Momentshowing

Play me a tune from far away

Meet two relatively new videobloggers who have blown my mind.
Josh Leo lives in Michigan.
Phil Hamilton lives in Massachusettes.
Eventhough they live in different states, they created a video where they played music together.

Im hoping these guys write up a "how-to".
imagine all kinds of musical collaborations like this.

So what do you do in this case?
Get ANT.
Subscribe to their feeds:
Josh is http://feeds.feedburner.com/joshleo
Phil is http://feeds.feedburner.com/philham
Comments on their videos.

Comment are the currency of our community.

One to One

Here's what a Videoblogging Workshop looks like.
We met from 1-3pm on two sundays.
The first sunday we went over making a blog, smaking a video, uploading a video to the web, and posting the video to the blog.
The next sunday we did troubleshooting, got everyone a feed, and showed them how to subscribe and watch other people's work.
Basically we followed Freevlog.org

Here are the new videoblogs that came out of it.
Get ANT and subscribe to these feeds.

http://dlxx.blogspot.com
feed:http://feeds.feedburner.com/Dlx

http://fluxfactory.blogspot.com
feed:http://feeds.feedburner.com/FluxFactoryVideo

http://katzenroehrl.blogspot.com
feed:http://feeds.feedburner.com/halt

http://vdemuth.blogspot.com
feed:http://feeds.feedburner.com/Freelook

http://drinkingwithbob.blogspot.com
feed: http://feeds.feedburner.com/WhatsNextWhatsNextWhatsNext

We teach Humans: a Videoblog workshop

I am proud that Videoblogging is organizing itself.
Videobloggers seem to intuitively understand that we need to spread far and wide.
why?
because when you start making and watching videoblogs you begin to feel more connected.
You want others to make videos...so you start teaching.
anyone who says "who cares what people say?"....confuses the hell out of me.
Some people are taught to really love their cage.

This Sunday, April 17th, Ryan Hodson, Michael Verdi, Jonny Goldstein and I are another Videoblogging Workshop.
It'll be from 1-3pm at the Flux Factory.
We'll hold another workshop at the same place on Sunday, May 1st.

Ryan made a video:

So did Jonny:

It's not hard to get a workshop together.
Most art spaces, schools, community centers, cafes, etc love to host these classes.
Just ask any of the wi-fi places in your area.
After you get the space, get the word out.
All people need to bring is a laptop and camera.
You then basically show the videos you like, talk about the concepts and people, and jump into "how to make a videoblog" by following Michael Verdi's Freevlog.

If you need help setting up a workshop in your town...send me a comment.
I can send you some of our documentation and videos we use.

What happens when someone shines

Meet Renegade out of San Francisco.
For Videoblogging Week 2005, she did the best series of videos I've seen lately.
(VB 2005 was where a whole crew of videobloggers from around the world posted a video a day for seven days.) In 7 days, she showed us how to make homemade silkscreens...and then made a T-shirt series for Videoblogging Week itself.
Such skill and flawless talent.

Do people understand what's going on here?
she made this whole thing out of her house, just for other people.
Its sick.
She must be mentally ill.
why would anyone do this?
she did it for other people.

Following all seven videos...you could actually figure out how to make your own silkscreen.
Do me a favor...buy a T-shirt from her in honor of Videoblogging Week 2005.
Ive just ordered mine.

Meet Thom or "Im not afraid of stinkin' Torrents"

My friend Thomas just posted his first videoblog.
It's funny because I know him through email and reading his posts on discussion lists...and i'd say we're friends.
But I've never seen him until now.

Thom is also coming to the Con with his wife on Jan 22 in Manhattan.
When i see him in person...there will be less awkwardness because Im really getting to know him through video.
This is a common occurence amongst videobloggers.
It's like when you see a movie star in a deli...you feel like you know them because you've been with them in video.
And videobloggers are movie stars in my book.

Okay, meet Thom.

If you just clicked on the image...your computer wants to download a "torrent".
and many people still dont know what this means....
so we're going to learn now.

