iMage Webcam, CamTwist and Ustream

Posted on by

I’ve been trying to assemble the best combination (for me) of hardware and software for streaming live video. The ease-of-use and price (free, for now) of Ustream.tv has made it possible for any nimrod to play in Wayne’s World.

Image200

MacBooks, with the built-in iSight camera, make live video just that much easier but sometimes you want to point the camera the other direction, so an external webcam enters the picture (so to speak).

This weekend I’ve been playing with the iMage webcam from eCamm. It doesn’t look like much but –for $60– it delivers a very nice image and you can put it in your pocket. I’ve mounted mine on a small tripod.

The final –and most exciting– piece of the puzzle has been a freeware app called CamTwist. CamTwist works very well with Ustream.tv and comes with an amazing set of features and a UI that’s intuitive and easy to use. If you’re interested, I recommend this short video, but let me mention some of the cool things CamTwist does:

  • Stream your desktop. Rather than making your webcam the video source, CamTwist lets you stream all or part of your computer’s desktop. Let’s say I wanted to show some co-workers in Des Moines how to use a new piece of software. I could simply stream the demo over Ustream. Much better than me trying to remotely "take over" their desktop.
  • Slide Show. The slide show source allows you to stream still pictures. You can drag pictures to the list from your desktop and even iPhoto.
  • Movie. With the movie source, you can play movies over your broadcast. You can drag in several movies to the play list or select a single movie with the movie selection button. Next Saturday George and I are gonna take another run at streaming live from the Coffee Zone. Instead of just watching us yacking for half an hour, we can play video clips as part of the live feed.
  • Flickr Set. Similar to Slide Show, the flickr set source will fetch pictures from a flickr feed and stream them on your broadcast. Why would you want to do this? I don’t know, but it’s cool.
  • Picture-in-Picture. Once you have your video going, it’s possible to overlay another video source on your video.
  • Chroma Key. Sometimes called a Green Screen. This is typically used to create the appearance that something is behind you, such as a picture or a movie. George and I figured out the other features but I haven’t tried this one yet.

There you have it. An inexpensive webcam; a feature-rich piece of freeware; and –for now– a free streaming solution at Ustream.tv. Do we have any program that’s especially compelling or useful? No. But that will be the easy part. And when it comes up, we’ll be ready to share it with the world.

The Trump Tower of Kennett, MO

Posted on by

Our Man in Kennett, Charles Jolliff forward this digital clip:

“Jan McElwrath, executive director of the Kennett Chamber of Commerce, announced there will be a ribbon-cutting ceremony held at 2 p.m., Monday, May 19, 2008, at the new Ely Walker Apartments. “Although I’m sad to say that Gov. Matt Blunt will be unable to attend, I’m very pleased to say that Ms. Sheryl Crow will make an appearance,” McElwrath said. “So we are expecting a wonderful turnout for this event.”

So, Sheryl Crow is second-choice after the governor? Uh huh.

Before being converted to posh loft apartments, the old Ely Walker building was a shirt factory. I remember walking by on a hot summer day and peering in to watch row upon row of women making shirts. No air conditioning back then and the work looked damned hot. But these were probably pretty good jobs that –like so many others– have moved off-shore. I’m sure my old hometown would like to have them back.

Let’s hope Charles is feeling fit enough to get some pix of SC holding those big scissors.

Twittering the news?

Posted on by

Chucktweek
I don’t know if this is breaking news or something everyone already knows. But AgWired’s Chuck Zimmerman Twittered what might have been news (Chuck’s tweet is the one on top).

When I demo’d Twitter to one of our reporters, all he could see was ("Who cares if someone’s plane is delayed?"). For some the online glass is half full, for others…

UPDATE: More from Lost Remote.

“The next generation doesn’t like radio.”

Posted on by

Jerry Del Colliano is a professor at USC, broadcaster and program director and founder of Inside Radio. And a blogger:

“The next generation doesn’t like radio. Not the stations. Not the concept. There’s simply less need for it in their lives.

New technologies will not only replace radio among the next generation, they already have. And this generation is huge — with as many Gen Y’ers as there are baby boomers.

Without the next generation the radio business will continue to hit the wall. Once the present economic downturn ends — still a long way off — there won’t be enough new young listeners to help radio continue to grow. It becomes a losing proposition. More radio listeners die and fewer new radio listeners use traditional radio.

The next generation wants to stop, start, time-delay and delete its programming. This generation wants to mash it up — have a say in what it sounds like or how it is used. They want to deliver it to each other — share it — at will. They want community (what we used to call local radio) through social networking online.

One of the hardest things for me to deal with in my years of working with the next generation is that they don’t like radio and don’t understand what I like about it. When I describe it, they say what I am describing is not what they hear on the radio.

We’re an industry in denial that technology has changed the game. But only radio people have the power to adapt and create new content for a new generation and on the devices they use.

But to begin, we have to understand that more has changed than how to deliver radio programming. It’s not about the technology. It’s the sociology.”

When I can safely speak to a young person (early teens), I ask them about radio and get pretty much the same responses as Professor Del Colliano. What’s the joke… denial is not just a river in Egypt?