Welcome back to Music Tuesday, the blog post in which we talk about what we’re featuring on YouTube’s music page -- and why. This week it’s all about hip-hop (almost) -- dig in!
Can Women Rap?
Well, the answer is obvious: yes. But female emcees have always been few and far between in the rap game -- it often seemed like only one woman could hold the spotlight at a time, whether it was Lauryn Hill, Lil Kim or Missy Elliot. And while lesser-known emcees like Bahamadia and Rah Digga were continually garnering praise, none cracked the glass ceiling and got radio time. But in the wake of Nicky Minaj -- who proved she could seriously spit rhymes before embracing pop music -- female emcees have been making inroads this year. It looks like finally there might be rooms for more than one at the top. Ladies and gentlemen: we bring you the contenders.
Beatboxing. In Japan.
Meanwhile, across the (other) pond...we’ve lately been entranced by how hip-hop has been transformed in the hands -- and mouths -- of Japanese beatboxers. Judging by the talent they’re fielding, it seems like if beatboxing was an Olympic sport, Japan would win, hands down.
Kishi Bashi
Kishi Bashi (aka K Ishibashi) is a violinist who’s backed the likes of Regina Spektor and of Montreal in concert. But the man has a side gig taking that ancient instrument of his and running it through a bunch of pedals to create something distinctly modern. In this digital age, there’s nothing new about artists creating songs on the spot in front of you, but when this guy does it, it can stop your breath.
Sarah Bardeen, music community manager, recently watched “Pond - You Broke My Cool.”
Tuesday, July 31, 2012
Sparking a better conversation with Wildfire
Businesses around the world—from neighborhood restaurants to major retailers—are embracing social media to share information and forge stronger relationships with their fans and customers. We know because we are one of those businesses—on Google+, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, YouTube and LinkedIn.
Indeed, a social presence can complement all marketing campaigns—search, display, video, mobile, offline ads and more.
With this in mind, today we’re happy to share that the Wildfire team will be joining Google. Their co-founders, Victoria Ransom and Alain Chuard, launched their startup just four years ago. Since then, they and their team have built a service that helps businesses like Virgin, Cirque du Soleil, Gilt Group and Spotify manage their social efforts across numerous social websites. It’s a platform for brands to manage their pages, apps, tweets, videos, sponsorships, ads, promotions and more, all in one place.
The ultimate goal is better and fresher content, and more meaningful interactions. People today can make their voices heard in ways that were previously impossible, and Wildfire helps businesses uphold their end of the conversation (or spark a new one).
In a complex and changing landscape, businesses want to manage and measure these efforts in an integrated way. We’ve been working towards this end for some time. For example, Google Analytics helps businesses measure the contribution of hundreds of social sites; our Admeld service has helped to serve ads in Facebook developers’ social apps; and our DoubleClick platform enables clients to run and measure ads across social websites. On Google+, brands use services like Vitrue, Buddy Media and others to manage their pages, with many more to come.
With Wildfire, we’re looking forward to creating new opportunities for our clients to engage with people across all social services. We believe that better content and more seamless solutions will help unlock the full potential of the web for people and businesses.
Update August 15, 2012: Our acquisition of Wildfire has now closed.
Indeed, a social presence can complement all marketing campaigns—search, display, video, mobile, offline ads and more.
With this in mind, today we’re happy to share that the Wildfire team will be joining Google. Their co-founders, Victoria Ransom and Alain Chuard, launched their startup just four years ago. Since then, they and their team have built a service that helps businesses like Virgin, Cirque du Soleil, Gilt Group and Spotify manage their social efforts across numerous social websites. It’s a platform for brands to manage their pages, apps, tweets, videos, sponsorships, ads, promotions and more, all in one place.
The ultimate goal is better and fresher content, and more meaningful interactions. People today can make their voices heard in ways that were previously impossible, and Wildfire helps businesses uphold their end of the conversation (or spark a new one).
In a complex and changing landscape, businesses want to manage and measure these efforts in an integrated way. We’ve been working towards this end for some time. For example, Google Analytics helps businesses measure the contribution of hundreds of social sites; our Admeld service has helped to serve ads in Facebook developers’ social apps; and our DoubleClick platform enables clients to run and measure ads across social websites. On Google+, brands use services like Vitrue, Buddy Media and others to manage their pages, with many more to come.
With Wildfire, we’re looking forward to creating new opportunities for our clients to engage with people across all social services. We believe that better content and more seamless solutions will help unlock the full potential of the web for people and businesses.
Update August 15, 2012: Our acquisition of Wildfire has now closed.
Monday, July 30, 2012
Mikeyssmail is July’s YouTube Partner On The Rise!
Please join us in congratulating Michael Sellick from The Crochet Crowd! Michael is YouTube’s featured “On The Rise” partner for July due to a combination of your votes and optimization of his channel, Mikeyssmail. He is featured today in the “Spotlight” section on the YouTube homepage.
Michael’s start on YouTube was a bit of a fluke. Feeling bored one day in April 2008, he started posting videos of him teaching crochet, which he learned from his mother when he was 14. HIs channel has since turned into a resource hub for people all over the world interested in learning or developing their crochet skills. Whether you’re a seasoned crochet pro or want to learn how to pick up a hook, Michael’s videos can teach you how to crochet a crocodile stitch, small flower, ripple afghan, and more. Congratulations again to Michael and The Crochet Crowd!
Here are a few words direct from Michael:
Christine Wang and Devon Storbeck, YouTube Content Partnerships, recently watched “That Gotye Song.”
Michael’s start on YouTube was a bit of a fluke. Feeling bored one day in April 2008, he started posting videos of him teaching crochet, which he learned from his mother when he was 14. HIs channel has since turned into a resource hub for people all over the world interested in learning or developing their crochet skills. Whether you’re a seasoned crochet pro or want to learn how to pick up a hook, Michael’s videos can teach you how to crochet a crocodile stitch, small flower, ripple afghan, and more. Congratulations again to Michael and The Crochet Crowd!
Here are a few words direct from Michael:
Get ready, set & hook! That's what we strive for here at The Crochet Crowd®. Our mission is to provide free education so that the fibre arts isn't one day a skill that we all remember but have lost the ability to actually do it. Many of us turn to crochet and knitting as a way to cope with our personal situations, find time to relax and to express our creativity. No matter what your skill level is, there's always room for more in our 'Crowd'. In 2009, we changed the focus of our channel to be community oriented instead of just revolving around myself, Michael Sellick. This switch in focus opened up a gateway of cross connection between individuals, companies and remarkably removed global borders to help and encourage each other with our skills. I am very proud of The Crochet Crowd® Members and love watching them expand their skills through picture postings and comments on our Facebook Fan Page. As my viewers grow and learn, so do I. Thank you to the voters and members of 'The Crowd' for using my videos as your educational resource. Our community is forever evolving and extremely active, if you don't believe me, come to TheCrochetCrowd.com to start your fibre arts journey. Thank you everyone, Happy Hook'n.If you’ve enjoyed this monthly On The Rise blog series and want to see more rising YouTube partners, check out our On The Rise Channel. Keep an eye out for next month’s blog post, as your channel may be the next one On The Rise!
Christine Wang and Devon Storbeck, YouTube Content Partnerships, recently watched “That Gotye Song.”
Saturday, July 28, 2012
How November Will Be Won: By the Numbers
Did you know that 1/3 of people who see a campaign ad on YouTube have not seen it on TV? We recently shared this on our Politics & Elections Blog. You can read an example of the types of things we talk about on that blog below. For more information about marketing a campaign on YouTube visit our YouTube for politicians website.
Earlier this year, we introduced “Four Screens to Victory”, a framework for political campaigns that outlined how Google can help make the web work for candidates and issues groups up and down the ballot. With these digital platforms, campaigns can build their organizations, define the issues, persuade the electorate and - importantly - get the vote out and win the moment that matters in November on Election Day.
Access to political information no longer comes from one place - or one screen. In just the four years since the last presidential election, the continued growth of the web and the proliferation of mobile devices has radically transformed when, where, and how voters access political information.
The numbers are in, and savvy political campaigns need to take notice. The rules of reaching voters have changed and new approaches are warranted because:
If you’re as inspired as we are by some of the data and the implications on your own political campaign, check out the “Four Screens to Victory” site to spark some ideas of your own and see how you can make the web work for your campaign.
Earlier this year, we introduced “Four Screens to Victory”, a framework for political campaigns that outlined how Google can help make the web work for candidates and issues groups up and down the ballot. With these digital platforms, campaigns can build their organizations, define the issues, persuade the electorate and - importantly - get the vote out and win the moment that matters in November on Election Day.
Access to political information no longer comes from one place - or one screen. In just the four years since the last presidential election, the continued growth of the web and the proliferation of mobile devices has radically transformed when, where, and how voters access political information.
The numbers are in, and savvy political campaigns need to take notice. The rules of reaching voters have changed and new approaches are warranted because:
- More than 80% of eligible voters are online
- Similarly, 83% of mobile phone owners are registered voters
- 1 out of every 3 likely voters in November say that they didn’t watch tv in the past week
- Voters are spending more media time on their mobile devices than newspapers & magazines combined
(Click the infographic below to get a larger version)
Friday, July 27, 2012
Bringing the Global Games to a New Global Stadium -- YouTube
In 2008, we began showing clips of the Beijing Games. In 2010, we provided archival content of past Winter Games. This year, we’re taking it one step further by bringing the world’s largest sporting event to the world’s biggest stage and we’re doing it live.
