Video and photo

Phrasr (service)
Here's an offbeat Web site for folks who would like to create online photo-collage postcards and share them. When you type in a phrase, the site grabs photos from the Flickr photo-sharing site that it believes match each word, and then builds a Web page/photo gallery based on it. You can click each photo to view the original at Flickr, and send the URL to a friend.

Flypaper (service)
With this site (as well as its associated software) you can create Flash-based "stories," in the form of slide shows or multimedia presentations, about anything you want. You can create a résumé, a presentation for your company or a trade group, training material, or anything else that comes to mind. Prebuilt templates will help you get started.

Miro (download)
This open-source video tool will play every video format under the sun, show HD content, tune in to video blogs, save YouTube videos, and even download and show video files via BitTorrent.

Photoscape (download)
This do-it-all tool, a must-have application for digital photographers, offers a file viewer, an image editor, a slide-show creator, a batch editor, and a screen-capture program. It can even convert photos in the RAW format used by many digital cameras to the more useful JPEG format.

URL Snooper (download)
Are you frustrated that YouTube and similar sites allow you to view videos online, but not download and save them to your PC? With this free program, you can grab them. Head to a Web page, and the program lists all of the videos on it. You just double-click one to view it or save it.

MeeVee (service)
Throw away your print TV listings--this site is approximately 10,000 times better. In addition to the standard listings, Meevee lets you create your own personal channel listings by combining your favorite TV programs and online video. It has a wealth of detail about each show, and the online-video listings contain links to the actual video content. Try that with your TV Guide.

Yahoo Live (service)
This is a video site with a difference--it broadcasts live video, rather than prerecorded clips. You can broadcast yourself live, too, as long as you have a Webcam. When we checked in on a Sunday afternoon, it didn't have a whole lot of live content, but you can expect that to change as interest in real-time services grows.

Fixmymovie (service)
Everyone wants to create great-looking videos to post on the Web, but few people have professional-quality video cameras. That's where this site comes in. It takes the grainy, dark video you've captured with your cell phone, Webcam, or digital camera, and helps you clean it up for posting online by adjusting the contrast and bringing out the details hidden in dark areas.

FotoFlexer (service)
Who needs software to edit photos or add special effects? Instead, head to this site and use its full complement of powerful editing tools, including all kinds of special effects such as stretching, adding a tint, and drawing a cartoon based on the photo.

System utilities and backup

Zamzar (service)
Need to convert files from one format to another? With Zamzar you can convert files to countless types of formats. The site works with all Microsoft Office document file types, as well as a large number of video, audio, and graphics files, and even file-compression archives.