music Software that makes learning the piano easy and fun! Fun music Software. -

As you may have seen in the news, YouTube received a court order to produce viewing data from our database, including usernames and IP addresses. In order to protect our community’s privacy, we strongly opposed this motion when Viacom and others filed it. The court felt differently and ordered us to produce the data. Viacom said that they need general viewing information to determine the proportion of views on YouTube of copyright infringing content vs. non-infringing content. Of course, we have to follow legal process. But since IP addresses and usernames aren’t necessary to determine general viewing practices, our lawyers have asked their lawyers to let us remove that information before we hand over the data they’re seeking. (You should know, IP addresses identify a computer, not the person using it. It’s not possible to determine your identity solely based on your IP address. Rather, an IP address can reveal what geographic area you’re connecting from, or which Internet service provider you’re using.) Why do we keep this information in the first place? It helps us personalize the YouTube experience, getting you closer to the videos you most want to watch. We have many features on the site that help users discover and share compelling content, and we’re improving the video experience through recommendations, related videos, and personalized directories that help you find meaningful videos. We’ll continue to fight for your right to share and broadcast your work. The court did impose some encouraging limits — they agreed with us that Viacom should not have access to private videos or our search technology. Also, the information we provide will be designated highly confidential under court order and only Viacom’s outside counsel and experts will have access to it. Legal matters aside, our focus remains on providing you with the best possible YouTube experience and we continue to be committed to protecting your privacy. Every day, millions of creative people from around the world are posting new, original content. You, our community, are creating the YouTube experience now and tomorrow. Sincerely, The YouTube Team

Ricoh announces GX200 camera (update)
Ricoh has today unveiled the 12-million-pixel GX200 digital compact to succeed the Caplio GX100 model.

Last Chance to Hit the “Freeway”
Last month, singer-songwriter Aimee Mann asked to hear your versions of her song “Freeway” for the chance to perform with her on her U.S. tour later this summer. (Ten runners-up will get an autographed copy of her new CD, @#%&*! Smilers.) Since then, amazing entries have come in from assorted robots, aliens, and talented Aimee fans - some of you even hit the highway to record your own version of the song. Well, the deadline to enter is Monday, July 7 (aka NOW!), so get out your instrument of choice and take a crack at it. (Don’t forget you can download the sheet music, lyrics and instrumental version of the song from Aimee’s website here. ) Here’s Aimee singing the official version of the song to show you just one way it could be done: Good luck! Michele K-Tel YouTube music

Photograph your favourite things’ challenge
Amateurs can win the chance to have their images exhibited and sold to the public in a contest challenging them to photograph their favourite things’.

The YouTube Screening Room: Round 2
It’s been two weeks since the launch of The YouTube Screening Room, and that can only mean one thing: a fresh batch of short films for your viewing pleasure. For those of you who missed the initial announcement, The YouTube Screening Room is our new platform to help top films from around the world find the audiences they deserve. So far, hundreds of thousands of YouTubers have checked out the films, and thousands more have left comments. We hope you’ll enjoy the second round of films as much as you enjoyed the first. “The Clap,” from the UK, tells the comic story of a music aficionado who finds a unique way to celebrate his favorite performer. “The Big Empty,” from the US, stars Selma Blair as a young woman searching for a cure to her inner ache. “I Met the Walrus,” from Canada, is the beautiful animated tale of a 14-year-old Beatle fan’s real-life encounter with John Lennon. Finally, “School of Life,” from the UK, follows a schoolboy as he learns life’s most important lesson. Stay tuned for our third round of films, debuting in two weeks on July 18. Finally, for those of you interested in being featured in the YouTube Screening Room, email ytscreeningroom@youtube.com. Happy viewing, YouTube film

New GPS gadget for digital SLR cameras revealed
A Global Positioning Satellite (GPS) receiver designed to attach to the hotshoe of digital SLRs is predicted to help trigger a geotagging’ revolution.

Amateur photographer scores a victory at Euro 2008
An amateur photographer has triumphed in a competition run by organisers of the Euro 2008 football tournament. Picture credit: Jan Kostal

Mobile Tricks videos: What can you do with your phone?
Our friends over at Google Mobile have started a new YouTube channel called Mobile Tricks. They want to know what you can do with your cell phone, and start you off with a guy who’s a bit obsessed with them. Look familiar? You might have seen him before in a unitard. They’re asking for all kinds of tricks, from the useful to the completely ridiculous, and they can be with or without Google Mobile products. To submit a video, start and end it with these slides, and submit it to their channel page. They’re putting the best submissions in their playlists and blogging about their favorites, and we put one of our favorites on the YouTube home page over the weekend holotext messaging. For further inspiration, here’s a video about how to save America with your phone (thanks to davestonedesign) and the WillItBlend guys doing what they do best. Now show us what you ve got! The YouTube Team

Sony’s new sensor ‘doubles’ sensitivity
Sony has developed a new CMOS imaging sensor which it claims will nearly double light sensitivity and deliver lower noise in digital cameras.

This entry was posted on Monday, July 7th, 2008 at 1:18 pm and is filed under Video Links. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.