New Places
For the first time in history, the Summer Games will be live-streamed in HD through YouTube:
Just bringing you the Games isn’t enough. We want to immerse you in the action by offering full coverage of the US Team’s experience, including interviews with athletes, tips from coaches and an insider’s look of the success stories from the Games. US viewers can watch all of the behind the scenes footage on youtube.com/TeamUSA.
And you don't need to cross the pond to connect with Team USA. Get to know six breakout athletes on Team Chobani. You can even support Team Visa athletes around the world by viewing, liking and cheering for them on Visa’s YouTube channel. Check out their athlete training videos here.
Additionally, there will be more than 50 YouTube partners on the ground in London creating content around the Games that fans never get to see. Creators Invade London 2012 starts here! If it were up to us, Dude Perfect would win the gold for trick basketball shots!
New Features
Catch all the excitement of the Games from the completely redesigned live streaming player with tons of new features:
Let the games begin!
Tommy O’Hare, sports content partnerships manager, recently watched “Olympics Trick Shots - DudePerfect”
New Places
For the first time in history, the Summer Games will be live-streamed in HD through YouTube:
- United States: YouTube will power NBC’s online video experience on NBCOlympics.com and viewers can watch any event live. You can also access pre-game clips on the NBC Olympics YouTube channel.
- 64 Territories: Millions of Olympic fans from across 64 territories in Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa will have a chance to watch the games live from London on the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) YouTube Channel at www.youtube.com/olympic.
- Canada: Canadians can check out in-depth coverage of the Games including, highlights, analysis, athlete bios, and more at youtube.com/CTVolympics
- Brazil: In partnership with ESPN Brasil, Brazilians can tune in for behind the scenes content on youtube.com/londres360, while watching Olympic footage on www.youtube.com/olympic.
Just bringing you the Games isn’t enough. We want to immerse you in the action by offering full coverage of the US Team’s experience, including interviews with athletes, tips from coaches and an insider’s look of the success stories from the Games. US viewers can watch all of the behind the scenes footage on youtube.com/TeamUSA.
And you don't need to cross the pond to connect with Team USA. Get to know six breakout athletes on Team Chobani. You can even support Team Visa athletes around the world by viewing, liking and cheering for them on Visa’s YouTube channel. Check out their athlete training videos here.
Additionally, there will be more than 50 YouTube partners on the ground in London creating content around the Games that fans never get to see. Creators Invade London 2012 starts here! If it were up to us, Dude Perfect would win the gold for trick basketball shots!
New Features
Catch all the excitement of the Games from the completely redesigned live streaming player with tons of new features:
- See all the live stream at any time: From the IOC YouTube channel, live recording lets you see any part of the event you missed. For United States viewers, NBC’s YouTube channel also offers chapter markers to let you jump to key moments, and an instant replay button that shows the last 10 seconds again.
- More video and audio to choose from: Select from multiple camera angles within a livestream, as well as English or Spanish audio on NBC’s live stream.
- Watch how you want: See all these features and more on your desktop, mobile phone or tablet, with a livestream that adapts to your connection speed to show the best experience possible.
- Keep track of your favorite games: Get reminders of your favorite games with the NBC Olympics Scheduler app on the Chrome web store.
Let the games begin!
Tommy O’Hare, sports content partnerships manager, recently watched “Olympics Trick Shots - DudePerfect”
Thursday, July 26, 2012
Make your mark on Google with Handwrite for Mobile and Tablet Search
Unlike searching on a desktop or laptop computer, when you're searching on a touch-screen mobile device it’s often inconvenient to type. So we strive to give you a variety of ways to interact with Google, be it by speaking your queries, getting results before you finish typing, or searching by image. Now there’s a new way for you to interact with Google: Handwrite for web search on mobile phones and tablets.
Say you’re standing on a busy street corner, in a bumpy taxi ride, talking with a friend, or sitting on the couch with your tablet. Handwrite enables you to search by just writing letters with your finger most anywhere on your device’s screen—there’s no keyboard that covers half of the screen and no need for hunt-and-peck typing.
Getting started is easy: go to Google.com in your mobile browser, tap on “Settings” at the bottom of the screen and enable “Handwrite.” Note that after you've saved the setting, you may need to refresh the homepage to see the feature.
On tablets, the Search settings are available as an option behind the gear icon.
Once the feature is enabled, tap the Handwrite icon on the bottom right corner of your screen to activate the writing surface. Write a few letters and you’ll see autocomplete options appear below the search box. If one of the options is what you’re looking for, just tap it to search. For longer queries, you can continue writing and use the arrows next to the autocompletions to move the right one into the search box. Since you can write anywhere, you don’t have to look back and forth repeatedly from the keyboard to the search box.
For more tips and tricks on how to use Handwrite, see our Help Center article. To make accessing Google.com faster, be sure to bookmark it and add it to your home screen.
We designed Handwrite to complement rather than replace typing: with the feature enabled, you can still use the keyboard at any time by tapping on the search box. Handwrite is experimental, and works better in some browsers than others—on Android devices, it works best in Chrome. For now, we’ve enabled Handwrite for iOS5+ devices, Android 2.3+ phones and Android 4.0+ tablets—in 27 languages.
Have fun with this new way of searching!
(Cross-posted on the Inside Search Blog)
Say you’re standing on a busy street corner, in a bumpy taxi ride, talking with a friend, or sitting on the couch with your tablet. Handwrite enables you to search by just writing letters with your finger most anywhere on your device’s screen—there’s no keyboard that covers half of the screen and no need for hunt-and-peck typing.
Getting started is easy: go to Google.com in your mobile browser, tap on “Settings” at the bottom of the screen and enable “Handwrite.” Note that after you've saved the setting, you may need to refresh the homepage to see the feature.
On tablets, the Search settings are available as an option behind the gear icon.
Once the feature is enabled, tap the Handwrite icon on the bottom right corner of your screen to activate the writing surface. Write a few letters and you’ll see autocomplete options appear below the search box. If one of the options is what you’re looking for, just tap it to search. For longer queries, you can continue writing and use the arrows next to the autocompletions to move the right one into the search box. Since you can write anywhere, you don’t have to look back and forth repeatedly from the keyboard to the search box.
For more tips and tricks on how to use Handwrite, see our Help Center article. To make accessing Google.com faster, be sure to bookmark it and add it to your home screen.
We designed Handwrite to complement rather than replace typing: with the feature enabled, you can still use the keyboard at any time by tapping on the search box. Handwrite is experimental, and works better in some browsers than others—on Android devices, it works best in Chrome. For now, we’ve enabled Handwrite for iOS5+ devices, Android 2.3+ phones and Android 4.0+ tablets—in 27 languages.
Have fun with this new way of searching!
(Cross-posted on the Inside Search Blog)
Super fast fiber for Kansas City
Our goal is to build products that will help improve our users’ lives. And when it comes to Internet access, it's clear what provides a better user experience:
When we asked people what they value in their Internet service, the majority of them simply said, “choice.” So we listened. Kansas Citians will choose where we install and when. We’ve divided Kansas City into small communities we call “fiberhoods.” To get service, each fiberhood needs a critical mass of their residents to pre-register. The fiberhoods with the highest pre-registration percentage will get Google Fiber first. Households in Kansas City can pre-register for the next six weeks, and they can rally their neighbors to pre-register, too. Once the pre-registration period is over, residents of the qualified fiberhoods will be able to choose between three different packages (including TV).
It’s easy to forget how revolutionary high-speed Internet access was in the 1990s. Not only did broadband kill the screeching sound of dial-up, it also spurred innovation, helping to create amazing new services as well as new job opportunities for many thousands of Americans. But today the Internet is not as fast as it should be. While high speed technology exists, the average Internet speed in the U.S. is still only 5.8 megabits per second (Mbps)—slightly faster than the maximum speed available 16 years ago when residential broadband was first introduced. Access speeds have simply not kept pace with the phenomenal increases in computing power and storage capacity that’s spurred innovation over the last decade, and that’s a challenge we’re excited to work on.
To find out more about the different service packages and the pre-registration process see our Google Fiber Blog, which we’ll regularly update with new information over the coming weeks. This is an exciting new project for Google and we can’t wait to get homes connected to Google Fiber in Kansas City—because we’re pretty certain that what people do with a gig will be awesome.
(Cross-posted from the Google Fiber Blog)
- Fast is better than slow. On the web, nobody wants to wait for a video to buffer or a website to load.
- Abundance is better than scarcity. There’s a plethora of rich content available online—and it’s increasingly only available to people who have the speeds and means to access it.
- Choice is better than no choice. Competition and choice help make products better for users.
When we asked people what they value in their Internet service, the majority of them simply said, “choice.” So we listened. Kansas Citians will choose where we install and when. We’ve divided Kansas City into small communities we call “fiberhoods.” To get service, each fiberhood needs a critical mass of their residents to pre-register. The fiberhoods with the highest pre-registration percentage will get Google Fiber first. Households in Kansas City can pre-register for the next six weeks, and they can rally their neighbors to pre-register, too. Once the pre-registration period is over, residents of the qualified fiberhoods will be able to choose between three different packages (including TV).
