The Placidus Service Index
Like the Placidus Device Database, the Service Index provides recommendations for online services. Sometimes it's difficult to find service providers which are reputable, do good work, and provide good service at competitive rates. Providers in this list have not compensated the Project for a spot on this list. Note that these are online services, not shopping sites, and are for general, everyday types of services which have broad appeal.
E-mail
- ProtonMail - If all you need is secure e-mail, ProtonMail is a great choice. It is hosted in Switzerland and comes with both free and paid plans. The free plan is great for people who don't do much with e-mail and the paid plan ($4/month) offers features who use it more. There is also a mobile app available even for free accounts.
- MailFence - Privacy-oriented mail service hosted in Belgium. Sending encrypted e-mail is made very easy with this one, and the service also includes calendaring, mailing lists, group collaboration, and online storage. A free plan is available to try it out, and a good, basic plan runs 2.5 Euros/month (~$2.60 USD) and the pro plan is 7.5 Euros/month (~$8 USD).
Social Media
- Mastodon - a social network similar to Twitter, but better and kinder.
- Diaspora - a social network similar to Facebook, but without the incessant surveillance and creepy ads.
Financial
- FreeTaxUSA - Secure service for free federal US tax returns and inexpensive state returns.
- Mint.com - Personal finance management. Free and highly recommended.
Music Downloads
- eMusic - Low-cost purchases, features high-quality lesser-known artists
- Google Play Music - Price competitive with iTunes, large selection, purchases can be streamed, storage for 50,000 of your own music, purchases can be downloaded. Requires a Google account.
- Amazon Music - Price- and feature-competitive with Google Play Music and iTunes. Requires an Amazon account, but doesn't require a Prime subscription
- Free Music Archive - An archive of independent musicians of many genres. All available for free.
Music Streaming
- Magnatune - Free streaming (and paid downloads) of a host of indie musicians. With a byline of 'we are not evil,' it's hard to not at least give them a look.
- Amazon Prime Music - Free with Amazon Prime subscription. Setup requires a few minor tweaks.
- Pandora - Free and paid plans
- Spotify - Free and paid plans
Video Streaming