The Wonders of Google Video

If you haven't discovered Google Video (video.google.com), it's worth a look. It's the repository of thousands of videos of all shapes and sizes. There's everything from two-hour documentaries on conspiracy theories to 12 second slices of life from a group of goofy college students. Some are funny, some are scary, and some are of really no interest to anyone but those directly involved. Here's a look at few random videos, in no particular order:

1 - http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=1251801923890668073 : Fort Lauderdale - Seth Snorkeling -- This is 11 seconds of people snorkeling in a downpour. Nothing speicial happens, except the rain. I suppose that home movies are going to be available for public consumption.

2- http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=858684627234078196 : Tj and his Traumas -- Here is a two minutes compilation looking at a British boy about 12 years old, in the crazed way that only his friends see him. This is what's fun about Google Video - it's totally democratic. If you search for these kids by their production company name, you'll discover this kid and his friends have produced a collection of crazy, whacked out videos just like this one. This is a Britain you'll never see....

3 - http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=32125591003090770 : PiToMa 2004 -- This is from the Netherlands. I have no idea what's going on. It's pointless.

4 - http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=868481474503299613 : Scientific opposition to fluoridation -- this is a 2 minute mini-documentary about an early critic of flouridation in the public water system. Is it legit? I have no idea. But it's out there, and it's an opinion I'm not familiar with.

5 - http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=1055863339996249193 : Watermelon Seeds Episode 1: Getting Started -- This is no more and no less than a tour of a teenager's computer desk. Think about the details, and consider what it says about this "typical" teenager.

6 - http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=1853457828950208879&q=academy : Archive of American Television Interview with Carroll O'Connor Roll 8 of 8. This is a sample of one of the more interesting contributions to Google Video. The Academy of Television Arts and Sciences has made available many hours of oral histories of important figures in the history of telelvision. This particular half-hour video is the eigth in a series of half-hour interviews with Carroll O'connor of "All In The Family" fame.

Google Video is a great playground. I've only touched on the diversity of the programming available. Well take a look at more selections later...