It’s easy to forget how revolutionary high-speed Internet access was in the 1990s. Not only did broadband kill the screeching sound of dial-up, it also spurred innovation, helping to create amazing new services as well as new job opportunities for many thousands of Americans. But today the Internet is not as fast as it should be. While high speed technology exists, the average Internet speed in the U.S. is still only 5.8 megabits per second (Mbps)—slightly faster than the maximum speed available 16 years ago when residential broadband was first introduced. Access speeds have simply not kept pace with the phenomenal increases in computing power and storage capacity that’s spurred innovation over the last decade, and that’s a challenge we’re excited to work on.
To find out more about the different service packages and the pre-registration process see our Google Fiber Blog, which we’ll regularly update with new information over the coming weeks. This is an exciting new project for Google and we can’t wait to get homes connected to Google Fiber in Kansas City—because we’re pretty certain that what people do with a gig will be awesome.
(Cross-posted from the Google Fiber Blog)
Build an audience with how-to videos
Occasionally, we like to share stories of how businesses have achieved success on YouTube. Today we will look at examples of using how-to videos to reach the right customers online.
How to knit a dishcloth.
How to build a deck.
How to pack for the beach.
These are just a few how-to focused searches being typed into YouTube by ambitious do-it-yourselfers this summer. Many savvy business have realized that YouTube is not just an entertainment hub - it is also an educational forum for eager learners. Here are a few tips from the pros on creating how-to content most relevant to your audience:
1. Keep things simple. Let’s take a look at Lowe's. The second-largest home improvement retailer worldwide simplifies DIY projects with hundreds of how-to YouTube videos in the form of “video snacks.” These short and sweet informational videos satisfy DIY-ers’ cravings to complete at-home projects by homing in on specific steps of the process. So if you are building a fence, you can start with a video about the layout and digging post holes and follow the series to the final step, attaching the gate.
2. Identify your audience. Know who you’re trying to reach and then focus on topics you think they’re most interested in watching. ModCloth, an online-only indie and vintage-inspired clothing retailer, has a clear understanding of the “ModCloth girl” — a girl who is into travel, art, glitter, and DIY projects of course. They create how-to videos tailored to the ModCloth girl lifestyle, whether it’s how to style a headband or how to pack for the campground.
What can you teach new potential customers? Join our conversation on the YouTube for marketers Google+ page, and if you’re looking to get started with video advertising on YouTube, sign up for Google AdWords for video, which is the easiest way to drive viewers to your videos.
Baljeet Singh, group product manager on video monetization at Google, recently watched Teach Me How To Factor (WSHS Math Rap Song)
How to knit a dishcloth.
How to build a deck.
How to pack for the beach.
These are just a few how-to focused searches being typed into YouTube by ambitious do-it-yourselfers this summer. Many savvy business have realized that YouTube is not just an entertainment hub - it is also an educational forum for eager learners. Here are a few tips from the pros on creating how-to content most relevant to your audience:
1. Keep things simple. Let’s take a look at Lowe's. The second-largest home improvement retailer worldwide simplifies DIY projects with hundreds of how-to YouTube videos in the form of “video snacks.” These short and sweet informational videos satisfy DIY-ers’ cravings to complete at-home projects by homing in on specific steps of the process. So if you are building a fence, you can start with a video about the layout and digging post holes and follow the series to the final step, attaching the gate.
2. Identify your audience. Know who you’re trying to reach and then focus on topics you think they’re most interested in watching. ModCloth, an online-only indie and vintage-inspired clothing retailer, has a clear understanding of the “ModCloth girl” — a girl who is into travel, art, glitter, and DIY projects of course. They create how-to videos tailored to the ModCloth girl lifestyle, whether it’s how to style a headband or how to pack for the campground.
What can you teach new potential customers? Join our conversation on the YouTube for marketers Google+ page, and if you’re looking to get started with video advertising on YouTube, sign up for Google AdWords for video, which is the easiest way to drive viewers to your videos.
Baljeet Singh, group product manager on video monetization at Google, recently watched Teach Me How To Factor (WSHS Math Rap Song)
Wednesday, July 25, 2012
Here’s your invite to reuse and remix the 4 million Creative Commons-licensed videos on YouTube
Today’s guest post comes from Cathy Casserly, CEO of Creative Commons (CC), for an update on CC BY videos on YouTube.
Four million creative commons videos on YouTube are just waiting to be reused, remixed, and reimagined—more videos than anywhere else in the world.
Since the Creative Commons video library launch on YouTube a year ago, you’ve added more than 40 years’ worth of video to the mix. Anyone, anywhere can edit, build on and republish the library’s videos for free thanks to the Creative Commons Attribution license, otherwise known as CC BY.
Do you need a professional opening for your San Francisco vacation video? Perhaps some gorgeous footage of the moon for your science project? How about a squirrel eating a walnut to accompany your hot new dubstep track? All of this and more is available to inspire and add to your unique creation. Thanks to CC BY, it’s easy to borrow footage from other people’s videos and insert it into your own, because the license grants you the specific permissions to do so as long as you give credit to the original creator.
You can pass on the creative spirit when you publish your video, by choosing the option to license it under CC BY so that others can reuse and remix your footage with the YouTube Video Editor. This is where the fun really starts. Imagine seeing your footage used by a student in Mumbai, a filmmaker in Mexico City, or a music video director in Detroit. By letting other people play with your videos, you let them into a global sandbox, kicking off a worldwide team of collaborators. We all yearn to create and contribute – now you can join the fun, and open the door to collective imagination.
Ready to start adding the CC BY license to your original YouTube videos? If you want to grant the YouTube community the right to reuse and edit your video, select “Creative Commons Attribution license” from the “License and rights ownership” menu. Starting today, you also have the option to license your future videos under CC BY as a default. For more information, visit YouTube’s Creative Commons page.
Guest to the YouTube blog, Cathy Casserly, CEO of Creative Commons recently watched "Riding the Booster with enhanced sound."
Four million creative commons videos on YouTube are just waiting to be reused, remixed, and reimagined—more videos than anywhere else in the world.
Since the Creative Commons video library launch on YouTube a year ago, you’ve added more than 40 years’ worth of video to the mix. Anyone, anywhere can edit, build on and republish the library’s videos for free thanks to the Creative Commons Attribution license, otherwise known as CC BY.
Do you need a professional opening for your San Francisco vacation video? Perhaps some gorgeous footage of the moon for your science project? How about a squirrel eating a walnut to accompany your hot new dubstep track? All of this and more is available to inspire and add to your unique creation. Thanks to CC BY, it’s easy to borrow footage from other people’s videos and insert it into your own, because the license grants you the specific permissions to do so as long as you give credit to the original creator.
You can pass on the creative spirit when you publish your video, by choosing the option to license it under CC BY so that others can reuse and remix your footage with the YouTube Video Editor. This is where the fun really starts. Imagine seeing your footage used by a student in Mumbai, a filmmaker in Mexico City, or a music video director in Detroit. By letting other people play with your videos, you let them into a global sandbox, kicking off a worldwide team of collaborators. We all yearn to create and contribute – now you can join the fun, and open the door to collective imagination.
Ready to start adding the CC BY license to your original YouTube videos? If you want to grant the YouTube community the right to reuse and edit your video, select “Creative Commons Attribution license” from the “License and rights ownership” menu. Starting today, you also have the option to license your future videos under CC BY as a default. For more information, visit YouTube’s Creative Commons page.
Guest to the YouTube blog, Cathy Casserly, CEO of Creative Commons recently watched "Riding the Booster with enhanced sound."
Tuesday, July 24, 2012
Music Tuesday: The rise of the video LP, Motley Crue and more
We had an excellent in-office concert from Matisyahu last week -- possibly the first time anyone has crowd-surfed in the YouTube offices. (Nice one, Matis!) This week, we’re taking a deeper look at innovative ways musicians are using YouTube to get their music out there. Dig in!
The Rise of the Video LP
PJ Harvey did it for Let England Shake. R.E.M. did it for their final album. Even Radiohead did it for the King of Limbs remixes. Musicians are increasingly using YouTube as a way to share their entire albums with fans. Some are releasing a simple, long album video on or before the physical release date -- check out SubPop’s channel to see a slew of these. Others are working intensively with directors to create “video LPs” -- individual videos for every song on an album, released all at once or in quick succession. It’s an inspiring art form and we’re keeping our eye on it. Today we’re pleased to share Micachu and the Shape’s entire new album Never, featuring an album’s worth of videos made by the band.
Music Documentaries
YouTube is a great place to view music videos, but it’s quickly becoming a place to dive more deeply into musical movements and individual artists. As more videographers make made-for-web documentaries, fans are finding ways to dive deeper into. Case in point: Google Play’s extraordinary eight-part documentary on Motley Crue. Today we feature that piece of work along with other in-depth works that have recently inspired us.
Video Premiere: Andrew Bird
Can kids forgo candy in order to save the life of an animated pinata? This video has a sense of impending doom, until you see that people can let go of their self-interest for the greater good. Pretty hopeful message you snuck in there, Andrew Bird.
Sarah Bardeen, music community manager, recently watched “Cold Specks - Hector.”
