Adding video to websites - a nice touch

SACRAMENTO, Calif., USA - After much procrastination, I finally put up some video Saturday on Captain's Blog (link on the left of this column), my first foray into using video.

OhMiGod - it works and it is sooooo easy.

Adding to that mix is that my cell phone can take a limited amount of video, which means that I don't need to carry a camera (particularly my bulky video camera) to snatch short videos. Later today I'll post an experiment in that, provided I can get it all to download. Saturday's footage was shot with a regular video camera and then compressed using a special program... Ok, you've heard enough.

So watch out Costco, this citizen journalist is headed your way this morning.


The Citizen Journalist

The next logical step is to move over to YouTube

SACRAMENTO, Calif. USA - In recent months more links to the video hosting site YouTube have come this way than links to articles, a sign that communications are twisting again, this time in the form of videos versus print.

And in the last few months, the software for this blogsite now allows the posting of videos, which might actually happen here - if I can get the technology to cooperate.

In the meantime, two very different videos came to my attention, one by Taryn Southern about Hilary Clinton, another by Gory Bateson, the nom-de-video of a university colleague.

Taryn Southern

The Southern video is a song performed by web star Southern called Hott 4 Hill, and was produced and posted in response to another YouTube piece posted by Obama Girl.

As you might guess, the Southern posting is a tongue-in-cheek paean to Hilary Clinton, quite funny and musically, a pretty catchy tune.

Hott 4 Hill

Her posting has had nearly 900,000 views (add one more if you just watched it) and while the gay references might bother a few people, it's a damn clever video.

At the other end of the YouTube media world is a video personality created by a colleague who is having great time putting together short videos and posting them to YouTube. Gory Bateson first sang Light My Fire at the grave of Jim Morrison and most recently posted a song he performed while standing knee-deep in the American River near the Sacramento State campus.

Gory in the river

My goal? To get my video alter-ego to join Gory's group (the Ethnogs) for a YouTube duet - at least as long as it is Two Pina Coladas and I don't have to stand knee-deep in 50 degree water.

A nice cantina with two pina coladas within reach would seem a more fitting spot to film it.

Watch out Taryn, Gory and I will be challenging you pretty soon for the most web hits.