Play and listen to music on Blip.fm

I've reviewed a number of music oriented sites in this space over the past year - last.fm, mixturtle.com, and iLike.com - but blip.fm is the first one I've seen that lets you play at being an online DJ.

Similar to other sites, Blip lets you find music that is streamed (you can't download it, you can just listen to it) over the internet. Streaming sites often offer a wider array of songs than other sites, and Blip comes with flying colours on my "obscurity" test. Not only will you find popular music, one can often find little known songs from 20 years ago. The site also provides links to Amazon.com if you want to buy the songs.

Once you find a song you like, you can "blip" it by adding you own comments to the song. You can also add songs you blip to your playlist, so that anyone who visits your profile can listen to your selection of music. Blip also plugs into social networks such a Twitter and a FriendFeed.

You can also view the playlists of other digital DJs, adding your own comments to songs you like or add their music to your own list of favourites.

The site uses a very easy to use interface, but it also seems to be going through some growing pains.

Blip has been down twice in the last week for various reasons. Because the songs are streamed, they are not always available, either. Two of the songs I found earlier in the week were not available five days later, but a follow-up search usually found them streaming from other sources.

Users should also have a strong broadband connection or the songs may frequently stop and start.

Know more about Blip.fm

• Name: Blip.fm
• URL: blip.fm
• What it does: allows you play an Internet DJ
• Ease of use: simple
• Cost: free