Using Free Web Resources to Discover What's Really Free Online
By Roger Williams
Everywhere you look online someone is trying to sell you something. Although not as prevalent as it was during the Internet boom of the late 1990's when the "free" model applied to everything, there are still quite a few things that are free online.
It's true that ads that pitch "free credit reports" are really hoping you'll cough up some bucks to subscribe to their monthly reporting services, but the first report is usually free. Note that I used the word "usually" because just like my Mom once taught me to NEVER use the word "never," the online world has also taught me to rarely use the word "always" when describing Internet offers.
That said, many items are available for free online. Some might require your contact information to get them, in which case I have a hard time classifying them as being totally free. I learned long ago that when you give out your email address online you better be prepared to receive something you don't want in your inbox.
From free graphics to free web templates, many Internet sites still use the free business model to lure website visitors into using their products and services in hope of making routine visitors and customers out of them.
A new genre of websites is springing up online these days that focus solely on offering good content and information. They normally exist for the sole purpose of gaining free publicity or as a medium to run ads. I'm speaking of blogs and free article sites, two categories of content-only sites that are growing by leaps and bounds. Technorati.com, an excellent blog search engine, currently claims to carry content on 22.6 million blogs (i.e. online journals). Many of these are excellent sources of free information.
Most "free reprint" articles sites provide excellent information for free, only requesting that webmasters who opt to publish the article simply include details about the author. Some article publication services do an excellent job of screening articles for good content, while others will publish anything -- merely running articles to capture ad revenue. But the good ones can often serve as a treasure trove of free info on the subject you're searching for online.
When you find an information website you like, see if it publishes a free RSS feed that you can track or subscribe to. The really good ones typically offer free RSS feeds that you can subscribe to via several RSS feed services.
About the author
Roger Williams is a freelance writer covering consumer products, services and trends, and is a contributing editor to Get-Free.com. He frequently writes topical reviews on good-content websites that provide consumers with useful information. from http://www.FreeArticlesAndContent.com
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