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Your Tube
Websites like YouTube, Blip.tv and Revver are increasingly popular. You can log in and view video clips, publish comments on what you've seen, and upload your own videos for everyone to watch - all for free. Whether you have a digital camcorder, a digital still camera with a video function, or even a mobile phone that takes video, all you need to know is how to convert your footage into the right format to upload. In this article we'll show you how easy and quick it can be.
If you think video sharing sites aren't for you, think again. Such a wide variety of people are uploading these days that there really is something for everyone, from computer advice to music tuition, gardening tips to magic tricks. Social organisations from sports teams to the Women's Institute use video sharing to publish footage of their own events to members. Hobbyists can demonstrate their skills; creative types can make and share short films and animations; and anyone can broadcast their opinions on their pet subject.
Like the Internet in general, video sharing isn't restricted to a specific age group. While news reports often focus on dodgy schoolkids uploading footage of playground fights, all generations have quickly taken to making and sharing video clips.In fact, one of YouTube's most popular users is an 80-year-old widower who goes by the name 'geriatric1927'. His musings on life in general, which you can find at www.youtube.com/profile?user=geriatric1927,
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Perhaps one of the most useful roles for sites like YouTube is sharing video with friends and family. Many people carry around camcorders on a daily basis, especially now that video capture is such a common feature on mobiles. So there are an awful lot of devices in our pockets that contain clips of baby's first smile, Johnny's wedding or Grandma's birthday. If you'd like to show these to people who'll appreciate them just as much as you, rather than leaving them hanging around to be accidentally deleted or lost when your phone packs up, YouTube is for you.
Over the following pages we'll take you step by step through all the stages required: transferring video from the most popular sources to your PC, creating a file that YouTube can use to display a high-quality movie, and finally setting up an account and uploading the file you want to share.
First, a word about privacy. At a time when many people are worried about identity theft and the encroachment of CCTV, it might seem foolish to publish video footage of yourself where anyone can see it. However, it's usually possible to set privacy controls to limit who can watch. YouTube, for example, lets you specify up to 25 users who'll be able to see a clip you've uploaded. Enter the details of selected friends and family (who'll need to set up their own YouTube accounts to identify themselves) and they, and only they, will be allowed to view.
Transferring video to your PC
Home video footage is most likely to come from a mobile phone; a digital compact still camera; a digital video camera that records to either flash memory or tape; or analogue video tapes. Creating a digital file from an analogue source (such as a VCR or non-digital camcorder) involves more processes than we have room to describe within this article, although one solution is to invest in a quick conversion box. Here we'll cover the digital options.
