  Lindel\"of spaces are studied in any basic Topology course. However, there
are other interesting covering properties with similar behaviour, such as
almost Lindel\"of, weakly Lindel\"of, and quasi-Lindel\"of, that have been
considered in various research papers. Here we present a comparison between the
standard results on Lindel\"of spaces and analogous results for weakly and
almost Lindel\"of spaces. Some theorems, similar to the published ones, will be
proved. We also consider counterexamples, most of which have not been included
in the standard Topological textbooks, that show the interrelations between
those properties and various basic topological notions, such as separability,
separation axioms, first countability, and others. Some new features of those
examples will be noted in view of the present comparison. We also pose several
open questions.
