Webware

Summer road trips are in full swing. But before you set out for your vacation, you'll need to remember to keep your car in good shape. If you're mechanically inclined, you might be able to do that yourself. If not, check out some of these services that can help you out.

Car services

2CarPros 2CarPros might look like a simple question-and-answer site at first glance, but with some digging, you'll find it to be one of the most informative sites in this roundup.

Once you get to 2CarPros, you can immediately start sifting through the site's huge database of car repair information. Everything from an oil change to refurbishing an engine is included in its database. If you want to ask the Pros questions, you'll need to sign up for the site. But if you want to the most value, 2CarPros has a videos section, providing several clips on how to repair your vehicle. It's a really informative site.

2CarPros is for the person wanting some DIY repair help.

(Credit: Screenshot by Don Reisinger/CNET)

DriverSide If you're looking to find out when you should be performing routine repairs on your car, DriverSide is the place to go.

Once you get to the site, you'll need to input the kind of car you own. From there, the service will estimate its value, tell you when you'll need to get its oil changed, and list all the other service you need to have done at certain times throughout the car's lifespan. If you can't do the work yourself, DriverSide even tells you where to find a mechanic near you. It's a neat site.

DriverSide tells you what to do with your car.

(Credit: Screenshot by Don Reisinger/CNET)

FuelClinic FuelClinic determines how well your car is managing its fuel consumption. After you sign up for the site, you need only to input your car's information, tell the service how much you spent the last couple times you filled up, and the site will return calculations on your miles per gallon and how much you will be spending on gas going forward. It's not the most advanced fuel-monitoring service in this roundup, but it's simple, which might make it attractive to some.

FuelClinic determines your miles per gallon and fuel costs.

(Credit: Screenshot by Don Reisinger/CNET)

Automakers have been in the news quite a bit lately. The future of some is very much in doubt. And since the economy is hitting most of us quite hard, I thought it appropriate to take a look at sites that help us find high-quality used cars.

Many of the sites in this alphabetical roundup will provide the research and information you require before you buy a car. Others will allow you to find cars in your area or buy them right on the site. Either way, they're all worth a look.

AOL Autos AOL provides some of the best informational resources on the Web, if you're looking for a car. Whether it's reviews from some of its experts, information on sales, or news, the site has it all. It's a full-featured resource that you'll want to check out.

Automotive.com provides outstanding research.

(Credit: Don Reisinger/CNET)

Automotive.com Automotive.com is a huge site offering car availability in your area, research pages, and loan information. But where it really shines is in its reviews, which provide everything from value and pricing to quality and miles-per-gallon information. It's a very useful site.

AutoTrader.com AutoTrader makes it easy to find used cars for sale and even lets you sell your own car right on the site. But if you're looking to research some models, the site's "Research and Compare" page enables you to find the right car for you based on its make, model, type, and price range. All of the reviews are informative.

Carfax Don't even consider buying that used car until you consult Carfax with its Vehicle Identification Number. Once you get to Carfax, you can input the VIN into the search field, and the site will return the vehicle's history report. The report details past owners, when it was manufactured, where it has been registered, and most importantly, whether it has been through a major accident. It's a paid service (one report will run you $29.99), but it's a necessary step in buying a used car.

CarGurus A community of car lovers combined with vehicle information, CarGurus is a nice site, if you want to find out about a car from those who already have owned it. The site has active discussion forums, which are helpful when you need to ask questions. And its research pages and automobile history reports are worth checking out. But the real value of CarGurus is in those forums.

CarMax Much like AutoTrader and Cars.com (below), CarMax provides you with research information on cars in which you're interested. It also allows you to find cars for sale in your area so you can find what you're looking for sooner. And if you're looking to get rid of your old vehicle, the site will buy your car from you for its estimated value. It then sells the car on CarMax to turn a profit.

Cars.com has some outstanding reviews.

