Interesting, yet very safe for work, websites

August 16, 2019 5:52 PM

I'm working at a temp job where I have nothing better to do most of the time than browse the internet. Can y'all give me recommendations for interesting websites? Ideally they'd be things to read, not games so I look sorta professional. I saw the Ask from 2016, which I'll check out, but maybe there's some new sites.

Also rabbit holes, obscure but not too weird things, and educational websites are appreciated.

I've been relying on the Wirecutter for learning about slightly niche things like "what's the best ice cream maker", but I've gotten bored with it.

posted by starlybri to Computers & Internet (24 answers total)

longreads.com

There is a not so professionally-appropriate picture on their front page right now, but that is rare. If you scroll down, you will see the type of writing you can expect to find there 99% of the time.
posted by KleenexMakesaVeryGoodHat at 5:58 PM on August 16, 2019 [5 favorites]

longform.com
thebrowser.com
aldaily.com
posted by ocschwar at 6:34 PM on August 16, 2019 [3 favorites]

This seems like the ideal time to fall down a wikipedia hole! Also,
askamanager.org
atlasobscura.com
99percentinvisible.org
posted by zeptoweasel at 6:39 PM on August 16, 2019 [2 favorites]

3quarksdaily.com
mcsweeneys.net
kuriositas.com
posted by falsedmitri at 6:55 PM on August 16, 2019 [1 favorite]

kottke.org
posted by sesquipedalia at 7:10 PM on August 16, 2019 [3 favorites]

If you really want a rabbit hole, tvtropes.org is a great way to lose countless hours on pop culture.
currentstatus.io for daily news (U.S. political)
posted by jzb at 7:11 PM on August 16, 2019 [5 favorites]

Geoguesser is a great work safe time waster. You're googling directions....
posted by Northbysomewhatcrazy at 7:32 PM on August 16, 2019 [3 favorites]

Shorpy
posted by Rat Spatula at 7:58 PM on August 16, 2019

Futility Closet

Seconding TVTropes. It’s infamous for sucking readers into rabbit holes. Be careful not to accidentally get sucked into the NSFW sections though, at least not on your work computer.
posted by ejs at 8:10 PM on August 16, 2019 [1 favorite]

Messy Nessy’s Nostalgia category is a treasure trove of interesting history tidbits.
posted by hurdy gurdy girl at 8:36 PM on August 16, 2019

Smithsonian Magazine actually often has interesting stuff. For example, a current piece on a possible surviving scrap of Queen Elizabeth I's dress.
posted by gudrun at 8:46 PM on August 16, 2019 [2 favorites]

Project Gutenberg - I worked my way through the complete works of Jane Austen.
posted by sallybrown at 8:54 PM on August 16, 2019 [9 favorites]

The Baffler
youarenotsosmart.com
posted by rhizome at 9:15 PM on August 16, 2019 [1 favorite]

Mentalfloss.com
Qz.com
Themorningnews.org
posted by MadMadam at 10:36 PM on August 16, 2019 [2 favorites]

Also, kindle cloud reader. You can read kindle books in a web browser. You can usually get free kindle books via your local library.
posted by MadMadam at 10:39 PM on August 16, 2019 [4 favorites]

Archive.org
posted by SisterHavana at 12:23 AM on August 17, 2019

Remodelista and Gardenista for some lovely eye candy.
posted by Sublimity at 3:31 AM on August 17, 2019 [1 favorite]

The essays at edge.org are not light reading. They are accessible ways to brilliant minds working or thinking at the edges.
posted by Homer42 at 5:10 AM on August 17, 2019 [2 favorites]

Personally, I find Pocket Discover to be a bottomless source of reading.
posted by forthright at 7:40 AM on August 17, 2019

thisiscolossal.com - art, design and visual culture.
posted by Ostara at 9:45 AM on August 17, 2019 [3 favorites]

Depending on your tastes and how SFW are titles like "Ways to Violate Federal Law," you might like Lawfare and Overlawyered. For more law hijinks with lowkey presence, I like SimpleJustice as well.
posted by rhizome at 9:56 AM on August 17, 2019 [2 favorites]

I'd also recommend using an RSS reader for all of this! I imagine a great number of the sites mentioned here support it.
posted by rhizome at 9:57 AM on August 17, 2019 [5 favorites]

When I was in a similar sort of job I spent a lot of time parsing over all the fascinating astronomy articles on timeanddate.com. Probably not for everyone but I'm a nerd about that stuff and they explain it really well, plus you'll end up with a working knowledge of when the next new moon is, what time the sun sets that day, etc.
posted by saramour at 9:02 AM on August 18, 2019

The Internet Scout is a meta-source of just these kinds of resources
posted by cross_impact at 12:51 PM on August 19, 2019