Ever wanted design your own internet game or website even though you cant write code if your life depended on it? Try Microsoft Popfly. In a clear step-by-step guide for each of its three individual, but excellent programs– Game Creator, Website Maker, and Mashup–Popfly allows the digital adventurer to customize and shape to an extent, their own personal creation. Read on!

Game Creator:

The name might not be creative, but its straight to the point: Make your own internet games… and share them with the world. Dont have any genius new idea? Not to worry, you can build on and customize an existing game, though starting from scratch is also an option, for those with the daring–and time– to do so. Armed with a vast amount of basic templates, its likely your idea is among them, and not only does that save you time, but it makes you feel better that you’re not the only one who thinks this game sounds fun. The simplistic layout is yet another good reason for the non-computer programmer to see what creative engine he/she has. Check one example here, based off the classic asteroids style game (hit the green “Play” sign near the top left of the page- though in order to play you need a Microsoft Windows Live account if you don’t already have one, see bottom “Notes on Popfly” for all the info).

Example of a Popfly game- this one similar to “Brick” on your iPod

Web Site Maker:

Again self-explanatory, but this one can help even the greatest amateurs make a professional masterpiece of a website. Want to make a site with info for a job you want? To quote the Staples Red Button, “That was easy.” Two other suggested methods of free, easy website creating are WordPress.com– the mastermind program behind our own blog (I wish I could say the fact we use it proves its easy, but frankly it doesnt; we’re the “geeks” remember?)– and Google’s Blogger.com

Mashup:

THE BEST FEATURE OF ALL. That got your attention. The most intriguing and innovative idea on Popfly, Mashup painlessly allows you to select any place on the web you wish to see and dump it all on one personal site, by means of capturing each location in a “block”. Drag and drop one of the many choices–and there’s a lot, like everything-you’ll-need a lot– of blocks in the left side bar anywhere on the blank white screen to the right, and you can then connect to other “blocks” using the dots on the side.

For example, say your internet schedule constitutes of quickly–or not so quickly– checking your Facebook, reading a few sites and viewing your Flickr photos. Now, instead of visiting each site individually, you can almost literally cut out the pieces you want to see and paste them on your Mashup page, which functions exactly as an actual visit to the site, just far cooler and more compact. Its really incredible. Check out an example of a Mashup here (click Run at the top of make it go, the site this takes you to is what the set up looks like with all the “blocks”. Also to view this you will need a Windows Live account, see the next line).

Example of “Blocks” in Popfly

Notes on Popfly: One catch: you need a free Windows Live account. But dont let that scare you; they’re a quick signup, and you can do so from within Popfly. Also, be careful what you do with some of this stuff; you are on the Internet and what you publish could be viewed by the world.

We advise you give them all a shot–or at least the one that interests you most–and let us know how it goes by dropping a comment or emailing us.