthouse

COMPUTER RESOURCES

• Hosts File Blocking (if you need a HOSTS file to start you off, you can download the extensive one at MVPs.org)
• Show Your Current IP Address - MyIPAddress
• Speed Test - Fast.com (powered by Netflix)
• Speed Test - Speak Easy
• Speed Test - Speedtest.net by Ookla
• Start-Up - Windows Startup Programs Database Search (archive) - A list of programs (only) that run at startup, as compiled by Paul "Pacman" Collins.
• Windows Services - Black Viper's Windows Services Configurations for Windows 7, Windows XP (both archived copies).

GREETING CARDS (ONLINE, FREE)

• 123 Greetings - Lets you pre-date your card.

HOME VIDEO & AUDIO (VHS/DVD/BLU-RAY/CD)

• Blu-Ray.com
• CD Database (FreeDB) - Track listings and times for virtually every CD ever made.
• Template Covers/Liners For DVDs & Other Media: Dupe Shop
• Template Covers/Liners For DVDs & Other Media: Print DVD Cover
• Covers/Liners For DVDs & Other Media: Covers.box (alt url)
• Covers/Liners For DVDs & Other Media: Cover Century
• Covers Scans (Back & Front) For DVDs & Blu-Ray: DVD Empire - Yes, I know this is an online retailer and not a cover scan site, but they're the only retailer who usually has back cover scans for the DVDs and Blu-ray discs that they sell. So although I prefer to buy from other retailers, I always check this site for the back covers so I can get details about a DVD or Blu-ray before I buy it.
• Customer Service Phone Numbers & Email Addresses - Retailers and movie studios.
• DVD Compare / Rewind - Comparisons of DVD releases of the same title, so you'll know which one is the best one to buy.
• DVD Talk Forum
• Hidden Features & Easter Eggs (Hidden DVD Easter Eggs)
• Hidden Features & Easter Eggs (Blu-ray: High-Def Digest) (archive)
• Home Theater Forum
• VHS Wasteland (archive) - High resolution scans of rare, strange, and forgotten VHS covers.

JAVASCRIPT/DHTML ARCHIVES

• Dynamic Drive (archive)

LANGUAGE TRANSLATORS

• Google Translate (has options for translating Text, Images, Documents, Websites)

MISCELLANEOUS

• Online PDF Unlocker - https://smallpdf.com/unlock-pdf
  This one gets around tough AES256-locked files, but it ONLY WORKS ON PDF FILES UNDER 100MB! (You have to pay if you want to use it with a larger file.) To bypass the "twice a day" limitation, simply clear your browser cookies! Yes, it's that simple. Since my browser clears cookies when I close it (only a select few are retained), just closing my browser and reopening it resets the limit :-)
• Company Contacts
• Dictionary & Thesaurus - Dictionary.com
• Dictionary & Thesaurus - Merriam-Webster
• Google Maps
• Internet Archive Wayback Machine - Archived Webpages (alt url)
• Long Island Herald - top stories from around Nassau Country
• MapQuest - Map Maker
• Nassau County Public Libraries
• Nassau County Public Library Collection Search (outdated search)
• Unscramble.net - Unscramble, find, rhyme or define that word! Find or unscramble the word you need to complete that puzzle.
• U.S. Postal Holiday Schedules (Official)
• U.S. Postal Holiday Schedules
• Village of Valley Stream, New York
• Voice Chasers
  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
• Sacred Heart Church, Island Park, NY (White Elephant Sale May-Aug., San Gennaro Feast in Sept.) (WEEKLY BULLETIN PDF ON LEFT MAY HAVE SCHEDULE)
• St. Anthony's Church, Oceanside, NY (St. Anthony's Parish Feast in June)
• Valley Stream Lions Club (Pool Parking Lot Flea Market in Sept.)
• Valley Stream Community Fest (Rockaway Ave Street Fair in Sept. or Oct.)
• The Church of the Ascension, Rockville Centre, NY (Friendship Fair in Oct. - only on odd-numbered years!)
• Valley Stream Chabad Calendar (Giant Menorah Lighting every November/December)

MOVIES

• Bad Movies
• Film Reference - A good source(?) for celebrity mailing addresses.
• Flubs of Jurassic Park, The
• Internet Movie Database
• Movie-Censorship.com - comparisons between rated, unrated, and other alternate versions of movies.
• "Movie Mistakes" videos on YouTube
• Nightmare On Elm Street Companion, A
• Spider-Man Movie World Trade Center Teaser (1:50, 480x260, 20 Mb, .mov zipped) (archive).

