Yahoo! Calendar
With a free membership at Yahoo! (
www.yahoo.com), you can take advantage of the site�s calendar feature, which allows you to schedule all kinds of appointments with alarms sent to your Yahoo! Messenger account, mobile device, or e-mail address. If you choose to share your calendar with friends and family, they can view your dates and add their own.
Cost: Free.
This service features an easy interface, e-mail or
text-message reminders, a selection of
e-cards, and an option to send flowers.
Cost: Free e-mail reminders; 50 cents for each text message.
BigDates will remind you of a birthday via a cell-phone text message or an e-mail with suggestions for cards and gifts. You can even sign up for a service that will send a paper card to someone through the U.S. Postal Service ($3, plus postage). The downside is that it�s slightly impersonal; you don�t get to compose the message in your
own handwriting.
Cost: Free for the first three months; $6 a year after that.
Boasting a tasteful, simple, and thoughtful interface, this site assigns each member her own Web page so she can direct friends and family there to input their birthdays, rather than having to collect the information herself.
Cost: Free.
SmarterChild
AOL Instant Messenger users can create birthday alerts by adding SmarterChild to their buddy lists. Send a message to SmarterChild consisting of the word reminder. You�ll be prompted
to answer a few questions if it�s your first time, then taken through the setup.
At the appointed date, you�ll get an IM reminding you of your duties. Also available with MSN and ICQ.
Cost: Free.
Birthday Pal keeps track of as many birthdays as you like and will send up to four different reminders per birthday. It also automates the process of birthday collection by sending an e-mail to friends requesting their dates.
Cost: Free.
