Can't find your favourite site?

Folks who regularly use more than one PC will be more than aware of the irritation of discovering that the bookmark you want isn't on the machine you happen to be using.

Now a new, free, service aims to provide users with personal website directories enabling them to access their bookmarks from any PC in the world.

Online Favourites is a UK-based operation (which explains how they know how to spell 'favourites') which holds details of personal bookmarks and favorites(sic), allowing them to be read on any PC connected to the Web.

A Java applet runs on the client machine, enabling changes to be made even when working offline, although reconnection is obviously necessary to save them centrally.

One major attraction of the service is the complete absence of advertising, which rather made us wonder where the revenue stream was coming from.

An Online Favourites spokesperson said that ads might be introduced at a later date, but reading between the lines it would appear that details of personal bookmarks could be passed to companies operating similar websites, enabling targeted advertising and invitations to check out their web offerings.

But, given the remarkable similarity in concept to the Hotmail email service, perhaps the plan is to get the - undoubtedly useful - service up and running with a view to selling the concept and technology to a very large company which just happens to be in the web browser business. ®