MUSIC

• Weird Al Yankovic's Official Site
• Who Sampled - Exploring the DNA of music.

ONLINE TOOLS - MISCELLANEOUS

• BugMeNot - Provides login information for websites that require FREE registration, such as the New York Times. They will not provide login information for pay sites. Use this service when you want to view a website, but don't want to go through the hassle (and privacy problems) of registering for it.
  NOTE: It only displays the five most recent and/or working logins for a particular site.
  NOTE: There is a 40 character limit on the "Other" field when submitting new login info.
• Code Converter - HTML-to-BBCode (multiple formats)
• Code Converter - HTML-to-BBCode
• Link Checker - W3C
• Logo/Title Graphics Generator
• Markup Validation Service - W3C
• Picture Resizer - The quality of the resized images are as good as what Paint Shop Pro does. In fact, it actually resamples the images, not resizes them, which is better. The Sharpen filer they have SUCKS! It sharpens the images TOO MUCH.
• Transparent Gif Maker

ONLINE TOOLS - FILE HOSTING

When using services like these, be sure to have an Ad Blocker installed in your browser, and always be aware of deceptive links to pay services. These sites like to hide the free ("slow") download links.

• 1Fichier - no login needed, fast (500 KB/sec), files kept for 30 days after last time downloaded; UPLOADS: No upload progress bar.
• SendSpace
• DropBox (req. account) (2GB free) (recommended for permanent file hosting)
• MediaFire (req. account) (10GB free) (recommended for permanent file hosting)

ONLINE TOOLS - IMAGE HOSTING

• ImageBam
• Imgur (use "New Post" to upload an image, convert video to animated gif, or make a meme)
• Fotki (req. account)
• ImageShack (req. account)

ONLINE TOOLS - PUBLIC/DISPOSABLE E-MAIL ADDRESSES

Public one-way e-mail addresses for when a website or a person wants your e-mail address, but you don't want to get any messages from them in your real mailbox. All mail sent to this address can be read on the website by ANYONE (so don't use it for personal information) who either knows that name or decides to use that name for their own SPAM prevention. Accounts are created when mail arrives for them. No signup, no personal information, and when you're done - you can walk away. The messages are automatically deleted for you after a few hours.

• Guerrilla Mail
• Internxt
• Spam Gourmet
• 10 Minute Mail
• TempMailo
• Tempr.email
• Trash-Mail (in German)

ONLINE TOOLS - URL SHORTENERS

Take a long webpage address and instantly turn it into a tiny one, perfect for posting on message boards or in e-mails. Since you can't edit the tiny addresses you create, this isn't suggested to use as a permanent way for people to access your own website (if you move your site, your tiny address would be useless and you'd have to create a new one).

• Bit.ly (req. account, limited amount free, blocks .tk urls from being shortened)
• TinyURL (***VERY GOOD***) (good because you can choose text to use in place of the random code)

SEARCH ENGINES

• Google
• Telephone Prefix Location Directory
• TinEye - A reverse image search engine. You can submit an image to TinEye to find out where it came from, how it is being used, if modified versions of the image exist, or to find higher resolution versions. TinEye is the first image search engine on the web to use image identification technology rather than keywords, metadata or watermarks.
• ZIP Code Lookup (United States Postal Service)

SHOPPING (ONLINE RETAILERS)

• Amazon.com - Books, CDs/Cassettes, DVD/VHS, Video Games, Toys, etc. (Free Shipping [$35+])
• Deep Discount - DVDs, CDs, Books, Video Games, and more. (No NY Tax, Free Shipping [$25+], PayPal Accepted)
  