The Rise of the Video LP
PJ Harvey did it for Let England Shake. R.E.M. did it for their final album. Even Radiohead did it for the King of Limbs remixes. Musicians are increasingly using YouTube as a way to share their entire albums with fans. Some are releasing a simple, long album video on or before the physical release date -- check out SubPop’s channel to see a slew of these. Others are working intensively with directors to create “video LPs” -- individual videos for every song on an album, released all at once or in quick succession. It’s an inspiring art form and we’re keeping our eye on it. Today we’re pleased to share Micachu and the Shape’s entire new album Never, featuring an album’s worth of videos made by the band.
Music Documentaries
YouTube is a great place to view music videos, but it’s quickly becoming a place to dive more deeply into musical movements and individual artists. As more videographers make made-for-web documentaries, fans are finding ways to dive deeper into. Case in point: Google Play’s extraordinary eight-part documentary on Motley Crue. Today we feature that piece of work along with other in-depth works that have recently inspired us.
Video Premiere: Andrew Bird
Can kids forgo candy in order to save the life of an animated pinata? This video has a sense of impending doom, until you see that people can let go of their self-interest for the greater good. Pretty hopeful message you snuck in there, Andrew Bird.
Sarah Bardeen, music community manager, recently watched “Cold Specks - Hector.”
Monday, July 23, 2012
The winners of the 2012 Google Science Fair
Twenty-one of the world’s brightest young scientists gathered at Google’s headquarters in Mountain View today to celebrate their achievements and present their projects to a panel of renowned judges at the Google Science Fair finals.
Chosen from thousands of projects from more than 100 countries, these top 15 projects impressed the judges and public with their breadth of topics: from cancer research to vertical farming, 3D electronics to dementia. It was a tough decision, but we’re proud to name these three projects the winners of this year’s Google Science Fair:
Each of the winners will receive prizes from Google and our Science Fair partners: CERN, LEGO, National Geographic and Scientific American. This evening, we also recognized Sakhiwe Shongwe and Bonkhe Mahlalela, from Swaziland, the winners of the Scientific American Science in Action award.
The judges were impressed with the quality of all the projects this year—and by the ingenuity, dedication and passion of the young scientists who created them. We applaud every contestant who submitted a project to the 2012 Google Science Fair and look forward to seeing the innovations, inventions and discoveries of young scientists in the years to come.
Chosen from thousands of projects from more than 100 countries, these top 15 projects impressed the judges and public with their breadth of topics: from cancer research to vertical farming, 3D electronics to dementia. It was a tough decision, but we’re proud to name these three projects the winners of this year’s Google Science Fair:
- 13-14 age category: Jonah Kohn (USA)—“Good Vibrations: Improving the Music Experience for People with Hearing Loss Using Multi-Frequency Tactile Sound.” By creating a device that converts sound into tactile vibrations, Jonah’s project attempts to provide the hearing impaired with an improved experience of music.
- 15-16 age category: Iván Hervías Rodríguez, Marcos Ochoa and Sergio Pascual (Spain)—“La Vida Oculta del Agua (The Secret Life of Water).” Iván, Marcos and Sergio studied hidden microscopic life in fresh water, documenting the organisms that exist in a drop of water, and how those organisms influence our environment.
- 17-18 age category AND Grand Prize Winner: Brittany Wenger (USA)—“Global Neural Network Cloud Service for Breast Cancer.” Brittany’s project harnesses the power of the cloud to help doctors accurately diagnose breast cancer. Brittany built an application that compares individual test results to an extensive dataset stored in the cloud, allowing doctors to assess tumors using a minimally-invasive procedure.
Each of the winners will receive prizes from Google and our Science Fair partners: CERN, LEGO, National Geographic and Scientific American. This evening, we also recognized Sakhiwe Shongwe and Bonkhe Mahlalela, from Swaziland, the winners of the Scientific American Science in Action award.
The judges were impressed with the quality of all the projects this year—and by the ingenuity, dedication and passion of the young scientists who created them. We applaud every contestant who submitted a project to the 2012 Google Science Fair and look forward to seeing the innovations, inventions and discoveries of young scientists in the years to come.
Friday, July 20, 2012
Ramadan traditions with a digital twist
Today, more than a billion Muslims around the world begin to observe the holy month of Ramadan, fasting from dawn to sunset. This year, we’re bringing some of the most venerable Ramadan traditions online.
We’re sharing the Islamic prayers live from Mecca on a dedicated YouTube channel. Millions of people from around the world will be able to experience and comment on the event by tuning in via video.
Ramadan is about more than just prayer; it is also a special moment to gather with friends and family. Muslims gather to watch special television shows produced for the holiday and shown only during Ramadan. Often the shows overlap in scheduling. This year, for the first time, YouTube is enabling people to watch their favorite shows anytime, anywhere. A new YouTube Ramadan channel lets viewers see more than 50 premium Ramadan shows the same day they air. In the clip below, famed Syrian actor Jamal Suliman appears in a drama:
Ramadan’s tastiest tradition is the food. After fasting through the day, families gather for evening break-the-fast meals called Iftar. Through Google+ Hangouts, we’re hosting 30 virtual get-togethers in the 30 days of Ramadan, in which celebrity chefs will share their favorite recipes and doctors will give tips on eating healthy.
The hangouts will engage people in subjects far beyond eating. Actors will talk about their favorite Ramadan shows. Poets will discuss literature inspired by the holiday. Religious figures will answer questions. Stay tuned to the Google Arabia page on Google+ for more details and join in.
We hope you enjoy experiencing your favorite Ramadan traditions with a digital twist this year. Ramadan Kareem!
We’re sharing the Islamic prayers live from Mecca on a dedicated YouTube channel. Millions of people from around the world will be able to experience and comment on the event by tuning in via video.
Ramadan is about more than just prayer; it is also a special moment to gather with friends and family. Muslims gather to watch special television shows produced for the holiday and shown only during Ramadan. Often the shows overlap in scheduling. This year, for the first time, YouTube is enabling people to watch their favorite shows anytime, anywhere. A new YouTube Ramadan channel lets viewers see more than 50 premium Ramadan shows the same day they air. In the clip below, famed Syrian actor Jamal Suliman appears in a drama:
Ramadan’s tastiest tradition is the food. After fasting through the day, families gather for evening break-the-fast meals called Iftar. Through Google+ Hangouts, we’re hosting 30 virtual get-togethers in the 30 days of Ramadan, in which celebrity chefs will share their favorite recipes and doctors will give tips on eating healthy.
The hangouts will engage people in subjects far beyond eating. Actors will talk about their favorite Ramadan shows. Poets will discuss literature inspired by the holiday. Religious figures will answer questions. Stay tuned to the Google Arabia page on Google+ for more details and join in.
We hope you enjoy experiencing your favorite Ramadan traditions with a digital twist this year. Ramadan Kareem!
Let us help turn your video views into action
Today, we’re happy to announce two new updates from the YouTube for Good team to help you make the most out of your channel.
First, we’re kicking off monthly online trainings for members of the YouTube Nonprofit Program. These will be ‘101 level’ trainings - perfect for nonprofits who recently joined the program or are just getting started with a YouTube channel. The trainings, which will be conducted via Google+ Hangouts on Air, will take place at 9am PT on the last Tuesday of every month.
The first training will be at 9am PT on July 31, 2012. Here’s how to join:
Directions To join in the conversation during our Hangout On Air:
Ramya Raghavan, news and politics manager, recently watched "Water in Adina Faso"
First, we’re kicking off monthly online trainings for members of the YouTube Nonprofit Program. These will be ‘101 level’ trainings - perfect for nonprofits who recently joined the program or are just getting started with a YouTube channel. The trainings, which will be conducted via Google+ Hangouts on Air, will take place at 9am PT on the last Tuesday of every month.
The first training will be at 9am PT on July 31, 2012. Here’s how to join:
Directions To join in the conversation during our Hangout On Air:
- Make sure you have a Google Account and Google+ profile or page setup.
- Add YouTube Nonprofits Program page to your circles. We'll add you to our circles, then invite you to the Hangout on Air.
- This Hangout on Air will begin at 9am PT on July 31, 2012. Additional trainings will take place at 9am PT on the last Tuesday of every month.
- Log onto Google+ and you'll see an invite to join the hangout in your notifications (upper right hand corner of the page in a red box). Click through to the conversation!
- If the link is not available in your notifications, click the hangouts icon on the left hand side of the page and look for a hangout called "YouTube Nonprofits Introduction" among the hangouts available for you to join.
- Point your browser to the YouTube Nonprofits Program Google+ page and click on the Hangouts On Air thumbnail.
- Navigate to the YouTube for Nonprofits YouTube Channel and click on the live feed. This is the best option if you do not have a Google account.
Ramya Raghavan, news and politics manager, recently watched "Water in Adina Faso"
Thursday, July 19, 2012
Kudos to the first-ever YouTube Partner Rewards recipients
Vidcon 2012 was a true celebration of our creators and the ways they’re making the world a more interesting, inspiring and entertaining place. Our creators have amassed colossal audiences, invented new genres of entertainment, built global brands that transcend media, and are reaching new milestones every day. Simply put, their channels are taking over the world. We recently made it easier than ever for more creators to earn revenue from their videos and become YouTube partners, resulting in over 1 million channels on YouTube now part of the partner program. As we expand the partner base, we want to recognize and celebrate the partners that have hit big milestones by officially rolling out YouTube Partner Rewards.
