Web addresses are annoyingly long and unwieldy — especially when you're displaying search results from just about any website. If you want to cut a seemingly infinite URL down to size, head to TinyURL, plug in the long version, and voilà! Out pops a unique shortcut to use in its place. The abbreviated addresses that TinyURL generates are fewer than 20 characters long and never expire. We're not quite sure how TinyURL works its magic, but why question a good thing? We can't live without this ultra-handy tool; you'll get hooked too. (Also check out the equally helpful SnipURL and QurlyQ.)
—Anita Hamilton
Some are as useful as a GPS device, others aren't that useful but give you something to do when you had nothing planned for the day. Put them all together and they become TIME.com's 2008 picks for the best the Web has to offer