Just what I need. Another website that makes me lose track of time. But this one's pretty intriguing. It takes a minute or so to get the hang of it, but once you do, forget the clock -- at least, if you're a history buff.
The Smithsonian Institution's HistoryWired: A few of our favorite things online exhibit is definitely a fun toy. Because of the massive size of the SI's collection, only a tiny fraction can be on display at any time. This is a way for them to showcase about 450 of their hidden treasures.
So how to use it? Well, just move your mouse over the grid and read the assorted golden boxes that pop up. If you find one that interests you, click on it and select either "learn more about this object" or one of the zoom options. When you choose learn-more, you'll get a variety of options from that point for that specific item. Maybe there will be an audio file you can listen to, some images to take a look at, an interview with the subject, or some other tidbits. Experiment by moving your mouse all over and sampling the wares, so to speak.
When you get tired of that, try clicking some of those categories across the top -- say, "accomplishment" and "people." See the darker boxes in the grid? Those are the ones with selections that include both of your categories. Continue to play and narrow the field to surface items of particular interest to you.
You might pop up Khalil Gibran's poster of encouragement to young Syrian-Americans. Or a jersey from the Harlem Globetrotters. Or a 1908 boy's sailor suit. Or Fiestaware. Or a collection of automobile emblems. Or a 19th century heirloom quilt.
To learn still more tricks for playing with HistoryWired, click on the help button at the top of the grid (incidentally, it will open by default when you first go into the site, but if you're like me, you'll instictively close it). One note: you'll have to disable any anti-pop-up software you have. If you don't, you'll find yourself puzzled and staring at an impenetrable grid, wondering why I was so darn excited about this thing.