An excellent, easy to read new website from an established eye research charity; information about eyes and sight problems, and the work being done.

Terrific new service from Companies House, that provides, for free, all the filed information on limited companies and their Directors that used to cost money.

A very clever site that lets you measure any area on a Google Map. Measure your garden, or Buckingham Palace’s (38 acres).

There are many places to save photos, but imgur is my favourite, not just because it’s free. Ideal for sharing a big group of photos with others.

BT Community Web Kit; an excellent service allowing you to create a free website for your charity or non-profit community group. The templates are a bit limited, but it’s free and not too technical.

A wonderful guide to gardens you can visit in the UK; over 550 are listed. Started by a garden enthusiast in 2002, it has grown to be a top notch resource.

Find out what information the DVLA holds about your (or any other) car; especially check the tax and MOT status. You’ll need the make and registration number.

Bing Maps is MIcrosoft’s competitor to Google Maps, and very good it is too, lots of information. Watch the short video get the most from it.

The Opera Platform – funded by the EU, this provides live relays of Operas from all over Europe, for free. At least one each month, from about 15 companies. Lots of background information, too.

Bathing Water quality from the Environment Agency; providing annual ratings of the quality of the water you swim or splash about in. It’s rather technical, but it’s good to know someone is keeping an eye on such matters.

A Royal British Legion site that shows where all the casualties in the First World War that are buried with some family details. Find your relatives.

Since May, the Supreme Court, our highest court, has been broadcast online. Pretty dry stuff, but a historic development. Watch justice in action.

English Heritage recently metamorphosed from a public body to a charity, and has spent some of its £80m Government grant on a spiffy new website to find out about over 400 historic properties.

Government site which for £10 will send you a copy of any will or ‘grant of representation’ for people who died after 1857. Great for family research; avoid unofficial sites that charge more.

The Royal Society of Arts has revamped its website, and the content is much easier to find, and includes speeches from past events. Free, too.

The BBC has added to its archive of Desert Island Disc after rescuing episodes from 1964-1970, the Roy Plomley era. Field Marshall Montgomery, John Mortimer, Jack de Manio, Tallulah Bankhead and many more.

A Government funded site that aims to become a record of all War Memorials in the UK and encourage their maintenance. It is in the early stages of a four year project, so far from complete, but worth watching. You can contribute local knowledge to help.

The latest odd on political betting. Bookies have been very accurate at predicting results in the past; see what they think now.

With the election confusion growing, this site offers some clarity. Serious analysis of what has happened to the public finances, public spending and more over the last five years and it will also analyse the main parties’ claims.

Hints and tips to make the world a slightly easier place to manage. The site is full of weird and wonderful advice on lots of topics; there’s a technical bias but plenty else. Opening a beer bottle with a spoon, how to prospect for gold, for example.

An excellent site for keeping an eye out for bargains in the main supermarkets. It will alert you about special deals on your favourite coffee, dog food, malt whisky, tooth paste or anything, and it’s free.

The Royal Geographical Society has massively invigorated its website; it includes a huge number of articles, many of them fascinating, on a wide range of subjects including climate, mapping and geopolitics. And many more.

Completely rebuilt, the British Film Institute offers hundreds of films to view online. Many older ones are free, but you’ll have to pay for the more modern ones. Browsing the site is well worth the effort.

Founded from a kitchen table in 2006. The idea is to allow small, independent, mostly craft based businesses (often one-man-bands) to reach customers. All are British based artists and designers. It’s my first stop for interesting and stylish presents.

This is the first part of the BBC’s project to document every programme it has ever broadcast. It is the BBC listings information which were printed in Radio Times between 1923 and 2009. You can search for BBC programmes, people, dates and RT editions.

Tunnelbear is one of many similar services (called VPNs) that let you disguise where you are. It adds privacy, and allows you to access sites that are only available in certain countries, such as many TV services. Not for the technologically challenged.