If you have been thinking of learning a new language, coding, designing, art or cooking, ET tells you how to do so online without paying for them.
1. Photography
To learn the basics of photography, visit http://photographycourse.net.
The content on this website is laid out as per the skill level. At http://photo.net/learn, you'll find a handy collection of articles—regularly updated—and tutorials from professionals. If you need to brush up your photography jargon, DP Review, a popular forum for photo enthusiasts, has a comprehensive listing at www.dpreview.com/glossary.
As for apps, Photography Tutorials by Anton Gregory is a good free app for Android devices. It curates and organises a list of photography tutorials from around the Internet. It has practically every technique—beginner or advanced— that you need to know about.
2. Cooking
Cooking is a fine art. Learning to apply hundreds of little tricks and techniques can usually take years to master. Luckily, you can find many useful tips at www.simplyrecipes.com (Simply Recipes also offers a free app).
At www.reluctant-gourmet.com, the 'How to Cook' tab will help you brush up on roasting, poaching, grilling, frying, braising, baking and everything in between. A handy cooking converter at the bottom of every page can help you convert quantities—tablespoons to teaspoons, litres to pints, etc.
All Recipes and Epicurious are two of our favourites apps on cooking. These are easy to use and customised for each platform. If you also want to learn how to mix drinks, check out the Mixology app, also available on all platforms.
3. Self Defence
You can't learn advanced self-defence techniques or earn a black belt, but you can easily pick up and practise basic martial arts and self-defence techniques online.
Lifehacker has a one-page guide for basic self-defence that can help you get out of a sticky situation. It includes tips on vulnerable parts of the body, how to attack, leverage your weight, basic kicks/punches and how to administer/get out of basic holds. You can find the guide at http://goo.gl/gsFUBn.
For apps, you can try the Self Defense Trainer for iOS, Self Defense for Windows and BlackBerry, and Marine Corps Martial Arts for Android.
4. Computer Programming
For JavaScript, jQuery, PHP, Python and Ruby, head to www.codeacademy.com. The interactive website offers step-by-step instructions to familiarise you with the language and shortcuts. You don't even need to sign up, but it is advisable to do so to keep track of your course and resume from the level you have mastered instead of beginning afresh each time you log in.
A free iPad app called Treehouse can teach you Objective-C, HTML, CSS, JavaScript, PHP, Ruby, and SQL. There is also a dedicated section for iOS and Android app development. You gain access to various tutorial videos that are constantly updated. As you move ahead in the course, you need to take a regular quiz and complete interactive challenges.
5. A New Language
Learning a new language can be fun. The courses hosted on www.openculture.com are a good place to start. Another great place to learn Spanish, English, French, German, Portuguese and Italian is www.duolingo.com.
Some languages are easier to learn than others. For instance, if you know English well, it'll be easier for you to pick up Spanish than Russian.
Duolingo 'gamifies' the process with rewards. It also has free apps for iOS and Android. Other popular services include Live Mocha and Lang-8.
While you learn, you also act as an editor for someone learning your native language—this helps keep learning free.
6. Artistic Skills
To learn the basics—colouring, drawing techniques, perspective—head to www.artyfactory.com. At http://thevirtualinstructor.com, you can find a list of art lessons, tutorials, articles and videos curated from around the Web.
When you want to do more, head to www.instructables.com, where you can learn a diverse array of activities from watermelon carving to making jewellery, puppets and costumes.
As for apps, How to Draw by ArtelPlus (for iOS and Android) is a good place to start. There is also a wide range of apps available in the 'How to Draw' series, with each app teaching a specific activity.
7. Dancing
Dancing requires you to 'do' more than just read. That is why, if you think you can dance, tutorial videos on various dance forms on YouTube are the first place you should go to.
Next, head to www.dancetothis.com for an advanced course in hip hop, pop, street, break dance, krumping and ballroom, among others. Remember, to really master the art, practise is what you will need.
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