Videocast

This is my first ever videocast. There were not really any problems with shooting the video. I had a very simple setup with just a camera. I figured it would be unnecessary to have a complex setup because I knew the exporting process would lesser the quality of the footage. While editing this short piece, there were no problems. It was basically simple cuts with some key framing of pictures. When I exported the projected is when I noticed some problems. Originally, I exported the video at medium quality with QuickTime conversion. This took up to much memory so I tried exporting it with lesser quality, and it ended up working a little better. The reason why it works better is because it takes less time to load the video to view it on the blog. The negative part of the lesser quality of the export is the picture. It is not that big of a deal, but it would have been nicer to a clearer image.

Blogs and Candidates

This entry is in response to the numerous 2008 United States presidential candidates using blogs on their websites. The candidate that I took a closer look to see more about her blog was Hillary Clinton. If one would open up her website they would see numerous different links to Hillary Clintons presidential beliefs. Also, the theme of red, white and blue is made apparent to show that she is patriotic.
As one would click the blog link and read the blog on her website they would probably see her as someone just trying to receive money. Honestly, the entries were exactly what I thought they would be. The articles would say what Hillary Clinton has done, and then many of the people’s posts would say they would donate to her campaign because she is the best. For some, this would influence them to donate to her campaign, but for me I somewhat just think of it as layers of campaign propaganda. As a 20-year-old college student it does not connect with me, but it may connect to her older audience. Most people who go to the website are probably supporters and want to donate to her campaign. The blog then works because it seems like the reasoning for having it is to raise money and support for her work. In closing, blogs are a powerful way to gain support for the audience the blog is directed towards.

YouTube

The question is, do I search for copyrighted information on YouTube? The answer is yes, but not normally for specific copyrighted information. For example, I will watch highlight clips of athletes and actors, but I do not try to watch a whole episode of a show or a movie. I don’t think watching these are wrong, but honestly, even watching these can be hard to justify. So the only reason I can say it is right is because I only watch these copyrighted clips for pure entrainment and because there easy to access. People who put these videos on YouTube shouldn’t be able to, but it is YouTube’s fault for allowing them on their website. YouTube is making a ton of money, and if someone went through the legality and time to get something copyrighted, YouTube shouldn’t be able to make profit off something someone else invested in.

One legal act that helps prevent copyrighted material is The Digital Millennium Copyright Act. The Digital Millennium Copyright Act is a good thing because it puts pressure on people to not use copyrighted material on the Web.