Classified Ad websites provide users with a helpful, noncommercial way to connect with other people in their communities . Generally, posting for most classified ads is free, and it's also free to browse and respond to ads. These web sites don’t have any flashy animation or graphics -- its value comes from its utilitarian design and the contributions of its users.

If all you want to do is browse these sites, you can just visit and click away. The sites have a range of broad categories, and each category has several subcategories, making it easy to navigate to the appropriate section quickly. For example, the "for sale" category features subcategories like computers, books, electronics, sports, motorcycles and collectibles, among others.

Most ads include the member's e-mail address. Some offer a function that masks e-mail so that members don't have to worry about their address being openly available. All transactions are between the person who posted the ad and the person responding to it.

If you want to participate in forum discussions or post your own classifieds, you generally need to create an account. The only thing you need to become a member is a valid e-mail address. The signup process is usually short and painless. The site's users act like the site's watchdogs by monitoring the content that gets posted. Users flag posts to draw attention to those that are particularly interesting and those that detract from the site.