The web is filled with a TON of resourceful sites for designers but with so many where do you begin? On top of that, how do you find the BEST info for designers on the web and cut through the clutter? Well, the team at Squeaky has done the searching, researching and testing for you. We have compiled a list of the top 20 resources for designers and developers out there seeking to learn more, enhance their skills or just get a heavy dose of inspiration.
All posts in Free Stuff
Free Friday: Turntable.FM
If you don’t already know about Turntable.fm you are missing out on a creative and fun way to share and discover new music with friends. Turntable.fm combines music with social media while incorporating a game-like twist. Just log in with your Facebook account and then find a room with a genre that tickles your fancy.
From there, you can rate what’s playing as either ‘Lame’ or ‘Awesome’ via a convenient meter. A lame rating will contribute to a song getting skipped (if enough people vote that way) and an awesome rating will allow the DJ who played the song to acquire points. The more points you acquire, the more avatars you will unlock. If there is an opening on the stage you can step in and play some tunes or—if you don’t feel like it—you can just hang out and let others do the spinning.
Although the music selection is slightly limited, there is still a good amount of music to choose from. Plus, you can upload your own mp3s to play them. This allows you to share that new album with your friends or even let them listen to your latest indie project to see what they think.
Overall, this innovative web application creates a pleasant experience by allowing users to share music and interact with friends. Currently, they have a significant amount of features but as a relatively young product, it has the potential to grow and we will likely see additional features in the future. We love it and hope Billy Chasen and the Turntable.fm team continue to improve an already awesome product.
Free Friday: New Museum Block Party 2011
Art, music and gorgeous weather. Put ‘em together and what do you have? The New Museum Block Party, a friendly clash of music, culture and interactive artwork that is perfect for all ages.
Opera: A Severely Underrated Browser
We all have our browser of choice when surfing the web but one seems to be somewhat overlooked (to say the least). Opera is far from anything new (it’s been around for almost 15 years!) but it has just as many features and capabilities as browsers like Firefox and Chrome do—if not more.
Free Friday: Spotify
The Squeaky loft always has some good tunes playing. From Classic Rock to R&B we listen to just about everything while we work.
That’s why we were excited about Spotify’s U.S. release. Sure Pandora is great for discovering new music but Spotify takes it to the next level, allowing you to find any song your heart desires and play it as many times as you wish. You can also create playlists, share with your Facebook friends and browse new music.
Although the free version has advertisements, it is totally worth it. Head over to their site and sign up for an invite or see if your eligible for an instant account here.
