As a writer covering the tech industry, there are a couple of websites and services that I would classify as downright essential for my job, including some VoIP/IM communication tools and my e-mail application of choice ( Gmail ). Apart from those, I consider an RSS reader to be such a vital tool for me as well, both on a private as a professional level. Add to that Techmeme , which has an algorithm in place designed to weed out the best and/or most talked about news stories related to the tech industry out there, and you can tell I have a pretty solid set of tools readily available that enable me to keep tabs on what I want and need to be tracking closely. New to the arsenal of tools at my disposal free of charge is Tech Investor News , which despite its not-so-sexy name is exactly what it sounds like: a news site that investors in tech companies - plus industry pundits and reporters - should be made aware of.