04 Moving Pictures in the Cloud

I used to say that I am not a Youtube person. Well, it's quite true because I am not really the type of person who opens Youtube.com every single time I go online. Even if I am bored, I do not just go to the site and watch just any videos there. Maybe I am not an active Youtube user but when I profoundly think about it, I'm quite a frequent visitor of it also. For years, I limited my use of Youtube to being my music search engine. When friends recommend songs, and I wanna check those first if it's my type before downloading, I listen to it in Youtube. I know it's weird how I use this video-sharing website to just search for music and listen to it! Sometimes, I go there when friends give me links of funny or annoyingly funny videos. (I think, boys like Youtube next to computer/online games and basketball.)

I haven't maximized the use of Youtube, which is an offering of web 2.0, yet but I'm trying my best to do so. One use of the site, which I appreciate a lot, is being a place where people could showcase their talent for free. Luckier people do not only get millions of likes and comments but also good offers from talent scouts. (See Charice Pempengco, Arnel Pineda, Marie Digby, Justin Bieber, Maria Aragon) Sometimes, I enjoy watching Youtube personalities more than those who are active in television right now. Other people use it also to post educational videos which is a good help to students. Children nowadays want to have a new learning experience, and because we rely on technology too much now, so Youtube can totally give it to them. Google is very helpful in giving articles related to our studies, but I prefer watching videos in Youtube which are related to what we are tackling in class like lessons in programming class, Math class, Science class and others. Sometimes, educators ask their students to use Youtube as an outlet of their insights, that is why there are some who require us to do short clips that show our insight about a certain issue. Youtube can also be used as an advertising tool. Others are also comfortable in sharing their experiences -which are recorded- such as travelling, partying, playing, giving a prank or those who share experiences through video blogging. Some people upload television show episodes, music videos and movies in Youtube, too, which I also appreciate because there are times when I miss my favorite show -in its time slot- because I have to go out or something. Some old filipino flicks are also available in Youtube, and I actually watched the movie 'Bagets' there.

Youtube can be a good tool for education since most of the youth are now engaged in online activities. I mean, a lot of students tend to use the Internet for their homework, research and projects, so maybe they would enjoy learning (by watching videos) in the WWW too. I experienced having a teacher/professor who is not good in teaching(AT ALL!), so I tried searching for a video about one topic in our class and I swear, the videos I saw in Youtube are more understandable! Sometimes, reading articles about a topic is not enough or is too lame for students to learn from it, so videos would really be a great solution for that. And if those videos will be uploaded on Youtube, a lot of people will be able to see it and learn from it. Some people in Youtube videos sound really cool and they are direct to the point, and I think it's a good technique in teaching. Youtube can also be a good help for schools to save cost in storage devices since it the videos are in the web, all they need is a computer and internet connection to be able to share the videos to the students. But there is a disadvantage in using Youtube as a tool for education, like Wikipedia and some websites, we cannot assure the reliability of the information that is shown in the videos because anyone (who has a Youtube account) can just post anything that they want in the site. We cannot also expect the students to focus on watching and learning from the educational videos in Youtube because there are also a bunch of activities in the WWW which are more interesting for some students.

(With lots of uncertainty,) I see Youtube, ten years from now, still being a popular website where people upload and watch videos that they cannot see on CD and television. It is also possible for Youtube to defeat some local soap operas if there would be "Youtube series." I am afraid that TV network companies would stop operating because people would be so attached to their computers and would stop watching on boob tube. That is a crazy idea but it is possible since Youtube is such a powerful tool if you think about it. :) I am hoping that ten years from now, Youtube would still be an awesome web-based application which uses will be maximized by the people. I hope that more educational videos, which are creatively made, would be uploaded there and students would treat the site as a classroom extension and not as a replacement for school. I also wish that people would consider the young viewers, who might see their videos, before uploading in Youtube. Maybe some people find entertainment in watching malicious videos but a popular website, such as Youtube, is not a good place to upload those since it is open to everybody.

Web 2.0 offers a lot of applications which could be a really good help for us but it also leaves us the responsibility to use it properly and be careful of the actions that it allow us to do.