Just wondering if anyone had seen this, and what they thought of it. http://tubularapp.com/blog/16/screencast
It's a MacOX aggregator for youtube, primarily it just provides an alternate viewing experience, but it also converts youtube videos to an ipod friendly format. I must admit I haven't tried it. As a software aggregator Democracy does Youtube and it's pretty hard to beat these days. The first question is how useful is something like this? All it really does is provide an alternate experience, aside from the iPod conversion. Is better experience enough? Is it even better experience or is it just different with no apparent real advantages over viewing videos on youtube.com? Secondly, what does this say about aggregation in a youtube dominated world. It includes no support as far as I can see for video podcasts. What is the value in being an independant video podcast, do we even matter? I've been wondering for a long time about the two diametrically opposed forces in the vlogging world. Apple iTunes vs. Youtube. It appears never the two shale meet. Who's going to be the winner, is it a winner take all proposition? Is video podcasting picking up steam or is it being sidelined? What will happen as portable media players, set top boxes, cell phones, PDA's, and other hardware NOT the desktop computer start to support syndicated video? Can youtube go to these devices when it's dependant on Flash and dependant on being online, or will it's value be erroded as portability starts to increase in importance in the viewing experience? Are we going to more exclusive youtube deals with hardware makers? How will this help or hurt innovation, and the free market for media? Sorry, got to ask the tough questions. Thirdly, is this third party software, the beginning of the end for youtube or just a shot in the dark? If more and more applications building out alternative interfaces to youtube will it undermine their business plan or support it? Will youtube just cut them off at the knees and if they do, will it alienate users increasingly used to getting what they want the way they want it. Fourth, would you use it? p.s. I've seen like apps for aggregating photos purely from FLickr.com. An app called sniper. Web app interfaces for popular webservices is not a new thing. Honestly, I've never known them to last unless they depend on open standards. Frankly... to me it seems such apps while a whole lot of fun are a dead end. Because the webservice, in this case youtube, arbitrarily decides wether they live or die. For Apple has a habit of canibalizing the best pieces of mac software and incorporating it into the system. I suspect youtube would do the same if not kill such innovations outright, so as to keep people's expectations from changing... ie. from asking original questions. To me this is the tru danger of such monocultures. People's expectations stop evolving, change slows and even stops. Because independant developmental innovation cannot happen on such a platform when it does happen, such as say, Democracy, it's so on the sidelines noone sees it. In a manner, what I'm saying is... How stuck are we? Has our ability to continue to innovate and affect change in the video blogging world forever been sidelined. Is videoblogging now endoctrinated and affixed? If so is video podcasting doomed to stagnation untill the next big thing comes along and replaces it? -Mike mefeedia.com mmeiser.com/blog [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