The channels receiving YouTube Partner Rewards have surpassed 500 million subscribers and 251 BILLION views (or 36 views for each person on Earth). Want to know if your favorite channels are in the mix? Find out and learn more about the YouTube Partner Rewards program at youtube.com/partnerrewards.
To celebrate, we’re rewarding any channel that surpasses 1 million subscribers with one of these beauties:
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That’s right. A gold-plated PLAY button to hang in your studio, office, or home. Initially, nearly 80 channels (from EpicMealTime to Ellen DeGeneres, Mondo Media to the Biebs, Michelle Phan to Katy Perry and many more!) will be receiving this award in addition to a super-nifty YouTube branded gift card to use toward video equipment and a limited edition camera case. The more than 1,400 channels that have surpassed 100,000 subscribers will also receive the $500 gift card and camera case to help them on their way to 1 million subscribers.
We’ll continue to recognize channels with YouTube Partner Rewards on a regular basis, so be sure to subscribe to your favorite channels to help them hit their first million and get their own gold-plated play button.
From all of us at YouTube, congratulations to the first recipients - it’s amazing what you’ve accomplished, and we can’t wait to see what you all do next!
Tim Shey, Director, YouTube Next Lab, recently watched, “An Abridged History of Western Music in 16 Genres.”
The channels receiving YouTube Partner Rewards have surpassed 500 million subscribers and 251 BILLION views (or 36 views for each person on Earth). Want to know if your favorite channels are in the mix? Find out and learn more about the YouTube Partner Rewards program at youtube.com/partnerrewards.
To celebrate, we’re rewarding any channel that surpasses 1 million subscribers with one of these beauties:
.jpg)
That’s right. A gold-plated PLAY button to hang in your studio, office, or home. Initially, nearly 80 channels (from EpicMealTime to Ellen DeGeneres, Mondo Media to the Biebs, Michelle Phan to Katy Perry and many more!) will be receiving this award in addition to a super-nifty YouTube branded gift card to use toward video equipment and a limited edition camera case. The more than 1,400 channels that have surpassed 100,000 subscribers will also receive the $500 gift card and camera case to help them on their way to 1 million subscribers.
We’ll continue to recognize channels with YouTube Partner Rewards on a regular basis, so be sure to subscribe to your favorite channels to help them hit their first million and get their own gold-plated play button.
From all of us at YouTube, congratulations to the first recipients - it’s amazing what you’ve accomplished, and we can’t wait to see what you all do next!
Tim Shey, Director, YouTube Next Lab, recently watched, “An Abridged History of Western Music in 16 Genres.”
Explore “This Exquisite Forest” with Chrome and London’s Tate Modern
This morning, in partnership with the Tate Modern in London, we released an online art experiment called This Exquisite Forest, which lets you collaborate with others to create animations and stories using a web-based drawing tool.
Seven renowned artists from Tate’s collection, including Bill Woodrow, Dryden Goodwin, Julian Opie, Mark Titchner, Miroslaw Balka, Olafur Eliasson and Raqib Shaw, have created short “seed” animations. From these seeds, anyone can add new animations that extend the story or branch it in a new direction. Or you can start a tree of your own with some friends. As more sequences are added, the animations grow into trees, creating a potentially infinite number of possible endings to each animation.
In addition to the website, an interactive installation will open on July 23 in the Level 3 gallery of Tate Modern. Trees seeded by Tate artists—and the contributions from the public—will be on display as large-scale projections. Gallery visitors may also contribute using digital drawing stations.
This Exquisite Forest uses several of Google Chrome’s advanced HTML5 and JavaScript features to produce a unique content creation and exploration experience. For example, the Web Audio API makes it possible for contributors to generate music to accompany their submissions. The project also runs on Google App Engine and Google Cloud Storage.
Please try it out at ExquisiteForest.com and contribute your own animation to help the forest grow.
Seven renowned artists from Tate’s collection, including Bill Woodrow, Dryden Goodwin, Julian Opie, Mark Titchner, Miroslaw Balka, Olafur Eliasson and Raqib Shaw, have created short “seed” animations. From these seeds, anyone can add new animations that extend the story or branch it in a new direction. Or you can start a tree of your own with some friends. As more sequences are added, the animations grow into trees, creating a potentially infinite number of possible endings to each animation.
In addition to the website, an interactive installation will open on July 23 in the Level 3 gallery of Tate Modern. Trees seeded by Tate artists—and the contributions from the public—will be on display as large-scale projections. Gallery visitors may also contribute using digital drawing stations.
This Exquisite Forest uses several of Google Chrome’s advanced HTML5 and JavaScript features to produce a unique content creation and exploration experience. For example, the Web Audio API makes it possible for contributors to generate music to accompany their submissions. The project also runs on Google App Engine and Google Cloud Storage.
Please try it out at ExquisiteForest.com and contribute your own animation to help the forest grow.
Doctor Mad Science: The inspiring story behind one of YouTube’s youngest scientists
Today we bring you a guest post from the mother of a 10 year-old autistic YouTube partner, whose life changed dramatically when he took his passion for science online.
I want to introduce you all to my son Jordan, known as Doctor Mad Science to his legion of YouTube fans.
When he was 18 months old, Jordan was diagnosed as severely autistic. He exhibited behaviors like head banging, flapping and fits. It wasn't until he turned five that he started to speak, using just one or two words. At the time I wondered if he would ever be able to have a conversation, go to school, or make a friend. As a mom, these are the kinds of thoughts that keep you up at night.
But, through it all, one things was clear: Jordan LOVED science. Especially the kind of science that involved raiding the cupboards and turning our kitchen counter into a DIY laboratory! About a year ago, he started posting these household experiments on YouTube. And that’s when something changed. Jordan’s confidence grew, his speech started to improve and kids at school wanted to be a part of his videos. While building his online persona, Jordan was suddenly making friends in the real world.
Autism will always challenge Jordan, but I’ve learned it doesn’t have to define him. Today, he’s a ten year-old chatterbox, and (when he’s not getting into trouble with his friends) he continues to explore the world of science on YouTube to share with all of you. As for me? I’m sleeping better these days with my very own Doctor Mad Science in the house.
Stacey Hilkowitz, Jordan’s mom, recently watched “Ivory Soap + Microwave = Snow.”
I want to introduce you all to my son Jordan, known as Doctor Mad Science to his legion of YouTube fans.
When he was 18 months old, Jordan was diagnosed as severely autistic. He exhibited behaviors like head banging, flapping and fits. It wasn't until he turned five that he started to speak, using just one or two words. At the time I wondered if he would ever be able to have a conversation, go to school, or make a friend. As a mom, these are the kinds of thoughts that keep you up at night.
But, through it all, one things was clear: Jordan LOVED science. Especially the kind of science that involved raiding the cupboards and turning our kitchen counter into a DIY laboratory! About a year ago, he started posting these household experiments on YouTube. And that’s when something changed. Jordan’s confidence grew, his speech started to improve and kids at school wanted to be a part of his videos. While building his online persona, Jordan was suddenly making friends in the real world.
Autism will always challenge Jordan, but I’ve learned it doesn’t have to define him. Today, he’s a ten year-old chatterbox, and (when he’s not getting into trouble with his friends) he continues to explore the world of science on YouTube to share with all of you. As for me? I’m sleeping better these days with my very own Doctor Mad Science in the house.
Stacey Hilkowitz, Jordan’s mom, recently watched “Ivory Soap + Microwave = Snow.”
More detailed maps in parts of Europe, Africa and Asia
Whether you’re travelling abroad or exploring your own city, the maps you carry with you should be comprehensive, accurate and easy to use. We're constantly making improvements to Google Maps to help you find and discover places that are meaningful to you no matter where you are. And today, we’re launching updated maps of Croatia, Czech Republic, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Lesotho, Macau, Portugal, San Marino, Singapore and Vatican City to do just that.
As was the case for past updates, our new maps are more detailed and precise. For example, in Ireland we now have excellent coverage of National Heritage Areas, as well as more detailed coastlines and bodies of water:
We’ve also added more accurate names and locations for major points of interest, such as airports, universities and public squares. Here you can see St. Mark’s Square in Venice, now with accurately aligned canals, 3D buildings and detailed labels of the countless number of places to be discovered.
We’ve also added better and more clearly labelled ferry routes in many places, such as the area below surrounding Naples, Italy. Traveling by ferry is one of my favorite ways to explore a city—I love looking back from the water at the cityscapes—and this improvement will help you find the ferry routes you need to do the same. You can even use Google Maps to get transit-based directions for ferries. We take into account ferry timetables to route you over water just easily as you might follow our driving directions over land.
In addition to the above changes, local roads on these maps are now more accurately distinguished from highways, and multi-lingual names are available for a larger proportion of roads in many of the updated countries. These improvements give you a better visual feel of the location, as well as make it easier to navigate the area when you're on the ground.
Of course, the world around us is always changing, so we’re making our “Report a problem” tool available in each of these countries as well. You can use it to send us a description of any corrections to be made, which we then incorporate into our maps, often within days.
