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Ever sent a "Happy Birthday" via regular email? You might as well send a memo saying: "I'm a loser who forgot your birthday until the very last minute." The first generation of electronic greeting cards (a.k.a. e-greetings, e-cards, iCards, and other "e's" and "i's" too numerous to mention) had all the style and sophistication of Hallmark on a bad day. Today, there are hundreds of card sites offering everything from uber-kitsch and high-weirdness to high art and good humor. It's now gotten to the point where you can send an e-greeting, whether a simple card or a full-blown Shockwave movie, without feeling embarrassed about its quality. A staggering number of sites still offer cards of the sentimental, Rod McKuen variety. These can provide hours of entertainment for fans of irony and kitch, besides which, your sweet Aunt Zelda will genuinely enjoy a big-eyed kitten card with a grade school-level poem attached to it. The king of such card sites, Blue Mountain, will set you up with unimagined riches of wacky tunes, fluffy puppies, creepy clowns, and the like. They're free, they're fun — and good luck trying to hold down your lunch while you peruse them. Volition lets you customize your cards by uploading your own images and sound clips (or you can use theirs). Their site is a quick download and features a simple, homespun interface. DAIRgrams ups the ante by letting you send non-virtual postcards through the mail, just by selecting your images and typing in your messages. The postcards are sent free, but the "catch" is that they contain advertising. Macromedia's Shockwave plug-in may too often bug out your browser, but it can also make for great interactive, multimedia experiences … and cool greeting cards. Start off by sending your own customized South Park or Dilbert 'toons to a friend. In their Photo Greetings section, you can use your own images in your cards. Apple, always trying to show up the competition, has recently gotten into the e-greeting business too. Their iCards site has an impressive array of classic art cards, gorgeous photography cards, humor cards, you name it. This is definitely the place to go if you find many of the other card sites too low-brow for your taste. See also: |