(Credit: Don Reisinger/CNET)

Cars.com Cars.com is one of the best ways to learn about vehicles in which you might be interested. Its research menu boasts outstanding reviews on practically every car dating back nearly a decade. The site's shopping-advice page comes in handy when you want to determine the real value of a vehicle. It's a must-see before you start your search for a used car.

CarShopSmart CarShopSmart, affiliated with AutoTrader, is a nicely designed site that might be useful. If you want to research vehicles, it boasts some basic information. But the focus of the site is on finding a car in your area or locating dealers close to your home. Unfortunately, though, the size of its vehicle database is a little too small for my liking.

CarZen If you'd like some car-buying advice, CarZen may be the place to find it. From negotiating tactics to in-depth vehicle information, the site will provide you with all the resources you need to place a strong offer. It even helps you find the right car with the help of its fantastic tool, CarConsult. Try it out. You might be surprised by what you find.

Consumer Reports Consumer Reports provides outstanding car reviews, and its simple scoring system helps you quickly determine if a car is for you. The reviews aren't as in-depth as they are on other sites, but what Consumer Reports lacks in quantity, it makes up for in trustworthiness.

Craigslist Craigslist might be a classifieds site, but it's a great place to find cars that are available in your area. Whether you're buying a vehicle or are putting your own up for sale, you can do your research elsewhere and then hit the popular listings site. A variety of vehicles in any price range are always listed.

Can you communicate what a Web site is about to millions of sports fans looking for entertainment above all else? Now that the Super Bowl is over, let's examine how well the online firms that bought ads fared in delivering spots that effectively communicated their online services.

Some companies did well. But it looks like others left viewers scratching their heads...

CareerBuilder
Online career search service CareerBuilder offered up a 60-second ad for the Super Bowl that used the tagline, "It might be time (to look for another job)" after providing examples of thoughts some workers might have when they're upset with their careers. My favorite: sitting next to a man who clips his toenails in the office...in his underwear.

It might have been somewhat entertaining, but CareerBuilder's ad didn't explain how the company would help job-seekers and opted instead, to deliver its URL at the end of the commercial. For those who have heard of CareerBuilder, that may have been enough. But for others who have never been to the company's site, the commercial won't answer why they should go there to find a job. Shouldn't that have been the point of the ad in the first place?

Cars.com
Cars.com is a popular destination for people who want to research, sell, or buy a car. But the company's Super Bowl commercial takes viewers through the life of David Abernathy, a supremely capable and confident individual who achieved great success in his life. Towards the end of the ad, Cars.com is finally mentioned as David worries about buying a car. Evidently, the online hub helped him in that endeavor.

Most of the commercial had nothing to do with cars at all. And even when the narrator finally mentioned the site, it only left about 10 seconds for the viewer to gain a solid understanding of what Cars.com is all about.

The commercial did tell viewers that Cars.com will help them buy a car, but it failed to inform them about the other site features they may have been interested in, like research and the option to sell their vehicles. Maybe that was Cars.com's intention all along, but I'm not convinced that talking about just one of its offerings for a few seconds in 30-second commercial is all that effective.

E*Trade
With the help of two babies, E*Trade Financial used its 30-second Super Bowl ad to promote its investment services. During the first 20 seconds of the commercial, the babies mentioned the troublesome economy and their need for a tool like E*Trade to help them "take control" of their investments. The ad ended with a narrator asking viewers to open one of the "1,000 new accounts opened each day" and "take control with E*Trade."

Much like other companies, E*Trade used its Super Bowl ad to provide more entertainment value than brand promotion. Sure, the babies were entertaining and it got a chuckle out of me, but simply saying that users can "take control" of their investments with E*Trade doesn't tell me what the company does.

E*Trade could have promoted its brand more effectively if it eliminated the banter between the babies and had them discuss all the features E*Trade offers instead. Without that, users who have never used or heard of E*Trade only know that the company lets them "take control" of their investments. But how?

GoDaddy
Domain registrar GoDaddy has always been known to provide sexy commercials to promote its brand. This year's two Super Bowl ads were no different.

