The Royal Wedding: A Preview and A Practice Run...

This is very funny from T-Mobile. T-Mobile have obviously gone to some trouble to track down some real good look-a-likes.

I wonder if Prince William and Kate (aka soon-to-be Princess Catherine) Middleton have watched it and had a little chuckle. Come to think of it, they are probably pretty busy.

Keenan Cahill and 50 Cent -- A Duet...

YouTube is an awesome tool in terms of taking regular people from obscurity into the halls of world-wide fame.

Keenan Cahill is an example of this phenomenon. Keenan has developed a cult following by posting videos of himself lip-syncing. What is really cool is that he has developed his own fame with a webcam and an iPod. The technology is really simple. What is not so simple is having the drive to continue to do it and put yourself out there into cyberspace.

All Cahill's hard work, or is it a hobby, has paid off. His latest effort is a duet with 50 Cent. The song is 50 Cent's "Down On Me".

Enjoy.



I reckon Cahill's effort with Katy Perry's "Teenage Dream" is a little better on the lip-syncing front, but hey, 30 million hits on your YouTube account later, who cares?

The Physics of Penalty Kicks...

It is better to be safe than sorry, right?

I used to play soccer when I was a kid, but pretty much stopped when they started calling it football. I have taken a few penalty kicks in my time. I have not seen one like this before.

Enjoy!

Tifatul Sembiring -- The Minister for Hypocrisy & Stupidity...

The litany of stupidity that continues to encircle the Minister for [Mis]Communication and [Lack of] Information is sort of like slowing down to watch a car crash. However, when it comes to Tifatul Sembiring (aka TitS) it is all self-imposed. The man is a hypocrite who has used religion, Islam, to create an image of piety for himself.

Yet, the latest series of events shows the man to be a fraud who is prepared to go to any lengths to cultivate an image. For a man who is supposed to have his finger on the pulse of communication and information, and particularly the technology that supports that, he has been found wanting yet again.

The "event" in question is the shaking of Michelle Obama's hand. The First Lady and the President were going through the formalities of meeting dignitaries, including Indonesian Ministers. Now, in and of itself, there is nothing wrong with men shaking hands with women. However, TitS has cultivated an image that being a pious Muslim he will not under any circumstances touch a woman to whom he is not related to. And, this is where the fun and games begin.

During the formal "meet and greet" TitS shakes hands with Michelle Obama. By my reckoning, the man would have to go a long way back in his family tree to find a familial relationship with the Obamas. Maybe all the way back to Adam and Eve. The handshake immediately piqued the attention of plenty of people who know TitS and his medieval stance on women and their relationship with men. It was hypocrisy of the highest order. It is hypocrisy that must go to the very core of his being as it exposes that his piety was a fraud perpetrated against all those who believed in what he was saying as a member of the PKS (Partai Keadilan Sejahtera).

On realising that the technology that he has been trying to shut down to all intents and purposes had caught him out, he took to social networking, Twitter in particular, to state his innocence. His innocence claim is that he was forced to shake hands with the First Lady. According to TitS, the First Lady thrust her hand out at him and kept on thrusting it towards him. This left the poor man with no option but to lightly touch her hand.

Now, have a look at the video. Too bad it has not gone viral, it should. There is no hesitation on the part of the Minister and this was not some ever-so brief touch of hands. It was a handshake.

I wonder if the Minister immediately scarpered out of the room, washed his hand with acid to get the germs of the imperialist woman of the west from him, and then proceeded to the nearest Mosque to ask for forgiveness of his God for touching a woman he is not related to. The flip side of that coin is that he immediately scarpered, flogged himself stupid and then called his mates to tell them that he had bedded the First Lady.

TitS as the Minister for Banning Porn, even you should know the difference between a good story and a wank!

Meg Whitman, Press Secretaries, Twitter, and an Oops Moment...

I am not sure what the YouTube video below has to do with an endorsement from the San Diego County Deputy Sheriffs' Association other than the fact that Meg Whitman's Press Secretary inadvertently left out a letter at the end of the bit.ly link and instead of getting the endorsement they received the video.

Another one of the dangers of the over-zealous use of technology, perhaps?

Ho hum...



and the actual link that was supposed to be part of the Tweet.

Don't know about you, but the "other" endorsement might work as well.

Thanks to buzzfeed for the links.

All Blacks Rugby...

If anyone wants to see why the All Blacks are the No. 1 rugby team in the word at the moment then you need look no further than this video.

There are a few questions as to whether this is real or whether it is just some well-crafted viral video marketing strategy leading into the Rugby World Cup. Me says, who cares! The tricks real or not are still amazing to watch.

