This month’s theme is the Internet. Writing an Internet column with an Internet theme is always an interesting challenge, so this month I’m going to write about a phenomenon that is ­literally sweeping the Internet, and that is video sharing. I last wrote about video sharing websites in April 2007, and then it was about video sharing in the context of social networking. Since then however, so much has changed and video sharing has gotten so much more popular and easier to do.

What exactly is video sharing, and how does it work? In short, video sharing refers to websites where users can upload their video clips for viewing over the Internet, which a ­visitor to the site can view in a normal web browser. There are essentially three types of websites for ­sharing, that being open sharing where anyone can upload anything, and anyone else can view it immediately. Reviewed content, where content is formally ­reviewed before it is made available (which kind of makes the site work more like a ­traditional TV site, but with user-generated content), and ­private sharing sites where a user can decide who can view their content. Within that, many sites have options for private sharing and other publication options. Some websites will charge for their services, but the majority of them offer it for free.

How do you do it? You can share videos in three simple steps.

1. Shoot your video: Nowadays this is really such an easy thing to do. You find this feature in so many common ­electronic items: digital cameras, webcams, cell phones, the list goes on. Once you’ve got your video, connect your ­device to your PC and copy over the video file.
2. Upload your video: Once you have your video file open a browser and go to the sharing site you’d like to use (see below). Register for an account and upload your video file.
3. Share: Let your friends know that you’ve shared a video and where they can see it.

These are some of my favourite video sharing sites and tools. Some are a little obscure, but are so very handy to use once you get into this.

• My Video – www.myvideo.co.za
  This is a South African focused site with a definite South African flavour. Nice content.
• Singing Fish – www.singingfish.com
  This site is a video search engine. It doesn’t host videos, but lets you search for videos.
• JumpCut – www.jumpcut.com
  This is a sharing site which also has an editor. Any file ­uploaded is converted to a movie, which you then use the web-based editor to rearrange, add titles, effects & more.
• Stash Space – www.stashspace.com
  Like JumpCut, this site also allows you to share and edit videos online. This is an excellent option for you to do basic video editing without having to buy software to do it.
• Megavideo – www.megavideo.com
  A fun sharing site based in Hong Kong. These guys are fast becoming popular.
• Usual Suspects – www.youtube.com, video.yahoo.com, www.flickr.com
  These guys are the big players in this space. Always worth a visit with lots of content.

Send your comments to lance@brandedinternet.co.za.