Dubbed "Shower," GoDaddy's first ad showed race car driver Danica Patrick, jumping into a shower as a group of boys watched. The other, named "Enhanced," brings Patrick and three other women into a courtroom to discuss "enhancements." The ad is meant to make viewers believe that the women are discussing enhancements of the anatomical sort, but Patrick says that she "enhanced her brand" by buying a domain name through GoDaddy.

GoDaddy's "Shower" commercial didn't say anything about GoDaddy's services and its story had nothing to do with domain registration. That said, it did ask viewers to watch the "unrated" version of the commercial on GoDaddy.com. That's a ploy the company has been using for years, so it must work.

The "Enhanced" commercial does a better job of discussing what GoDaddy actually does. That said, it only mentioned domains in passing and even then it was sandwiched between discussions about enhancements that may or may not have been made to the actresses' bodies. Suffice it to say that domain registration wasn't the memorable part of that commercial.

Hulu
Online video site Hulu offered up an ad, called "Alec in Huluwood" for the Super Bowl, starring veteran actor Alec Baldwin. The 60-second ad takes place in an underground laboratory where Baldwin discusses in detail how Hulu will ensure you won't escape TV content, while reducing your brain "to a cottage cheese-like mush." The spot ends with a tentacle emerging from Baldwin's suit jacket and his claim that "we're aliens, and that's how we roll."

Hulu may have taken a decidedly extreme tack to promote its brand, but it did that exceptionally well. Combining a star from one of TV's hottest comedies, 30 Rock, along with some comedy, the commercial kept audiences captivated as Baldwin skillfully laid out the business model of Hulu: "Hulu beams TV to your portable computing devices, giving you more of the cerebral gelatinizing shows you want anytime, anywhere, for free."

Before the commercial aired, Hulu was known to a relatively small number of people in the Super Bowl viewing audience. But after the ad aired, everyone knew what Hulu is, how it works, and most importantly, that it's free.

It was a perfectly-crafted commercial from both an entertainment and marketing perspective.

Monster
Job search service Monster unveiled a 30-second spot for the Super Bowl that saw the camera swing 180-degrees around a wall. On one side, the boss of a company had a moose's head hanging from the wall in his beautiful office. On the other side, the rest of the animal's body was resting in the middle of an employee's desk as the narrator asked if it's time to find another job. After that, the narrator mentioned how many job listings are on the site and how to get there.

Monster's ad may have been simple, but it was extremely effective. It provided viewers with some entertainment--a must at the Super Bowl--but it used it to get to the marketing side of the ad, which mentioned the company's "millions of job listings."

Perhaps most important, Monster's ad included the company's URL: Monster.com. Many of the viewers may have already known it and even if the company didn't add the ".com", some would find their way to the site. But spelling it out makes it easier for the viewer and gets them to the site sooner. It's a simple thing, but it shouldn't have been overlooked by so many of the other companies advertising their brands at the Super Bowl--be they Web-based businesses or not.

Overstock.com
Online discount retailer Overstock.com made an appearance in this year's Super Bowl with the help of NBA player, Carlos Boozer. The ad starts with Boozer at a computer scrolling through Overstock's listings. Children standing around Boozer ask him what different products around his home are and he responds with the percentage discount. The ad ends with one child picking up his 2008 Olympic Gold medal asking him what it is. "That's about 20 years of dedication, right there," he responded.

I don't quite see the point of the ad. When Overstock's Web page is shown in the beginning of the commercial, there's no way to tell which site it is. You can't even see its logo in the few seconds that it's displayed.

Worse, the discount percentages Boozer throws out mean nothing without context, which eventually comes at the very end of the commercial when the company's logo and name are displayed. In the process, there was little indication given to the viewer about why they should choose Overstock over any other online retail destination.

