Brett In Tech - 16 Useful Websites You'll Wish You Knew Sooner! 2025
The video highlights several websites that provide practical tools and resources. 'Have I Been Pwned' allows users to check if their email or password has been compromised in a data breach, urging immediate password changes if necessary. 'Mix' offers personalized content discovery by suggesting sites and articles based on user interests. 'Make My Drive Fun' helps plan road trips by suggesting interesting stops along the way. 'Just Watch' acts as a streaming guide to find where TV shows and movies are available across platforms. 'Open Culture' provides access to free educational media, including courses from top universities. 'Canva' offers free resume and CV templates, while 'Make' provides DIY project guides. 'Camel Camel Camel' tracks Amazon prices to ensure good deals. 'Duolingo' offers language learning on a larger screen via its website. 'Google Fonts' provides free downloadable fonts for various uses. 'Broadcastify' streams live audio from emergency services. 'Bleeping Computer' offers tech help and security news. 'Every Time Zone' helps calculate time differences. 'Four Tests' offers free practice tests for exams. 'Unsplash' provides free stock images. 'A Soft Murmur' generates background noise to aid concentration and relaxation.
Key Points:
- Use 'Have I Been Pwned' to check for compromised accounts and change passwords immediately if needed.
- 'Mix' personalizes content discovery based on user-selected interests, enhancing online exploration.
- 'Just Watch' helps locate streaming options for TV shows and movies across multiple platforms.
- 'Camel Camel Camel' tracks Amazon prices, ensuring purchases are made at the best possible price.
- 'Unsplash' offers free stock images for commercial and non-commercial use, saving costs on media resources.
Details:
1. 🛡️ Check if You've Been Pwned
- Have I Been Pwned allows users to check if their email or password has been compromised in a data breach.
- Users can enter their email address to search for compromised accounts.
- If no breach is found, a green message 'no pwnage found' is displayed.
- If compromised, a red message 'oh no, pwned' shows the number of sites breached and 'pastes' where data was shared.
- A 'paste' refers to information publicly posted by hackers.
- Users are advised to change passwords immediately if a breach is detected.
2. 🔍 Discover Content with Mix
2.1. Introduction to Mix
2.2. User Interaction and Personalization
3. 🚗 Plan a Fun Road Trip
- The 'Make My Drive Fun' tool helps users discover interesting places along their road trip routes.
- To utilize the tool, users enter their departure and destination cities, for example, New Orleans to Phoenix.
- The map interface allows users to zoom in and out using plus/minus buttons or the mouse wheel for better navigation.
- Hovering over attractions reveals names and additional information, such as the 'world's oldest largest pecan'.
- Highlighted attractions include unique sites like a giant armadillo and the muffler man cowboy.
- Integrating this tool with other travel services could enhance its functionality, offering a more comprehensive planning experience.
4. 📺 Find Streaming Options with JustWatch
- JustWatch serves as an all-in-one streaming guide, allowing users to easily find where to stream TV shows and movies across almost all major platforms like Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Hulu, and Apple TV Plus.
- The platform offers a personalized homepage with curated viewing suggestions, enhancing user engagement by recommending trending shows such as 'Severance' and new releases like 'The White Lotus' (2021).
- Users can search for specific titles to check their streaming availability and options to rent or buy, providing a centralized location for content discovery and decision-making.
- Additional features include filtering by genre or release year, and users can create accounts for tailored recommendations, further enhancing personalization and ease of use.
5. 🎓 Access Free Educational Resources
- Macs open Culture provides access to free educational and cultural media online.
- Offers over 1,700 free online courses across various subjects from leading universities.
- Includes resources like movies, audiobooks, ebooks, and online certificate programs.
- Examples of available courses include psychology, computer science, and history from universities like Stanford and MIT.
- Access to cultural resources such as classic films and literary works is also available.
- Online certificate programs allow for professional development without cost barriers.
6. 📄 Build a Resume or CV with Canva
- Canva offers a free resume builder with hundreds of customizable templates to create professional resumes and CVs.
- Users can utilize Canva's design tools to make visually appealing resumes that effectively highlight their skills and qualifications.
- The platform provides features like drag-and-drop design, font customization, and color schemes to personalize resumes.
- Canva's templates are tailored to suit various industries, helping users to stand out in job applications.