First you need a Bit Torrent client.
Download the free Blog Torrent application here.
Like any new app, once downloaded...drag the icon into your application folder in your hard drive.

Then, click on the image of the wacky duck...and a torrent file will appear on your desktop.
Double click this file.
The torrent should automatically open up in Blog Torrent...and begin downloading.
Thom and I are both seeding...so it should be fast.
Once you have the video on your computer, you become a seed as long as the Blog Torrent app is open.
The more people who are seeding, the faster the video will download for newcomers.
See how this works?
(email me if not jay.dedmanATgmail.com)

So this is Peer-2-Peer sharing that we will be using more and more of.
Thom is using no server bandwidth for his video...because we're using our computers for sharing.
His desktop IS the server.
He didnt upload his video anywhere.
He just created a torrent and posted it to his site.
Blog Torrent then connected me to his desktop to get the video.
Since many of our computers are "always on"....the video will usally always be there for me.

okay, it's a lot if youre new.
just try it.
It will all start clicking in your head.
You'll now know how to get torrents as they start popping up more and more on the web.
You'll also meet Thom at Vloggercon and he'll talk youre ear off about bit torrent.

How a star is born...and then shows us to just be normal

This is the continuation of a previous post on Dylan, the Youngest Videoblogger in the World.
It's a funny story which goes like this.

Michael Verdi is part of our videoblogging group.
Being the coolest dad he is, he got Dylan, his 11-year old daughter to make a videoblog.
She already had a regular blog.
The group linked to her videopost because it was so amazing.
Then, it got hit almost 2000 times in one day and spread around the net.
ABC World News Tonight happened to be looking for a videoblogger...and there was Dylan...full of star potential.

Michael posted this great story on the surealness of the whole 2 weeks.

It's good that Michael and his wife are so savvy.
They won't let it all go to Dylan's head.
It's cool that ABC recognized the power of a videoblog by an 11-year-old girl.
Maybe other young people will start videoblogging like they IM each other.
But it's really about us...about building a second world in here...where we always need ABC or whoever to tell us what's going on.
We tell each other.
Just like how Dylan does it.

VIDEO: How to make a collaborative video

I've been quietly, slowly blown away by me-tv...which is only 2 weeks old.
The tool itself is cool blah blah.....but its the videos I'm seeing that gets me.
I use me-tv like any Blog reader...browse through blogs i subscribe to...except Im not reading  text blogs...Im watching videoblogs full of original creations.
They aren't movies or TV shows or rambling home video.
These are videoblogs...you got to watch.

me-tv conveniently tells me when there's a new feed to subscribe to.
It also tells me when there's a new video in a feed.
I click and watch.
And I realize that our small, passionate group is coming up with cool ideas going in different directions.
These are people from all over the planet.

So where are we?
Anyone can post a video to a blog.
Anyone can add a blog feed into me-tv.
Anyone can join our group of creators and watchers.

Anyone can also create a Playlist.
Playlists are also a cool function of me-tv.
On the inspiration of Mica and Charlene, the playlist queens, Peter created a way that we could make video together.
He uses keywords.

For instance, here is a playlist in me-tv called "Who are you?" that I created.
I want people to post videos telling me who they are.
The keyword is hereiam.
So anyone can get their video in this playlist by putting this keyword somewhere in their blog post.
Here is a video I just made:

Then, i write: hereiam.
This video now shows up in the "who are you" Playlist.

Click on "watch entire playlist" and it plays all the video back to back.

Why is this amazing?
Because eventhough all the videos are hosted in different places...we can still link them together.
I can't wait to see what people come up with.
The crazier the better.

I'm Banned in China

So Im trying to cross boundaries here guys.
Im having a conversation with this guy in China who has recently joined the videoblogging group.....

I say:

how can I convince you to have a videoblog?
i would love to see parts of China through your eyes.