Today’s improvements follow the recent expansion of our collection of Antarctic imagery, and are part of our ongoing effort to build maps that are comprehensive, accurate and easy to use. We've partnered with numerous authoritative sources to ensure that Google Maps is a living reflection of every corner of the globe. After all, a map is only as good as the data behind it. The maps that we've built will help ensure that you get correct and up-to-date information about the world around you.
Update 8:00pm: We're also making certain maps of the 11 countries listed above, plus Egypt, Poland and Ukraine, available offline in Google Maps for Android.
As was the case for past updates, our new maps are more detailed and precise. For example, in Ireland we now have excellent coverage of National Heritage Areas, as well as more detailed coastlines and bodies of water:
We’ve also added more accurate names and locations for major points of interest, such as airports, universities and public squares. Here you can see St. Mark’s Square in Venice, now with accurately aligned canals, 3D buildings and detailed labels of the countless number of places to be discovered.
We’ve also added better and more clearly labelled ferry routes in many places, such as the area below surrounding Naples, Italy. Traveling by ferry is one of my favorite ways to explore a city—I love looking back from the water at the cityscapes—and this improvement will help you find the ferry routes you need to do the same. You can even use Google Maps to get transit-based directions for ferries. We take into account ferry timetables to route you over water just easily as you might follow our driving directions over land.
In addition to the above changes, local roads on these maps are now more accurately distinguished from highways, and multi-lingual names are available for a larger proportion of roads in many of the updated countries. These improvements give you a better visual feel of the location, as well as make it easier to navigate the area when you're on the ground.
Of course, the world around us is always changing, so we’re making our “Report a problem” tool available in each of these countries as well. You can use it to send us a description of any corrections to be made, which we then incorporate into our maps, often within days.
Today’s improvements follow the recent expansion of our collection of Antarctic imagery, and are part of our ongoing effort to build maps that are comprehensive, accurate and easy to use. We've partnered with numerous authoritative sources to ensure that Google Maps is a living reflection of every corner of the globe. After all, a map is only as good as the data behind it. The maps that we've built will help ensure that you get correct and up-to-date information about the world around you.
Update 8:00pm: We're also making certain maps of the 11 countries listed above, plus Egypt, Poland and Ukraine, available offline in Google Maps for Android.
Wednesday, July 18, 2012
Web Lab: the magic of the Internet, brought to life
Inspiration comes in many forms and can influence you in unexpected ways. I can trace my own interest in programming to Babbage’s Analytical Engine, which fascinated me on my childhood visits to the Science Museum in London.
This idea that science and technology can inspire people is one that we hold close to our hearts. It’s also the thought behind a new exhibition we’re launching today online and at the Science Museum in London. We hope to inspire people around the world by showcasing the magic that the Internet makes possible.
Launching in beta, Web Lab is a set of five physical installations housed in the Science Museum in London. You can interact with them in person at the museum, or from anywhere in the world at chromeweblab.com. By opening up the museum experience to the world online, Web Lab doesn’t play by the usual rules—a visitor’s location and museum opening hours no longer matter.
Each of the five experiments—Universal Orchestra, Data Tracer, Sketchbots, Teleporter and Lab Tag Explorer—showcases a modern web technology found in Chrome to explore a particular theme in computer science. For example, the Universal Orchestra experiment uses WebSockets to demonstrate real time collaboration as people from around the world make music together on custom-built robotic instruments housed in the Science Museum.
Please join us online or at the Science Museum in London (entry is free), and let us know what you think. True to its name, the year-long exhibition is a working lab, and we’ll continue to tinker with it based on your feedback.
Here’s to the next wave of Internet invention!
(Cross-posted from the Chrome Blog)
This idea that science and technology can inspire people is one that we hold close to our hearts. It’s also the thought behind a new exhibition we’re launching today online and at the Science Museum in London. We hope to inspire people around the world by showcasing the magic that the Internet makes possible.
Launching in beta, Web Lab is a set of five physical installations housed in the Science Museum in London. You can interact with them in person at the museum, or from anywhere in the world at chromeweblab.com. By opening up the museum experience to the world online, Web Lab doesn’t play by the usual rules—a visitor’s location and museum opening hours no longer matter.
Each of the five experiments—Universal Orchestra, Data Tracer, Sketchbots, Teleporter and Lab Tag Explorer—showcases a modern web technology found in Chrome to explore a particular theme in computer science. For example, the Universal Orchestra experiment uses WebSockets to demonstrate real time collaboration as people from around the world make music together on custom-built robotic instruments housed in the Science Museum.
Please join us online or at the Science Museum in London (entry is free), and let us know what you think. True to its name, the year-long exhibition is a working lab, and we’ll continue to tinker with it based on your feedback.
Here’s to the next wave of Internet invention!
(Cross-posted from the Chrome Blog)
Face blurring: when footage requires anonymity
As citizens continue to play a critical role in supplying news and human rights footage from around the world, YouTube is committed to creating even better tools to help them. According to the international human rights organization WITNESS’ Cameras Everywhere report, “No video-sharing site or hardware manufacturer currently offers users the option to blur faces or protect identity.”
YouTube is excited to be among the first.
Today we're launching face blurring - a new tool that allows you to obscure faces within videos with the click of a button.
Whether you want to share sensitive protest footage without exposing the faces of the activists involved, or share the winning point in your 8-year-old’s basketball game without broadcasting the children’s faces to the world, our face blurring technology is a first step towards providing visual anonymity for video on YouTube.
Blurring faces on YouTube is simple. Once you’ve chosen the video that you’d like to edit within our Video Enhancements tool, go to Additional Features and click the “Apply” button below Blur All Faces. Before you publish, you will see a preview of what your video will look like with faces blurred. When you save the changes to your video, a new copy is created with the blurred faces. You will then be given the option to delete the original video.
This is emerging technology, which means it sometimes has difficulty detecting faces depending on the angle, lighting, obstructions and video quality. It’s possible that certain faces or frames will not be blurred. If you are not satisfied with the accuracy of the blurring as you see it in the preview, you may wish to keep your video private.
Visual anonymity in video allows people to share personal footage more widely and to speak out when they otherwise may not.
Because human rights footage, in particular, opens up new risks to the people posting videos and to those filmed, it’s important to keep in mind other ways to protect yourself and the people in your videos.
YouTube is proud to be a destination where people worldwide come to share their stories, including activists. Along with efforts like the Human Rights Channel and Citizentube that curate these voices, we hope that the new technologies we’re rolling out will facilitate the sharing of even more stories on our platform.
Amanda Conway, YouTube policy associate, recently watched "Russian court refuses to free anti-Putin punks."
YouTube is excited to be among the first.
Today we're launching face blurring - a new tool that allows you to obscure faces within videos with the click of a button.
Whether you want to share sensitive protest footage without exposing the faces of the activists involved, or share the winning point in your 8-year-old’s basketball game without broadcasting the children’s faces to the world, our face blurring technology is a first step towards providing visual anonymity for video on YouTube.
Blurring faces on YouTube is simple. Once you’ve chosen the video that you’d like to edit within our Video Enhancements tool, go to Additional Features and click the “Apply” button below Blur All Faces. Before you publish, you will see a preview of what your video will look like with faces blurred. When you save the changes to your video, a new copy is created with the blurred faces. You will then be given the option to delete the original video.
This is emerging technology, which means it sometimes has difficulty detecting faces depending on the angle, lighting, obstructions and video quality. It’s possible that certain faces or frames will not be blurred. If you are not satisfied with the accuracy of the blurring as you see it in the preview, you may wish to keep your video private.
Visual anonymity in video allows people to share personal footage more widely and to speak out when they otherwise may not.
Because human rights footage, in particular, opens up new risks to the people posting videos and to those filmed, it’s important to keep in mind other ways to protect yourself and the people in your videos.
YouTube is proud to be a destination where people worldwide come to share their stories, including activists. Along with efforts like the Human Rights Channel and Citizentube that curate these voices, we hope that the new technologies we’re rolling out will facilitate the sharing of even more stories on our platform.
Amanda Conway, YouTube policy associate, recently watched "Russian court refuses to free anti-Putin punks."
Tuesday, July 17, 2012
Music Tuesday: Nas, Beirut and more
The music keeps on coming! Over the weekend Pitchfork streamed their music festival on YouTube -- head to their channel to see some live clips from the show. We also featured some fun videos -- one of a guy playing a bicycle handlebar (cool), one about a daydream that comes true, and Jack White’s surprising new video, which was directed by none other than Hype Williams. We’ve got lots coming this week, but we’re most excited by far to welcome Matisyahu to YouTube Presents on Friday. Got a question for him? Now’s the time to ask it. Wonder who else is going to appear? Subscribe to the channel.
Nas’ “Life is Good” playlist
In 1994, a young rapper named Nasir Jones almost single-handedly resuscitated hip-hop lyricism with his debut album Illmatic. Here was a rapper who told stories. Nas has never strayed far from his reputation as hip-hop’s lyricist, and his 10th studio album, Life Is Good, is being universally hailed as a mature masterpiece which keeps the immediacy of his ghetto imagery and leavens it with a decent dose of wisdom. (“Daughters” finds the rapper worrying about his daughter’s dating life.) It’s a hopeful record, which is why the man himself joins us today with a “Life is Good” playlist.
