Homepage, Sweet Homepage

When you open your internet browser do you go straight to a boring search page or to the more tempting delights of the student's Achilles heel: Facebook?

As a typical student who is up at 8.30 for a 9am lecture I want to be able to access the important information and have time for breakfast.

Luckily there are many great homepages that provide a glance at preferred internet hotspots without having to visit different sites.

I've reviewed five and looked at how they can benefit student life.

Pageflakes

Pageflakes offers a selection of interest areas from your local weather forecast through to a daily sudoku all of which can be edited or deleted to your discretion; however I felt that the page was bland and unwelcoming - personally I would not call Pageflakes home.

My Yahoo!

With My Yahoo! a yahoo ID is needed. The page can be easily personalised by changing the layout, colour and content to suit the individual. I found My Yahoo! very user-friendly and the bonus is that it is a well-known and trusted name.

iGoogle

iGoogle is a great companion for those who love to surf;providing the familiar Google search bar at the top of the page. This homepage is useful to those with a googlemail account as email is merely a click away. Once again the content varies from the serious to the more light-hearted with a silly 'Things to Ponder' option. iGoogle also has pages upon pages of themes to choose from to add that 'homely feel'.

As a typical student who is up at 8.30 for a 9am lecture I want to be able to access the important information and have time for breakfast.

Francesca Jones

Microsoft Live

With editable options to choose from the user is free to delete or add content and can tab between their chosen areas - each with a dedicated page. With the option to check your Windows Live Hotmail account at your fingertips I'm sure that this will be the homepage for many students.

Netvibes

Netvibes is a colourful and appealing page which like the others can be edited to suit your tastes with different colours, content and layout. Through Netvibes you can easily check your inbox and your Facebook and eBay accounts simultaneously. Netvibes easy interface and accessibility have made it a winner for me.

Student benefits

Through researching homepages, and finding my perfect one I have discovered that they are a great benefit to student life. Instead of spending an hour to check various accounts and catching up on the news or weather you are able to quickly access all the information needed and get on with the ever pending workload!