Priceline
Priceline, the online travel deals site, featured William Shatner in its ad this year. The ad starts with a married couple discussing their desire to go on vacation, but eventually realizing that they couldn't afford it. Shatner, who was outside their home in a van, tells the husband to repeat after him and goes on to explain to the wife how they can save money on a four-star hotel by using Priceline. He does so, at times dropping into the old Captain Kirk-style of speech with its halting cadence. The ad ends with the wife agreeing to book the reservation.

Priceline's commercials are barely different each time they air, but they work. The ad offered some entertainment value and throughout, the message was made clearly to the audience: if you want to save money when you travel, listen to Priceline. Whether or not that's true is a different story. But the ad left little doubt in the viewers' minds. It was well crafted.

After the Phillies won the World Series on Wednesday, either a jubilant mob of revelers or an angry mob of Rays fans (the world will never know) flipped over Ted Passon's parked car, a 1998 Mitsubishi Galant. Without collision insurance to repair the serious damage, Passon found himself carless, and to add insult to injury, in the hole for paying a tow truck to turn it over (causing, from the sound on the video, more damage in the process).

Passon is giving "Philly" a chance to make good on its hooliganism, through his Phillies Fix My Car Web site. The Phillies fan and freelance videographer says on the site, "There was alot of people on Broad Street last night. If all the people who were hanging out near Broad and Washington (where the car was flipped) gave me ten dollars I could probably buy a new car... or if all the people who actually flipped my car gave me a thousand dollars that could work too." He's taking contributions through PayPal.

So far, he's raised $800, gotten "1000 hits in five hours," and grabbed the attention of a local TV news station. "They are on their way over," he wrote in an e-mail to me.

Good luck, Ted. Righting the wrong, if not the car, is the least the mob can do for you.

KBB's new Web site optimized for iPhone and iPod Touch.

(Credit: Dong Ngo/CNET Networks)

Kelley Blue Book (KBB), the popular Web site that rates and provides information on motor vehicles, launched on Wednesday its new version that's optimized for iPhone's display (both the original and the iPhone 3G). The new site also works with iPod Touch.

iPhone users now can easily access KBB's new and used vehicle information on their device anywhere they go. The site appears as a Web application that looks and feels very much like an independent application that you buy from Apple's Apps Store. In addition, iPhone users also have the ability to view the Web site's videos, images, new car reviews and can submit free dealer price quotes.

I tried out the site with my iPhone 3G and really liked the way it's organized. In many ways I thought it was even better than the regular full version KBB site that you access from a computer: very straight forward and there was no clutter. The new site responded fast with the 3G connection, when I turned off the 3G, it was slower, as expected, but still acceptable.

To access the new site, all you have to do is type www.kbb.com on the phone's Safari browser, and you will be directed to the optimized Web site automatically. You will also have the option of accessing the full version of the site on the phone.

Magellan Maestro Elite 5340+GPRS

(Credit: Magellan)

Well, well, looks who's stepping up its game? Today, GPS manufacturer Magellan announced its most ambitious in-car portable navigation system yet: the Magellan Maestro Elite 5340+GPRS. Scheduled to ship in March, the Maestro Elite 5340 allows you to use a GPRS connection to connect to the Web from the device itself and conduct real-time searches for local businesses, services, and events via Google Local Search. You will also be able to send addresses and notes wirelessly from your PC to the Maestro Elite 5340. Sound a bit familiar? Perhaps it's because it's somewhat similar to the Dash Express, though the Dash adds Wi-Fi to the mix and uses Yahoo Local Search.

Other features of the Magellan Maestro Elite 5340+GPRS include voice command functionality, 3D building and landmark renderings, 6 million points of interest, and a 5-inch touch screen. You will pay for all these features as the unit's priced to go at $1,299. I'm pretty to anxious to see the Maestro Elite 5340+GPRS live in action, so check back for my hands-on report as I pay a visit to the Magellan booth at CES 2008.

It has to stop to ask for directions.

(Credit: CNET Networks)

I hope and expect that the majority of dash-top GPS products for cars that are released in 2008 will have one new feature that's missing from most 2007 and earlier models: A way to preprogram waypoints and routes via a Web site, and then send that information to the device. From Google Maps you can already send locations to certain BMW and Mercedes cars and some TomTom navigation units, and this is one of the cool new features we're anticipating in the upcoming Dash Navigation product.

