The Island of Lost or Dead Tools

Below are tools that were once included here but have either disappeared or changed their structure so they were no longer free . Some may have found their way here because the function that once performed was subsumed into a more comprehensive tool.

Keep in mind that my criteria for something to be included in the 50+ Ways collection are

  • The tool allows you to mix 2 or more media types to create something you can publish to the web
  • The tool is free to use; it may have premium fee-based services, but there is a basic free service (and not a 30-day trial)
  • The tool exists on a web site (e.g. not a download or a mobile app)
  • The tool is not specific to any operating system or browser


Bring Out the Dead

  • Bubbleshare
    http://www.bubbleshare.com went offline in November 2009
  • Bubbleply
    http://www.bubbleply.com/ went offline sometime in 2010; says they are still there for paying customers. No big deal, YouTube provides annotation capabilities
  • ComicSketch
    http://www.mainada.net/comicssketch/ no idea when it disappeared
  • Dandelife
    http://www.dandelife.com No sign of life -- see http://dealbook.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/01/09/dandelifes-struggles-offer-lessons-for-start-ups/
  • eyespot
    http://eyespot.com/ Went out of business in September 2008, allowed users to download videos
  • Flektor
    http://www.flektor.com is gone; URL goes to MySpace.
  • flickrslidr
    http://flickrslidr.com/ This site still works but its functionality is not completely provided inside of flickr (this was not always the case)
  • Flowgram
    http://www.flowgram.com/ going out of business June 2009 a real shame!
  • gnomz
    http://en.gnomz.com a long time web resident, gone. No more little comics
  • ImageLoop
    http://www.imageloop.com changed to just an iPhone app, web version no longer active
  • Jaycut
    http://www.jaycut.com was bought by RIM and pretty much killed off its open usage; one of the best online photo editors there was (see old tools page)
  • Joggle
    http://www.joggle.com/ went out of sight September 30, 2010. Not missed much, it was always buggy and pre-beta-ish
  • Jumpcut
    http://www.jumpcut.com/ going out of business June 2009
  • Mixercast
    http://www.mixercast.com/ moved into widget/advertisment business; last seen on web via Internet Archive in January 2010
  • MotionBox
    http://www.motionbox.com was acquired by HP and rolled into it's Snapfish photo service; the content creation tools of Motionbox are gone
  • My Maps+
    http://www.mymapsplus.com/ Provides tool to embed a map created in Google's My Maps into any other web site, Google's new tools has this functionality
  • Piczo
    http://www.piczo.com Assemble a "site" where you can add a variety of media types, and also has features of a social networking service. Tool behaved inconsistently when I tried it.
  • preezo
    http://preezo.com/ Looks like a no frills PowerPoint clone; it refused to import a PPT file, and after fiddling with trying to import images, gave up with the difficulty of moving them around. There are plenty of other presentation web apps that work better.
  • PhotoShow
    http://www.photoshow.com/ Roxio changed the service so publishing a PhotoShow requires a premium ($) membership. No free, no 50 Ways.
  • Pikistrips
    http://www.pikistrips.com/ site no load, does not respond to pings - cogdog cogdog Mar 15, 2014
  • Podcast People
    http://www.podcastpeople.com/ No longer offers a free version, only 14-day trials.
  • Rockyou
    http://www.rockyou.com/ platform switched to be for web games, slideshows no longer supported
  • shwup
    http;//www.shwup.com is now some sort of media cloud storage thing. The tool never was tat good
  • Slide
    http://www.slide.com/ Closed March 2012 "While we are incredibly grateful to our users and for all of the wonderful feedback over the years, many of these products are no longer as active or haven't caught on as we originally hoped."
  • Slideoo
    http://www.slideoo.com gone, domain for sale.
  • Snapjot
    http://www.snapjot.com/ "Digital Scrapbooking for Groups" - buggy, crashed, could not create any material
  • SplashCast
    http://splashcast.net/ The "pioneers of social TV" went down Sept 1, 2009
  • Tabblo
    http://www.tabblo.com - bought by HP, turned into something about "Smart Printing"
  • Thumbstacks
    http://www.thumbstacks.com/ appears to be dead too; also a rather buggy presentation tool. I don't miss it.
  • Tikatok
    http://www.tikatok.com was sold to barnes and Noble, then sold to Pearson, who now run it as a fee service for creating social studies content "
    The Tikatok.com website closed on October 5, 2012 and no longer offers a custom book publishing service. As of October 5, 2012 all Tikatok.com accounts and custom books were deleted from the Tikatok site.."
  • TouFee
    http://www.toufee.com/ They are now charging for an account, you gotta be free to be one of the 50 Tools.
  • Viewbook
    http://www.viewbook.com/ There is no longer a free version, although my original account seems to be grandfathered see Dominoe
  • VUVOX/ Vuvox Collage
    http://vuvox.com/ They got bought by eBay and threw away everyone's content. Nice move. Way to jeep the web alive. Closed September 13, 2013.
  • Xtranormal
    http://xtranormal.com/ closes July 31, 2013 "What have we accomplished? Over the past 5+ years, we have created a simple way to instantly turn your words into a 3D animated movie. Our community and dedicated fans have created some of the most viral and entertaining videos on the Web with millions of users on our platform. We thank you for showcasing your amazing talent and for being such loyal fans... We’re ending Act 1 of Xtranormal as we know it and exploring options for Act 2 in the future."
  • Zude
    http://www.zude.com/ is just gone with a image that says "beta closed". No tears, it was a lame tool


cogdog-watercolor.pngThis site was created by Alan Levine in October 2010, the second incarnation of the original 50+ Ways concept. A 2014 expansion for mobile apps is being co-created with Darren Kuropatwa. Everything here is open to be linked, re-used, re-mixed, re-cast, etc. This particular page was created on Oct 23, 2010 1:14 am and has been edited 20 times. The last tweak was made on Mar 15, 2014 5:32 pm by - cogdog cogdog. Share freely, often, and voraciously by linking to http://50ways.cogdogblog.com/