VectrumUSA Web review book project, Spring 2001

Nolo Self-Help Law Centers
http://www.nolo.com

Got a legal issue but don't have the scratch or the stomach for hiring a lawyer? Let Nolo help you. Their site is part bookstore, part legal library and part like having a lawyer in the family. You can be guided through your own legal research, or check some of the legal FAQ that covers the most commonly dealt with legal topics. Or you can send your question to Auntie Nolo to get a sound legal opinion. While Nolo makes sure to make it clear that legal information is NOT the same as legal advice, the legal info they do provide could save you from needing to pay for legal advice.

Adbusters
http://adbusters.org/

Adbusters' website is a companion to their culture jamming print magazine. It is a full frontal assaut on consumer culture and the new global economy in the realm of "beating them at their own game." Adbusters uses slick graphics and high concept advertising campaigns to combat exactly what they are appearing to portray -- creating "uncommercials" to celebrate Buy Nothing Day for example. The site also acts as a gallery for other activists and capitalism combatants the world around to showcase their works in the form of hacked websites, billboard liberation and local direct actions. Eye candy for activists, Adbusters gives many people something to think about.

The Onion
http://www.theonion.com/

I'm sure it's tough to be thought of as the funniest web site, but it's probably downright stressful to have that title for serveral years running. How do you keep up? Fortunately the writers at the Onion seem up to the challenge and continue to offer weekly laugh-getting issues with headlines such as "Species Of Blue-Green Algae Announces IPO." as well as columns by such favorites as jive-talking homeboy Herbert Kornfeld, Accounts Receivable supervisor of Midstate Office Supply. Like a lot of humor sites, you have to see the Onion in all its faux-newspaper glory to be able to truly appreciate it. The Onion also hosts the semi-serious AV Club which covers the usual topics of music, books and also contains some syndicated content like Red Meat and Savage Love.

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