• eBay - Various items, ships individually from various sellers, auctions mostly. (Free Shipping [some sellers], PayPal Accepted - eBay now charges Tax, which goes to them NOT the seller)
• Hamilton Book (Edward R. Hamilton Bookseller Company) - Books, Blu-rays, DVDs, and CDs at closeout prices. Most are the same titles I found in the past at Big Lots, Dollar Tree, and Rite Aid. ($4.00 Shipping Per Order, PayPal Accepted)
  • ITEM NOTE: Of the 33 Blu-rays and DVDs I ordered, only one DVD (Comic Relief) had a promo cut through the UPC code on the back. All items were brand new and sealed in plastic, though some may have been re-sealed (The Jeffersons box was a little dirty under the plastic).
  • PAYPAL NOTE: Orders are usually processed the next business day. When using PayPal, note that they set up a PayPal autopay, and bill PayPal the day the order is processed, with the money taken from your bank the next day. For safety reasons, I suggest deleting the PayPal autopay on PayPal's site after your order is processed. It will be recreated the next time you place an order.
• Target - Various types of items. (Free Shipping [$25+], PayPal Accepted)
• Walmart - Various types of items. (Free Shipping [$35+], PayPal Accepted)
  • PAYPAL NOTE: When using PayPal, note that they set up a PayPal autopay, and bill PayPal the day the order is processed, with the money taken from your bank the next day. For safety reasons, I suggest deleting the PayPal autopay on PayPal's site after your order is processed. It will be recreated the next time you place an order.
  • RETURN POLICY NOTE: If paying with PayPal, do NOT return the item to a physical Walmart store as they will try to give you a gift card instead of a Paypal or Cash refund (like Target does). Do a return through the mail, using their free pre-paid return label. The refund won't be instant, of course, but it's your only option if you want your money back and not "store credit". Ironically, this actually costs Walmart more since they have to pay for the return postage.
• WRESTLING: Highspots - Autographed photos and other wrestling memorabilia. (No NY Tax, PayPal Accepted)
• WRESTLING: Ringside Collectibles - Wrestling figures and other collectibles. Located in Freeport, New York, hence why they charge New York sales tax. (5% off with code FIGURES, Free Shipping [$60+ with code SHIPFREE60], PayPal Accepted)

SOFTWARE

• File Hippo
• Snap Files

TELEVISION

• Classic TV Archive, The
• Poobala's Crossovers & Spin Offs Master Page
• Tales From The Crypt (archive)

TRADING CARDS

• Garbage Pail Kids: Barren Aaron's Garbage Pail Kids Reference Guide (alt url)
• Garbage Pail Kids: GeePeeKay.com
• Garbage Pail Kids: GPK Central
• Garbage Pail Kids: Wayne's Garbage Pail Kids References
• Jeff Allender's House Of Checklists
• Vintage Wrestling Card Archive
• Wacky Packages: Lost 1992 Series
• Wacky Packages: Lost Wackys
• Wacky Packages: Wacky Packages Website
• WrestlingTradingCards.com

VIDEO GAMES

• GameFaqs (alt url)
• GamePressure Guides
• Games Database (use the X360 site below for games on that system)
• Ian Albert's Video Game Maps
• GTA Forums - A message board for every Grand Theft Auto game ever made. Lots of useful info here, some mostly geared towards the PC version.
• MobyGames
• Video Game Museum, The
• Xbox 360 Game Title ID Database
• CODES: User-Created PS2 CodeBreaker Codes (archive) - for a modest amount of games.
• CODES: Action Replay Official Site - United States (Code Junkies)
• CODES: CodeTwink Network: Cheats, Saves
  Formerly known as Code Master's Game Software Code Creator's Club, and then as the official site for the CodeBreaker cheat device, the site is now an archive of Game Shark (PS1) and CodeBreaker (PS1 & PS2) codes (and for some other devices and other systems) created up to early November 2008.
• CODES: Game Genie.com (archive) - click on Enhancers for classic Game Genie and Game Shark codes.
• CODES: Game Shark PS1 Codes (archive)
• CODES: GFCC, The (archive) - Creators of many great Action Replay/Game Shark v1&2 codes for the Grand Theft Auto series of Playstation 2 games.
• TROPHIES: PlaystationTrophies.org
• TROPHIES: True Trophies
• ACHIEVEMENTS: XboxAchievements.com
• ACHIEVEMENTS: True Achievements
• SAVES (PS3): Next Gen Update - Forum
• SAVES (PS3): Next Gen Update - Master Index
• SAVES (X360): The Tech Game
  Requires free registration. Search function searches ALL files, not just for that category. Saves were taken from other sites, including some of mine from GameFaqs, which is not cool.

WRESTLING

• NEWS: Lords of Pain
• NEWS: Rajah
• All Elite Wrestling [AEW]
• Online World Of Wrestling: Profiles - Everything you always wanted to know about ANY wrestling personalities from ANY era. (formerly known as Obsessed With Wrestling)
• Pro Wrestling Wiki
• Total Nonstop Action [TNA] (formerly Impact Wrestling)
• World Wrestling Entertainment [WWE]
• Wrestlecrap