Incoming: MS MR
This indie band is still developing, but for a young band, MS MR have a seriously strong video aesthetic, as their own work demonstrates. Today they unload an epic playlist of their inspirations, and it’s a doozy -- every video is worth your undivided attention, if you can give it.
Beirut: Santa Fe
In the past few weeks, Beirut has been quietly (okay, not SO quietly) releasing a trove of music videos for their latest album The Rip Tide. To date, two of them have been directed by Sunset Television, a directors collective based in, of course, Williamsburg in Brooklyn. While what they do looks like found footage (think found footage pioneers like Everything Is Terrible), it’s actually not: these folks make their own videos and do their best to make them seem like garage-sale VHS finds. It’s a fascinating project, and it’s led to a regular comedy series with Pitchfork. Now, we had a hard time picking our favorite, but “Santa Fe,” with its Italian cinema mouth-feel, came out on top.
Sarah Bardeen, music community manager, recently watched “'Paz y Guerra' by Bayonics.”
Nas’ “Life is Good” playlist
In 1994, a young rapper named Nasir Jones almost single-handedly resuscitated hip-hop lyricism with his debut album Illmatic. Here was a rapper who told stories. Nas has never strayed far from his reputation as hip-hop’s lyricist, and his 10th studio album, Life Is Good, is being universally hailed as a mature masterpiece which keeps the immediacy of his ghetto imagery and leavens it with a decent dose of wisdom. (“Daughters” finds the rapper worrying about his daughter’s dating life.) It’s a hopeful record, which is why the man himself joins us today with a “Life is Good” playlist.
Incoming: MS MR
This indie band is still developing, but for a young band, MS MR have a seriously strong video aesthetic, as their own work demonstrates. Today they unload an epic playlist of their inspirations, and it’s a doozy -- every video is worth your undivided attention, if you can give it.
Beirut: Santa Fe
In the past few weeks, Beirut has been quietly (okay, not SO quietly) releasing a trove of music videos for their latest album The Rip Tide. To date, two of them have been directed by Sunset Television, a directors collective based in, of course, Williamsburg in Brooklyn. While what they do looks like found footage (think found footage pioneers like Everything Is Terrible), it’s actually not: these folks make their own videos and do their best to make them seem like garage-sale VHS finds. It’s a fascinating project, and it’s led to a regular comedy series with Pitchfork. Now, we had a hard time picking our favorite, but “Santa Fe,” with its Italian cinema mouth-feel, came out on top.
Sarah Bardeen, music community manager, recently watched “'Paz y Guerra' by Bayonics.”
Become an Antarctic explorer with panoramic imagery
In the winter of 1913, a British newspaper ran an advertisement to promote the latest imperial expedition to Antarctica, apparently placed by polar explorer Ernest Shackleton. It read, "Men wanted for hazardous journey. Low wages, bitter cold, long hours of complete darkness. Safe return doubtful. Honour and recognition in event of success." While the ad appears apocryphal, the dangerous nature of the journey to the South Pole is certainly not—as explorers like Roald Amundsen, Robert Falcon Scott and Shackleton himself discovered as they tried to become the first men to reach it.
Back in September 2010, we launched the first Street View imagery of the Antarctic, enabling people from more habitable lands to see penguins in Antarctica for the first time. Today we’re bringing you additional panoramic imagery of historic Antarctic locations that you can view from the comfort of your homes. We’ll be posting this special collection to our World Wonders site, where you can learn more about the history of South Pole exploration.
With the help of the Polar Geospatial Center at the University of Minnesota and the New Zealand Antarctic Heritage Trust, we’ve added 360-imagery of many important spots, inside and out, such as the South Pole Telescope, Shackleton's hut, Scott’s hut, Cape Royds Adélie Penguin Rookery and the Ceremonial South Pole.
With this technology, you can go inside places like Shackleton’s Hut (pictured above) and the other small wooden buildings that served as bases from which the explorers launched their expeditions. They were built to withstand the drastic weather conditions only for the few short years that the explorers inhabited them, but remarkably, after more than a century, the structures are still intact, along with well-preserved examples of the food, medicine, survival gear and equipment used during the expeditions. Now anyone can explore these huts and get insight into how these men lived for months at a time.
This new imagery was collected with a lightweight tripod camera with a fisheye lens—equipment typically used to capture business interiors through the Business Photos program. We worked with this technology because of its portability, reliability and ease-of-use (our Street View trikes wouldn’t be much use in the snow).
The goal of these efforts is to provide scientists and travel (or penguin) enthusiasts all over the world with the most accurate, high-resolution data of these important historic locations. With this access, schoolchildren as far as Bangalore can count penguin colonies on Snow Hill Island, and geologists in Georgia can trace sedimentary layers in the Dry Valleys from the comfort of their desks. Feel free to leave your boots and mittens behind, and embark on a trip to Antarctica.
Posted by Alex Starns, Technical Program Manager, Street View
Back in September 2010, we launched the first Street View imagery of the Antarctic, enabling people from more habitable lands to see penguins in Antarctica for the first time. Today we’re bringing you additional panoramic imagery of historic Antarctic locations that you can view from the comfort of your homes. We’ll be posting this special collection to our World Wonders site, where you can learn more about the history of South Pole exploration.
With the help of the Polar Geospatial Center at the University of Minnesota and the New Zealand Antarctic Heritage Trust, we’ve added 360-imagery of many important spots, inside and out, such as the South Pole Telescope, Shackleton's hut, Scott’s hut, Cape Royds Adélie Penguin Rookery and the Ceremonial South Pole.
The ceremonial South Pole (View Larger Map)
The interior of Shackleton’s Hut demonstrates the host of supplies used in early 20th century Antarctic expeditions—everything from medicine and food to candles and cargo sleds can be found neatly stored inside. (View Larger Map)
With this technology, you can go inside places like Shackleton’s Hut (pictured above) and the other small wooden buildings that served as bases from which the explorers launched their expeditions. They were built to withstand the drastic weather conditions only for the few short years that the explorers inhabited them, but remarkably, after more than a century, the structures are still intact, along with well-preserved examples of the food, medicine, survival gear and equipment used during the expeditions. Now anyone can explore these huts and get insight into how these men lived for months at a time.
The landscape outside of Robert Falcon Scott’s supply hut conveys just how desolate the area is. For these early explorers, the supply huts were an oasis of warmth and comfort in a cold and inhospitable landscape. (View Larger Map)
This new imagery was collected with a lightweight tripod camera with a fisheye lens—equipment typically used to capture business interiors through the Business Photos program. We worked with this technology because of its portability, reliability and ease-of-use (our Street View trikes wouldn’t be much use in the snow).
The goal of these efforts is to provide scientists and travel (or penguin) enthusiasts all over the world with the most accurate, high-resolution data of these important historic locations. With this access, schoolchildren as far as Bangalore can count penguin colonies on Snow Hill Island, and geologists in Georgia can trace sedimentary layers in the Dry Valleys from the comfort of their desks. Feel free to leave your boots and mittens behind, and embark on a trip to Antarctica.
Posted by Alex Starns, Technical Program Manager, Street View
Monday, July 16, 2012
Google Ideas: joining the fight against drug cartels and other illicit networks
Violent illicit networks represent a trillion-dollar problem that affects every society in the world and claims hundreds of thousands of lives each year. For example, more than 50,000 people have died in the past five years as a result of the ongoing war in Mexico between rival drug cartels. And although data on this subject is scarce and often unreliable, in 2003 the UN estimated the value of the illicit drug market to be nearly $320 billion, greater than the gross domestic product of 88 percent of countries in the world—and that was almost 10 years ago. It’s clear that illicit networks—particularly those that are violent and coercive like drug smugglers, arms dealers and human traffickers—have a devastating human and financial impact on every nation.
We think Google can help. Eighteen months ago we launched Google Ideas with the belief that Google is in the unique position to explore the role that technology can play in tackling some of the toughest human challenges in the world. Our first area of focus was counter-radicalization; last year we convened the Summit Against Violent Extremism with former gang members, right-wing extremists, jihadists and militants as well as survivors of violent extremism. Among the many outcomes of the summit was a platform that we established as a one-stop shop for tackling violent extremism through formers and survivors.
Recently, we’ve expanded our focus to include violent illicit networks such as narco-trafficking, human trafficking, organ harvesting and arms dealing. We believe that technology has the power to expose and dismantle global criminal networks, which depend on secrecy and discretion in order to function. And for the past few months, we’ve been working with people fighting on the front line to gain a better understanding of what drives these networks and how they function.
This week, in partnership with the Council on Foreign Relations and the Tribeca Film Festival, we’re convening Illicit Networks: Forces in Opposition (or the INFO summit) in Los Angeles, Calif. Too often illicit networks are seen only in the silos of those who study them. This summit aims to break down those silos by bringing together a full-range of stakeholders, from survivors of organ trafficking, sex trafficking and forced labor to government officials, dozens of engineers, tech leaders and product managers from Google and beyond. Through the summit, which lasts until Wednesday, we hope to discover ways that technology can be used to expose and disrupt these networks as a whole—and to put some of these ideas into practice.
We’ll be uploading videos from the summit to our YouTube channel. Keep up with the Summit via @googleideas and #infosummit2012, or take a look at the video below for a sneak peek.
