ON THE INTERNET Interesting Web sites

With 2006 drawing to a close, it seemed a good time to compile some of the sites farther down on the ol' bookmark list. Here are a few of the loose ends and oddities left over from a year of clicking around on Al Gore's Internet.
Telemarketer Revenge: http://howtoprankatelemarketer.ytmnd.com/
Comedian Tom Mabe has built a career on harassing the harassers -- specifically, telemarketers. In this audio clip, recorded from the "Bob and Tom" radio show, Mabe convinces a telemarketer that, by calling his house, he's inadvertently become a witness in the recent murder of Mr. Tom Mabe.
The Movie Timeline: http://www.themovietimeline.com/
Ever get confused about the difference between real life and the movies? This site wonders what the history of the world would look like if it were told through the plots of films. A few of the movies that seem especially disruptive of the time continuum include "Alien vs. Predator," "Highlander" and "Bill & amp; Ted's Excellent Adventure."
The Cloud Appreciation Society: http://www.cloudappreciationsociety.org/
These folks just really like clouds.
Bluff Your Ego: http://www.blufr.com/
This Web site keeps score as you deem statement after statement either false ("No way!") or true ("Way!"). It may sound like a familiar trivia game, but it's sneakily smart. One of its top "bluffs," for example, is: "At San Francisco's Fisherman's Wharf, public fishing is illegal." You might think such irony would only be thought up if true -- but then you'd have been bluffed.
The Popularity Dialer: http://popularitydialer.com/
If you want to look popular, this site might help. With the Popularity Dialer, you plug in your phone number and a specific time in which you want your phone to ring. You can even distinguish whether the pseudo call will be from a male, female, boss or a cousin in need. The site, which says it doesn't distribute phone numbers to telemarketers, playfully claims to be intended for "alleviating awkward social situations and creating confidence in its users."
VIDEO OF THE WEEK: http://www.youtube.com/watch?vFbOWQRTpyN8
Weird Al Yankovic's incredible and unlikely renaissance continues with his "Al TV" specials, which have recently been broadcast on VH1. You can catch his fake interview with Jessica Simpson here, though. Weird Al splices together Simpson's answers from a standard TV interview with his own questions -- making for a disturbing, hysterical mix. His recent "interview" with Kevin Federline is equally good.
DOWNLOAD THIS: "Ask a Ninja"
The podcast and video series "Ask a Ninja," one of the most popular podcasts on iTunes, recently celebrated its one-year anniversary. Available for free on iTunes or at www.askaninja.com, the series stars comedian Douglas Sarine as "Ninja," a character he created with fellow comedian Kent Nichols. Like a cross between Will Ferrell and the comedy of ninja Web site RealUltimatePower.com, "Ask a Ninja" typically responds to reader e-mails or spouts off on things such as "Ninja Day": "Maybe just for one day, the world will be a little more deadly."
--Jake Coyle, Associated Press
Copyright 2006 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.