- Users can incorporate personal branding elements, such as unique layouts and color palettes, to enhance their resume's impact.
7. 🔨 DIY Projects on Make
7.1. Features of Make's DIY Projects
7.2. Maker Fair Association
8. 🛒 Track Amazon Prices with CamelCamelCamel
- CamelCamelCamel is a long-established price tracker for Amazon, useful for monitoring price fluctuations.
- The tool provides historical pricing data to ensure consumers are getting good deals.
- CamelCamelCamel offers a browser extension called the Camelizer, as well as website functionality for price tracking without the extension.
- For website use, users can simply copy and paste the Amazon product page URL into the CamelCamelCamel search box to get price history.
- Example: For an Nvidia RTX 5080 video card, the price chart showed a significant drop from its initial high price, indicating potential savings.
- It is advised to compare prices with other sites as Amazon does not always offer the lowest price.
9. 🗣️ Learn a Language on Duolingo
- Duolingo offers both iOS and Android apps, as well as a website version for a bigger screen experience.
- Users can choose from a wide range of languages, such as Swedish, to start learning.
- The platform begins by asking users to select their preferred language.
- Lessons are structured around interactive exercises that include reading, writing, listening, and speaking tasks.
- Duolingo employs a gamified approach to keep users engaged, featuring daily goals, streaks, and a reward system to motivate continued learning.
10. 🔤 Explore Google Fonts
- Google Fonts offers a large collection of fonts that are 100% free to download and use, making it a cost-effective resource for design projects.
- The platform includes a variety of filters that help users narrow down font selections, which can streamline the design process and improve efficiency.
- Users can download fonts directly to their computers and integrate them into posters, flyers, websites, or other creative projects, allowing for greater customization and creativity.
11. 📡 Listen to Live Feeds on Broadcastify
- Broadcastify provides live audio feeds from emergency services across over two dozen countries, making it a versatile tool for accessing real-time information.
- Users can easily navigate by selecting their country, state, and specific feed, such as choosing Louisiana and Orleans Parish for localized listening.
- Advanced features include the ability to favorite feeds, set alerts for specific broadcasts, and access historical data, enhancing the user experience.
- Common troubleshooting tips include ensuring a stable internet connection and updating the app regularly to avoid streaming issues.
- Practical example: Journalists can use Broadcastify to monitor live police and fire department communications for real-time updates during emergencies.
12. 💻 Tech Help on Bleeping Computer
- Bleeping Computer is a daily-visited tech help site catering to users of all skill levels, offering the latest security news often not covered by mainstream tech media.
- The site provides tutorials across a wide range of categories, including popular operating systems.
- Bleeping Computer hosts active forums with many participants, facilitating community-driven tech support and discussions.
13. 🕒 Calculate Time Zones Easily
- The tool is useful for calculating the time difference between time zones easily, particularly when coordinating across regions.
- Example: If you are in the Central Time Zone in the US and need to call someone in London at 11:00 a.m. their time, you can use a slider to determine that it will be 6:00 a.m. your time.
- This feature helps avoid confusion and ensures accurate scheduling across different time zones.
14. 📝 Practice Tests on 4Tests
- 4Tests offers a comprehensive range of practice tests for high school, college, and professional exams, making it a versatile resource for exam preparation.
- The platform includes practice tests for college entrance exams such as the SAT and ACT, as well as professional certification exams.
- 4Tests is one of the few platforms that provide these resources for free, distinguishing it from many other paid sites.
- The site is particularly valuable for students and professionals seeking accessible and cost-effective preparation tools.
15. 📷 Free Stock Photos on Unsplash
- Unsplash provides completely free stock photos, unlike paid services like Adobe Stock and Getty.
- Images can be downloaded in various sizes: small, medium, large, and original, providing flexibility for different needs.
- All photos on Unsplash are covered by a license that allows free usage for both commercial and non-commercial purposes.
16. 🎶 Relax with A Soft Murmur
- A Soft Murmur is an online background noise generator designed to help users relax, focus, and block out unpleasant sounds.
- Users can improve concentration by adjusting individual volume sliders to create a personalized mix of sounds.
- The platform allows users to create and share timers and sound mixes on social networks, enhancing user engagement and community sharing.
- The tool is user-friendly, requiring only a click of the play button to start the customized audio mix.