I have often said that there is no reason ever to be bored if you have a computer with a reliable and somewhat fast Internet connection: over 33.6 or higher.

With a computer connected to the Internet you can read about any subject you are interested in on the Web or in Usenet Newsgroups, chat with old friends and family, or make new friends by chatting with strangers.

You can write letters via e-mail.

But sometimes you are not in the mood to write emails or read the news, and perhaps you do not need to buy anything.

Perhaps you prefer more of a mental challenge, although not too great of one.

After all, it is summer and you want to relax a bit.

The Solitaire game that comes on most Windows PC's is neat, isn't it?

Don't you just love the way the cards flip themselves back over onto the pile all by themselves?

We've all played it.

Well, there are virtually thousands of free games available online that will amaze and amuse you for hours, and give you the option to play alone or with people from all over the world.

And I am willing to venture a guess that once you have discovered online games, your Solitaire days will be over.

I stumbled across an online game site accidentally, and it has become one of my favourites.

The site is called "PlaySite". PlaySite (www.playsite.com) is an interactive games site that features "Multiplayer Gaming", which means that you can play games from your computer with other people who may be sitting on the other side of the world at their computers.

Imagine sitting in your home in Bermuda and playing Bridge with a total stranger from Auckland, New Zealand!

However, you will not be a stranger for long, because in between games players may chat amongst themselves, fostering a fun sense of virtual camaraderie.

If you are not a Bridge player, there are plenty of other games to play.

Other card games include Euchre, Cribbage, Gin, Hearts, and Spades.

If you are into board games, the chances are good that you will find your favourite here including Battleship, Backgammon, Checkers, Chess, and Reversi.

Arcade games such as Asteroids, Battlezone, Missile Command and Centipede are a fun way to introduce kids to online games, as you battle it out with other families from parts unknown!

My personal favourite is the word game Scrabble.

Tangleword is another fun word game.

It is an online version of the board game "Boggle", where you form words from jumbled letters in a specified amount of time.

Word games like these are a great game for parents and kids to play together, and are considered to be educational if you need to rationalise why you are spending time inside on a perfectly beautiful day.

PlaySite games are free, but you need to register to use all the features that the site has to offer.

Registration is quick and easy, and can be accessed by clicking on the word "REGISTER" on the first page, or "home page" of the PlaySite Web site.

A thorough and easy-to-understand help guide is available if click the help link.

All you need is a Java-enabled browser to play the games at PlaySite.

Your monitor must also be able to display at 800 x 600 resolution and your computer must have at least 24 megabytes of RAM, but most computers today meet these last two hardware requirements.

PlaySite supports Internet Explorer 4.0 and above and Netscape 4.0 and above for Windows.

Currently, PlaySite does not support Netscape 6.

If you have a Macintosh, you need OS 8, and Internet Explorer to play at PlaySite.

Online games are a great way to test your skills against other master and amateur players all over the world.

You may find that you are very skilled compared to others or, like me, you may find that you have much to learn from those more skilled than yourself.

Now you can learn from them and hone your gaming skills and impress those in your Bridge club the next time you get together to play.

Michelle Swartz writes a fortnightly column on using computers. She can be contacted at michellechristers.net