Delicious

Delicious, with its ludicrous http://del.icio.us web address, kick-started a wave of crazy URLs that are spectacularly difficult to type, at least until you use the service so much that the random keyboard sequence becomes second nature. Thankfully, with the newly revamped version 2.0, the infinitely more sensible ‘delicious.com’ has become the web address of choice.

While the old version of Delicious was ugly but supremely functional, the new version (under the guidance of owners Yahoo) ups the attractiveness without reducing the core usefulness.

There are several ways to play with it. You could use it purely and simply as an online depot for your bookmarks – a handy set of button and sidebar tools make it just as easy to use as your browser’s bookmarks. Or, if you’re open to experimentation, there’s a whole range of extra options, from sharing with other Delicious users on the site to creating RSS feeds, blogrolls and badges to slap all over your website.

Until recently, it looked like Delicious’s dated interface would weaken its position as the top bookmarking site, but this facelift has brought it back from the brink. The revamped site presents a superb service with a vastly improved look and feel.

Truly, the king of bookmarking services.

Reviewed: Issue 196 (11 - 24 September 2008)