As the creators of the wildly successful Homestar Runner can tell you, online cartoons can be serious business. That their best, webtoons are catchy, viral, and can easily boost website traffic. The only things required are a working knowledge of Flash and some artistic skill. If you’re not an artist, or if the mere sight of Actionscript makes you break down into tears, don’t fret. Believe it or not, making your own animated masterwork is easier than you think. GoAnimate is a website that allows you to create your own short animations with no artistic ability or programming skill required. GoAnimate is surprisingly easy to use and is completely free (surprise surprise).

If webcomics are more you thing, then BitStrips just might be for you. The site works sthe same as GoAnimate, only the end product is a comic strip instead of a cartoon. With BitStrip, making a funny, weekly online comic strip doesn’t require any artistic ability, and it could bring in more readers to your site.

Of course, there are other ways to make a successful webcomic that doesn’t involve drawing, programming, or using a helper website. Dinosaur Comics a prime example of what is known as a fixed-art comic - the art stays the same while the actual dialog changes. Sprite comics such as 8-Bit Theater use sprites taken from older video games or computer programs. Sites such as I Can Has Cheezburger and Pundit Kitchen have proven that actual “art” is optional. All you need for a good comic is a photograph and a clever punchline.

And there is common is the common thread - writing. Every good webtoon, webcomic, or comedic caption needs an intelligent, easy to read script. Sure, you can use something like Notepad to write your future Web Cartoonists’ Choice Award winning punchline, but that would be painful. If you’re looking for something a bit more robust, we suggest looking into Open Office.org 3, beta 2. OOO 3 is packed to the gills with interesting gadgets and features. Our favorite? Well, it all depends on who you ask. Some of us love the new integration with OS X. Others prefer the built-in support for Microsoft’s new .docx file type. Either way, you’ll be glad to know that the Open Office.org is, was, and always shall be free.

When you finish creating your new webcomic or online animation, you might want to make some money through advertisements. WidgetBucks is an interesting advertising engine that lets you create a small, easy to install widget on your website that can help you start making money right away. Hmm… getting money right away… sounds like something that you might want to check out.

And finally:

So you say that you like to frequent your local public library. That’s great! Do you also like to check out social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace while at said library? You do? That’s… um… not so great, according to United States government. Congress is attempting to ban social networking sites from public libraries, in order to keep kids safe from sexual predators. The bill is being fought by the American Library Association. When something happens, we will certainly let you know.