But let's hope that other GPS manufacturers don't follow the HP way in designing Web integration, because the advertised online capability on the new iPaq Travel Companion 310 is horribly bungled. Here's why: Although you can create a route on the new iPaq Navigate Web site, and although the iPaq Navigator has a Bluetooth radio that lets it connect to your mobile phone and through it presumably to the Internet, the only way to actually get your online itinerary into your device is to connect it to your PC with a physical cable.

This is comically lame. It requires you to keep your GPS unit with you when you want to program it, not, say, in your car where it belongs. It also means that if you're on a road trip with the device, you've got to remember to pack a USB cable in addition to the car charger to use the online feature, and that you can't use the feature from a borrowed PC, since transferring route data requires a software install on the PC.

The Navigator Web site is pretty poor, too. It's much too complicated, and it's a completely new experience for people accustomed to Google Maps (although it does use Google's KML format for export).

HP's own Google Maps mashup

To be fair, Google Maps' own integration with cars and devices is very limited--you can only send business listings to your device or car, not complete routes--but it's simple to use and doesn't require a technology dance involving two pieces of hardware, proprietary software, and a cable that you'll probably lose.

See also: CNET editor Bonnie Cha's Miss Direction blog.

These are better than any cat video you may have seen.

The German Car Blog noticed this new series of videos on Volkswagen's Swedish site for the Golf that features a menagerie of characters, each introducing a different Golf model.

The "Golf Auditions" include a naked naturalist explaining the Golf's different green fuel options, a female bodybuilder mime who likes the Golf R32, and a cross-dresser showing off the Cross Golf. The site also has a spot for would-be Golf owners to create videos for selling their old car.

Don't worry if your Swedish is rusty--the videos are subtitled in English.

No word yet from Volkswagen on whether a U.S. version is in the works.

(Credit: Volkswagen)

Short of keeping a pen, paper, and notebook in your glove compartment, there's not really an easy way to track your driving habits between gas fill-ups. Enter MyMileMarker, a simple and useful solution for figuring out how much driving is costing you in gas, and how many miles you're likely to put on your vehicle in the course of a year. Best of all, you can upload your data to the service for free on the Web, or using your mobile phone.

Setting up your vehicle with MyMileMarker is about as simple as it gets--just put in the make and model of your car, or give it a nickname (useful if you're the type of person who names their car). Then, just give it a base odometer listing and your latest fill-up, and you're good to go. From there, you need simply add your odometer reading every time you add gas to your car, be it a fill-up or just a few gallons.

Figure out how much your car is going to cost you over the next year by recording your driving and gas habits.

(Credit: CNET NEtworks)

Here's where the mobile aspect comes in. Instead of using their own mobile service (like a call center or an automated message process), MyMileMarker uses Twitter as their medium for users to send in mileage reports from their phones. Users just need a Twitter account, and to befriend "Mymm." Sending a private message to that user with your mileage will automatically update your records and place the timestamp in for you.

Once you've provided MyMileMarker with three reports, it will begin to crunch your usage statistics. The more you use the service, the better the predictions get. If you miss a few fill ups, the service will do its best to calculate your laziness, and take it into account for the annual forecast.

There are a few missing features I'd like to see added. One is an option to call in your stats using an 800-number, since you're often times busy enough while pumping gas to sit and type. Another is the option to edit past entries. You can only edit or delete your most recent entry, which means if you mistype the price of gas, or your odometer reading, you have to delete, and then re-enter the listing (which you can only do from the Web).

Of course there are several other ways to track your gas usage--like getting a credit card just for gas purchases, and doing monthly odometer tracking on a spreadsheet-- but if you'd like the added benefit of predictions, MyMileMarker shows how scarily expensive owning a vehicle can be. For another take on the service, check out SolutionWatch's hands-on with it last month.