Flickr
I host pictures my own pictures and some professional pictures on this site and it allows me to share them around the world. Also, with Pictobrowser, you can embed a Flickr player in your website or blog.
Kwout
I use Kwout a lot on the blog. It allows you to take a picture of a website to embed on your blog or your website, but it preserves the links the picture so users can use the links on your blog, but also from what you are Kwouting.
VodPod
I use Vodpod for sharing web videos that I like with others. You can embed it on a blog or website in several different forms and it allows you to point your users to cool videos. You can see it in use in the Web 2.0 section on this site.
NetVibes
I use Netvibes as my blog aggregator and I check it everyday. It is an indespensible Web 2.0 tool because it allows you to manage all the stuff you do on the Web. Instead of going out and getting Websites, using an aggregator brings the Web to you. You can check out my public aggregator under the Edjurist Agenda section of this website.
Squarespace
The website you are viewing right now is hosted at Squarespace and was created on Squarespace software. It is by far the best Website/Blog content creation tool on the Web that I have found. Pretty much everything that you see on this website, you can do with Squarespace. For novice Web creators, like myself, it is a good place to start.
Google Docs
I use Googe Docs when I collaborate on projects with friends across the world. Instead of using Microsoft Office and especially Word which requires you to save everything to your computer and then send it as an attachment in an e-mail each time you make a change, the word processor at Google Docs keeps an updated copy so that everytime any of your partners across the web makes a change, it is automatically change for you as well. This is an essential tool for people that work on a lot of projects with folks around the World.
blip.tv
I use blip.tv to host my videos on the web. You can easily create a blip.tv channel and the flash video player they uses preserves more of the video and audio quality that you lose when uploading to YouTube. It just gives your videos a little more professionalism, but the drawback is that they will probably not be searched as often. It works well in conjunction with another website (such as my blog) that I can use to promote the videos and direct traffic their direction.
Go Daddy
Go Daddy, you have probably seen their commercials, is where I buy my domain names. Their rates are decent and for beginners they offer all inclusive packages with blogging and other software. It is a nice place to start but once you become a bit more advanced on the Web, only their domain registration service is particularly useful.
Firefox
Firefox is the Web-browser of choice. Period. Unless you are operating with a Mac or under Linux, then Firefox is the way to go. It is far superior to Internet Explorer in terms of speed, security and ease of use. It is open sourced (and free) and constantly being updated with new features and new security upgrades. However, from time to time something won't work as well on FireFox because it was designed to operate on IE (such as my MLB.tv subscription) so you need to keep IE around for those things.
Technorati
Technorati is an essential blogging site. It is the main rating site and a great way to publicize and ping your blog so that the world knows when you make changes. You can also organize your blogs there, but I recommend the aggregator for that.
uStream
I don't use uStream that often, but it is a really cool tool because it allows you to broadcast live events, so it is a great tool for meetings and distance education. It has about a 2-3 sec. delay so it is not totally "live" which can interfere with communications, but it is as close to a live broadcast as we can get for free on the Net right now.
Skype
Skype is a free Internet phone/video service. It allows you to make regular phone calls using your computer. I use it mostly for video calls, however. When I am collaborating with someone in a different part of the country or the world, it allows me to see them and interact with them more. It requires a webcam and microphone (and don't go too cheap), but with $150 bucks on equipment you can make awesome video calls and see your friends and family around the world. I use this tool (and MSN Messenger) a lot with my family. I live a few hours away from my parents and hometown, so this is a great way to see them, without actually being there.
Vonage
You have probably seen their commercials ... but I decided to give them a try ... and I will never go back to traditional phone service again. It is cheap and easy phone service that is as high or of higher quality than traditional service. Since I use my cel so much I bought a cheap package just to have a home phone number. I also like their business service as this is a really cheap way to get a business phone and fax number.