We think Google can help. Eighteen months ago we launched Google Ideas with the belief that Google is in the unique position to explore the role that technology can play in tackling some of the toughest human challenges in the world. Our first area of focus was counter-radicalization; last year we convened the Summit Against Violent Extremism with former gang members, right-wing extremists, jihadists and militants as well as survivors of violent extremism. Among the many outcomes of the summit was a platform that we established as a one-stop shop for tackling violent extremism through formers and survivors.
Recently, we’ve expanded our focus to include violent illicit networks such as narco-trafficking, human trafficking, organ harvesting and arms dealing. We believe that technology has the power to expose and dismantle global criminal networks, which depend on secrecy and discretion in order to function. And for the past few months, we’ve been working with people fighting on the front line to gain a better understanding of what drives these networks and how they function.
This week, in partnership with the Council on Foreign Relations and the Tribeca Film Festival, we’re convening Illicit Networks: Forces in Opposition (or the INFO summit) in Los Angeles, Calif. Too often illicit networks are seen only in the silos of those who study them. This summit aims to break down those silos by bringing together a full-range of stakeholders, from survivors of organ trafficking, sex trafficking and forced labor to government officials, dozens of engineers, tech leaders and product managers from Google and beyond. Through the summit, which lasts until Wednesday, we hope to discover ways that technology can be used to expose and disrupt these networks as a whole—and to put some of these ideas into practice.
We’ll be uploading videos from the summit to our YouTube channel. Keep up with the Summit via @googleideas and #infosummit2012, or take a look at the video below for a sneak peek.
Maker Camp on Google+ will be a blast!
From time to time we invite guests to post about items of interest, and we’re pleased to have Dale Dougherty, publisher of MAKE Magazine, join us today to talk about Maker Camp. Maker Camp is a free, online camp that encourages 13- to 18-year-olds to get creative with up to 30 different types of fun projects themed around creativity and “the art of making.” -Ed.
In the words of young maker Joey Hudy: “Don’t be bored. Make something.”
That’s the idea behind Maker Camp, a new online “summer camp” on Google+. Over the course of six weeks, 13- to 18-year-olds (as well as their parents and teachers) will have the opportunity to collaborate with popular maker personalities—including Mark Frauenfelder of Boing Boing, Stephen and Fritz of EepyBird (the Coke and Mentos guys), Jimmy DiResta (co-host of Dirty Money on the Discovery Channel) and Limor Fried (founder of Adafruit)—and other creative teens on fun projects themed around “the art of making.” Our goal is to encourage everyone this summer to make something and share it with their friends and family.
Making is a wonderful way to experiment and explore, to try to do new things, and mostly to let your imagination get the best of you. Making is fun (and it’s also a great way to learn, even if it is summer!). Making can be done indoors—even in a small space, like a kitchen table—but it’s also great to go outdoors to make things you can play with in the backyard or park. Making could mean traditional arts and crafts projects, or science projects, but it could also use innovative technologies and processes that enable you to create something entirely new.
Every Monday through Thursday morning, beginning Monday, July 16, a Maker Camp counselor will post how-to instructions for a new project on g.co/makercamp and Makezine.com/go/makercamp. Some of these projects will overlap with ones in MAKE’s 3D “School’s Out” special issue, our first-ever summer issue devoted entirely to kids. These projects are great for families to do together or for teens to do on their own. Many of the projects involve materials and tools that you can find around the house. Junior counselors will host a Hangout On Air in the afternoon so campers can post questions and comments and share photos and videos of their projects.
The first project at Maker Camp is our popular compressed air rocket that we first introduced in Make: Vol 15 to huge response. We featured it again in the “School’s Out” summer issue and are delighted that rocket guru Rick Schertle is our guest counselor for this project and will be with us in New York to launch Maker Camp at the New York Hall of Science.
It wouldn’t be summer camp unless you were able to meet a lot of great, new friends who share your love of making. You’ll find that other campers will inspire you to come up with new ideas for projects.
Maker Camp is free, and open to everyone with a Google+ profile (you must be over 13 to have your own Google+ profile). To participate, simply follow MAKE on Google+.
Whether you build rockets or race cars, make T-shirts or experimental music, or discover nature or new things in the community where you live, I hope that you’ll have a blast at Maker Camp.
In the words of young maker Joey Hudy: “Don’t be bored. Make something.”
That’s the idea behind Maker Camp, a new online “summer camp” on Google+. Over the course of six weeks, 13- to 18-year-olds (as well as their parents and teachers) will have the opportunity to collaborate with popular maker personalities—including Mark Frauenfelder of Boing Boing, Stephen and Fritz of EepyBird (the Coke and Mentos guys), Jimmy DiResta (co-host of Dirty Money on the Discovery Channel) and Limor Fried (founder of Adafruit)—and other creative teens on fun projects themed around “the art of making.” Our goal is to encourage everyone this summer to make something and share it with their friends and family.
Making is a wonderful way to experiment and explore, to try to do new things, and mostly to let your imagination get the best of you. Making is fun (and it’s also a great way to learn, even if it is summer!). Making can be done indoors—even in a small space, like a kitchen table—but it’s also great to go outdoors to make things you can play with in the backyard or park. Making could mean traditional arts and crafts projects, or science projects, but it could also use innovative technologies and processes that enable you to create something entirely new.
Every Monday through Thursday morning, beginning Monday, July 16, a Maker Camp counselor will post how-to instructions for a new project on g.co/makercamp and Makezine.com/go/makercamp. Some of these projects will overlap with ones in MAKE’s 3D “School’s Out” special issue, our first-ever summer issue devoted entirely to kids. These projects are great for families to do together or for teens to do on their own. Many of the projects involve materials and tools that you can find around the house. Junior counselors will host a Hangout On Air in the afternoon so campers can post questions and comments and share photos and videos of their projects.
The first project at Maker Camp is our popular compressed air rocket that we first introduced in Make: Vol 15 to huge response. We featured it again in the “School’s Out” summer issue and are delighted that rocket guru Rick Schertle is our guest counselor for this project and will be with us in New York to launch Maker Camp at the New York Hall of Science.
It wouldn’t be summer camp unless you were able to meet a lot of great, new friends who share your love of making. You’ll find that other campers will inspire you to come up with new ideas for projects.
Maker Camp is free, and open to everyone with a Google+ profile (you must be over 13 to have your own Google+ profile). To participate, simply follow MAKE on Google+.
Whether you build rockets or race cars, make T-shirts or experimental music, or discover nature or new things in the community where you live, I hope that you’ll have a blast at Maker Camp.
Thursday, July 12, 2012
Street View goes on a road trip through California's national parks
One hot summer day in Yosemite National Park in Northern California, I sat under a tree along a lazy river in awe of the natural beauty around me. I looked out at the majestic granite mountains, the chirping birds and the rustling leaves, and thought about how they were the same that day as they had been thousands of years ago.
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People around the world can now appreciate the beauty and timelessness of the wilderness through Street View. We've recently added 360-degree panoramic imagery for five of California’s national parks—including Yosemite—to Google Maps. In addition, we've refreshed Street View imagery across most of the state. You can now take a virtual road trip practically the entire stretch of California from north to south.
Redwood National Park sits near the California-Oregon border and hugs the Pacific Ocean. It’s most famous for its giant redwood trees—the tallest trees on Earth. With Street View, you can now stare up at them without straining your neck:
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Inland, at Yosemite National Park, you can visit historic Inspiration Point, the site famously photographed by Ansel Adams in “Clearing Winter Storm”. Panning right from the same vantage point, you can see the cliffs of El Capitan and the picturesque Bridalveil Fall waterfall flanking iconic Half Dome, a granite rock formation almost 5,000 feet tall. You can also use Street View to venture into the valley, overlook Glacier Point (visited by John Muir and President Theodore Roosevelt in 1903), explore the more remote upcountry along Tioga Pass road and see the Giant Sequoias in Mariposa Grove.
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You’ve seen the redwoods, now see more enormous trees with a visit to Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks, whose namesake trees are the most massive in the world. It would take almost 30 adults linking their outstretched arms to wrap all the way around the largest sequoias. These parks also offer rich and varied landscapes featuring everything from mountains to canyons to caverns.
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The name may be foreboding, but Death Valley National Park, which lies along the California-Nevada border and has the lowest elevation of any spot in North America, is home to a variety of flora and fauna and well worth a visit. With average summer temperatures in this desert environment soaring above 110 degrees Fahrenheit, most people visit in the winter, but Street View lets you check it out any time of year—no sunblock required.
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Slightly north of the U.S.-Mexico border is the fifth and final national park recently added to Street View: Joshua Tree National Park. The gnarly, twisted trees here seem like something straight out of a Dr. Seuss book. Plan your escapades ahead of time from your browser, then pack up your hiking shoes or your mountain bike and hit the trails in this one-of-a-kind desert landscape.
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This only scratches the surface of what California parks have to offer travelers looking to explore the great outdoors. We hope a virtual trip through Street View inspires you to visit these places in person as well. If you need some additional inspiration, I’ll leave you with a quote from naturalist and author John Muir:
Climb the mountains and get their good tidings. Nature's peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees. The winds will blow their own freshness into you, and the storms their energy, while cares will drop away from you like the leaves of Autumn.
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(Cross-posted on the Lat Long blog)
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