He responds:

Warm-hearted videoblogging evangelist...
I had checked me-tv.com out, and also signed my own account up there days ago.
Seems momentshowing.net has been censored by the Great Firewall, at
least I can't get access to it now, and I've been used to it...
And, which may disappointing you, I really don't have a webcam,
though it's very cheap now, haha.
Many of my friends are dating girls online with webcams.
I'm not interested, so it was useless to me.
However, I'm thinking of buying one now,heh.

hahaha
It makes me laugh that there is this country that thinks my videoblog is a threat of some kind.
Weird.
But what this also shows me is that we are really becoming citizens of the Internet.
My Chinese friend (will remain unnamed) identifies himself as:

I'm a geek in China :)
I reached this group through some hyperlinks,
and subscribed to see what's happening and what'll happen to videoblogging!
I'm very interested in videoblogging, as well as podcasting, but as a
college student, issues such as hosting, equipment and bandwidth are all problems to me.
Anyway, I'm watching, and I'll make my own videoblog as soon as it becomes possible :)

See, I probably have more in common with this geek in China than with my next door neighbor.
Geographic location doesnt mean as much these days.
It's our state of minds and personalities.
But yet, we all got to subscribe to our respective physical locations...except when we roam around in here.

In the end, I sent him this link.
"How to Videoblog for Free".
We are going to get him to videoblog.
Anyone want to donate a webcam for a fellow netizen?

And if you want me to see if your videoblog is banned by a government-controlled nation...send me the link and I'll have our friend check.
It's cool to be banned.

How to help someone

So you're new to something.
Like videoblogging.
How do you figure all this stuff out?
You ask. and someone helps you.
Steve Garfield let me post this IM chat he recently had.
(his original post is here.)

      IM Session: How to start a blog
Chip (12:32 PM): i thought you'd be the best person to ask about starting a blog!
Steve Garfield (12:32 PM):  I am
Steve Garfield (12:32 PM):  shoot
Chip (12:33 PM): ok
Chip (12:33 PM): where do i start?
Chip (12:33 PM): is it easy to upload images and video?
Steve Garfield (12:33 PM):  do  you have a hosting service
Chip (12:34 PM): not any more
Steve Garfield (12:34 PM):  ok so there are a few options
Steve Garfield (12:34 PM):  if you want to try out a blog for free you can go to blogger.com
Steve Garfield (12:35 PM):  then you can use a free web app to load images and post them to your blogger blog
Steve Garfield (12:35 PM):  flickr.com is a great way to do that
Chip (12:35 PM): cool
Steve Garfield (12:35 PM):  then when you want to host video, you'll need to decide where, archive.org is a free place for video
Steve Garfield (12:36 PM):  and they are going to be coming out with a new url for video ourmedia.org in the next few months
Steve Garfield (12:36 PM):  so that's the free way of testing the waters
Steve Garfield (12:36 PM):  other things to consider would be typepad.com
Steve Garfield (12:36 PM):  and blogware.com
Steve Garfield (12:36 PM):  those cost money and I use both of them too
Chip (12:37 PM): damn, you're good
Steve Garfield (12:37 PM):  clear and consice
Chip (12:37 PM): you saved me many hours of surfing

Steve was the first person I contacted on the web about videoblogging.
I didnt know anything either.
In March 2004, all i knew how to do was edit video and send emails.
I got a lot of help from a lot of people.
Just like the example above.
But I also had the will to post video and spent that one required night where nothing works...and you learn everything trying to figure it out.

so the next time someone ask you a question, help them.
This is how we all figure this stuff out.
Can you imagine if one day there was more videoblogs than porn?
And I wonder what happend the Chip, the guy who Steve helped?

VIDEO: Cat Power

CLICK

This is a glimpse of my friend AmyJoy.
I made it in response to a videoblog I saw a couple weeks back by this girl Amanda.
Seemed she was making fun of girls with cats.
I notice that a lot...people who don't understand blogs always fall back on "its just girls talking about their cats".
But you see, girls are cool and so are their cats.

Just as an aside.
The more videos I make, the more I understand.
For instance, if I had to do this one over....I want to get closer.
But you know, I shot it, edited it some, threw it up.
Its a process that must be done over and over again.
Dont let anything stop you.
We got all the space in the world.