The first one is Orb.com. I discovered this while reading the Woot forum. Orb.com is a service that allows you to access your computer at home from anywhere using Internet or cellphone. You can put music, videos, pictures, and even your webcam on the stream and you can access it anywhere by simply going to the site and logging in. The neatest thing about this is that you can record and watch TV with this service. Say your computer has a TV tuner card and you are going to be on vacation. You can use the service to record the shows you want to watch on vacation, and watch them while you are on vacation via phone or Internet. Live TV is also available if you have a good connection. The setup is pretty easy, download, install, register, a few clicks, and you’re done. Best of all, this service is free.

The second one is Dark Room. Dark Room is a full screen, distraction free, writing environment. Unlike standard word processors that focus on features, Dark Room is just about you and your text. This is a free app for Windows that is a clone of the Mac app WriteRoom. I knew about WriteRoom previously and was looking for a Windows alternative and found this. There are people like me who just can’t concentrate on work when there is the start menu bar, desktop, etc distracting you. This appication is perfect for people seeking distraction free computer workspace. In fact, I’m typing this in Dark Room. There are some simple settings that allow you to customize the view.