Japanese Precision...

It would be generally the consensus that the Japanese have a knack of making precision instruments and electronics, but this display of synchronised walking must take the cake. The part where two groups of walkers walk through each other in a forward motion then stop and do it in reverse is simply amazing. The only time I have seen anything remotely like this is some precision car driving stunts at the Easter Show last year in Sydney.

This was amazing. If the video is not going viral, then it should be!

Some Classic Chaser -- Australian Federal Election 2010...

As I was wondering round the seemingly infinite realms of the internet universe I came across some videos relating to the recent Australian Federal Election. They are the products of the very funny Chaser Team that have been responsible for the very funny "The Chaser's War on Everything" on the ABC.

The first one is a dig at Julia Gillard. The current Prime Minister of Australia (at least until the independents do their thing).



The second one is a little more risque in terms of the language, but very funny all the same!

Best Illusion Ever?

This was sent to me under the heading "Best Illusion Ever". I am not sure it is the best illusion ever, but it is very, very, very good.

It seemingly comes from America's Got Talent. The illusionist is a man named Kevin James. There is a stack of stuff on YouTube with him in it. I have not really bothered to investigate whether he was a competitor on AGT or whether he was the guest act or something.

If this video has not gone viral yet, then it probably should. If it has, then my apologies. I am only getting it now.

Enjoy!

The Longest Basketball Shot Ever Made?

This is really very cool.

Apparently, these youngsters were at it for more than 1.5 hours until they finally nailed it. If you would like to see these blokes in action check them out on You Tube. These fellas call themselves the Legendary Shots and are based in Alabama, and this particular video is of them at the Vulcan Monument in Birmingham.

Nevertheless, these fellas have some competition for the claim to the longest shot. Check this one out.



The second one is from Texas A & M university.

Enjoy!

Moonwalking in Wal-Mart...

The video is a mere 9 seconds long and is over before you know it. You will have to, and want to, replay it a number of times.

Very cool! I wish some one had moonwalked in front of me in Woolworths earlier this evening, it would have put a smile on my dial for sure. Feel free to share it round.

Viral Videos -- Marketing Tools of the Future...

Here are two prime examples of what might be possible. Both of these videos relate to Jill and Keith. The first is their marriage and has had some 17 million hits on YouTube. The second is their divorce and it has already had some 1 million hits, also on YouTube.

The wedding first...



Now the divorce...



The idea of marketing using a viral video, providing you could get the format right and make a video that would indeed go viral, then this would be a good way of getting your product out. Viral videos could be used for all manner of things other than just selling something. For example, a viral video could be used as part of a funding campaign for, say, Amnesty International. Or it could be used to promote awareness of a particular disease like breast cancer.

The possibilities are endless. But, these two videos have been fun to watch.

Making Money From Your Blog

I post a lot to my own blog and I tend to blogwalk and post on other blogs as a means of attracting some traffic to my humble little abode. I have often wondered what it takes to make serious money from blogging and having done a little research now I know.

Now that I know it is a little sad really because I am so far from making a really decent living from blogging that I do not see myself quitting my current job any time soon to take up full-time blogging.

Technorati released its 2008 State of the Blogosphere report last week and it states that there are some 900,000 blog posts made each day worldwide. I know where 3 -5 of those blog posts come from. But here's the catch. To be making a really decent living off of full-time blogging you need to be generating some 100,000 or more unique visitors per month. This will earn you on average USD 75,000 per year. This means that full-time blogging is not such a bad gig if you can make it work for you.

The biggest problem for me as I see it is the 100,000 unique visitors per month. I have about 3,000 unique visitors per month. So, I am guessing this means I need to find another 97,000 or so to be making it worthwhile.

It would be nice to have a blog that is as popular as the blog of Perez Hilton who is reportedly seeing more than USD110,000 roll into the coffers each month! I hope he appreciates my visits! I reckon I would start working part-time if my blog was able to provide about AUD 5,000 per month. I wonder how the tax works? I am going to have to do a little research on that part of the deal.

I guess if I want to boost my readership I need to start or get involved in some "flame wars" or post some viral videos, or start getting really into Facebook, Friendster, and other social networking devices. I know the social networking thing is likely to work because I am getting a few requests to become people's friend on Facebook. I only started the Facebook account because I needed to get info about my upcoming 21st Hurlstone Agricultural High School Reunion.

Once you become a full-time blogger and your income is dependent on your blog, I would imagine this ups the ante and the pressure to produce more and more quality blog posts to keep the unique visitors rolling in and to keep me rolling in the cash.

Some thoughts to ponder.