Sunday Morning, by Beck
June 21st, 2009
John Hodgman at Radio & TV Correspondents’ Dinner, by CSPAN
Hodgman roasts Obama. Funny stuff.
June 20th, 2009
Flickr Camera Finder & The iPhone
One of the projects I worked on briefly when I was at Yahoo! was the Flickr Camera Finder. Most modern cameras capture data about your camera and it’s settings each time a picture is taken. Flickr recognizes that information, known as EXIF data, and can usually determine what model of camera took a photo as well as what settings were used for flash, aperture, exposure, focal length, and other details (example). Camera Finder aggregates that information to a) show people the most popular cameras across all of Flickr based on actual usage, and b) provide sample photos for any particular camera as a research tool for camera buyers (ex. Nikon D90 photos).
As you can see from the top chart, the iPhone will, any day now, become the most popular camera on Flickr, a position that was, until recently, dominated by expensive SLR’s. The bottom chart shows the iPhone’s dominance in the cellphone category specifically. Popularity is expressed as the relative percent of Flickr members using each camera over time. To be fair, the data isn’t complete. For example, some cellphones don’t provide EXIF data, so they aren’t counted in these charts. Nevertheless, it’s pretty clear that cell phones dramatically improved the ease and frequency with which we share images. It’s also clear that iPhone camera usage is exploding and showing no signs of slowing down. I bet the iPhone 3G S will have a similar impact on video in the coming months… not to mention GPS devices, handheld games, remote controls, and a slew of other gadgets.
June 19th, 2009
Glow Doodle
Create long exposure photos and light graffiti shots in seconds using your webcam and this simple software.
The Flaming Lips - Borderline (Madonna Cover)
A cover day Friday bonus video track from The Flamming Lips.
[Flash 9 is required to listen to audio.]
June 18th, 2009
Flickr Mobile: Nearby Photos
Flickr just launched a feature for their mobile site (m.flickr.com) that let’s iPhone (and Android) users see photos taken nearby their current location. This is interesting for a couple reasons…
- Flickr (and any other site) can now access your phone’s GPS location data through the regular Safari iPhone 3.0 web browser instead of requiring a special app.
- Flickr, which is owned by Yahoo!, is using Google Maps on their mobile site :)
You need the latest iPhone 3.0 software installed to see the nearby photos.
Fotopedia
Fotopedia is a collaborative photo encyclopedia, sort of like a visual Wikipedia. This is an example of some photos associated with Yunnan, a province in China that I’m thinking about visiting this summer. The site looks pretty slick (though it’s unclear whether they have permissions for some of the Flickr photos).
Update: An employee from Fotopedia clarified in the comments that all Flickr photos are either under Creative Commons license or were uploaded by the owner. That’s good to hear!
June 16th, 2009
[Flash 9 is required to listen to audio.]
June 15th, 2009
