It’s interesting to see that YouTube has announced it’s move towards bringing a widescreen format to it’s website. Here’s the basic announcement:

We’re expanding the width of the page to 960 pixels to better reflect the quality of the videos you create and the screens that you use to watch them. This new, wider player is in a widescreen aspect ratio which we hope will provide you with a cleaner, more powerful viewing experience. And don’t worry, your 4:3 aspect ratio videos will play just fine in this new player.

This is not the first time widescreen videos have been spotted on YouTube however it’s a definite shift in that this will be the default format and uploads will be expected to follow in this format, even if it’s not what user’s expect.

A number of sites are talking about how this is just one of a number of moves that YouTube is making to start making inroads into the living room. The availability of higher definition movies, full length movies and live streaming all point in this direction. Many items we live with today have managed to become part of our everyday lives, from intelligent shoes all the way down to Christian books. It seems Google is working hard to make YouTube fit into this category, all they need to do now is improve application availability and make sure the Cloud is always available and I’ll be ready to hook up my TV.

I’m watching a great programme on TV called Britain From Above. It’s a great programme that uses visualisations to show the flow of different things around Britain. Here’s the synopsis:

An epic journey revealing the secrets, patterns and hidden rhythms of our lives from a striking new perspective.

Join host Andrew Marr as he discovers how each and every one of us is interconnecting making Britain what it is today.

Britain looks very different from the skies. From a bird’s eye view of the nation, its workings, cities, landscapes and peoples are revealed and re-discovered in new and extraordinary ways.

Cutting edge technology allows you to see through cloud cover, navigate the landscape and witness familiar sights as never seen before.

Recommended. If you get a chance to watch it, do so.

Well, the show is put together by PUA Traning who are in the business of running courses which aim to teach guys “how to seduce, attract and pick-up women”. They run bootcamps, training sessions and even publish books with the aim of turning their students into “pick-up artists”. While I’m lucky enough not to need their services, it was interesting to see that they’ve put together a documentary, not to educate the public, but really as another channel to sell their services and attract new clientèle.

The TV documentary follows Ian, a geek from London, through his training and successes as he is transformed from an inept, babbling fool, to a potential gigolo (well ok, I made that up, but you get the drift). The main thrust of the show, however, is to introduce the company’s services to a wider market and gain maximum exposure, so the whole aim is really to create buzz and make sure people talk about the show.

I personally won’t be following the show, but it may be your thing. Read more about it on their blog here.

I suppose it was only a matter of time before a show like this came about. We’ve all used our blogs to spread news, parts of our life and even gossip and some celebrity blogs out there do read like a TV series. It was a very small jump to come up with an idea for a TV show centered around this idea, especially now that blogs are becoming more and more part of our lives.

I think one of the effects of the show will be to make blogging more prevalent and available to the masses. It’s easy for someone immersed in the blogosphere to assume that everyone knows about blogging, social networks and all the things that surround us. However, the majority of people out there are oblivious to all this and we tend to forget it. I just hope that the show writers are actual bloggers and don’t get their jargon mixed up. I still cringe when I hear some of the technical mumbo jumbo you hear in shows like 24 etc.

Personally I love what Joost are doing. The experience is pretty good and the software nice and easy to use. My friend Rory is actually taking it one step further and is building himself a Joost set-top box. How cool is that?

In the meantime, Joost now has around a million testers and are rolling out the Friends Edition 0.10.9. If you want an invitation, just drop me a comment.

update: Ohh .. just noticed it’s another project by Paul Neave, the same genius who brought us Flash Earth. There’s other goodies on his home page too

Just watched a couple of episodes of Torchwood, the BBC series that was spun off from Doctor Who. Quite impressed, I found the storyline entertaining and the action fast paced. I’ll be watching more in the near future. I’m actually watching them online. You can see them for free here. it’s a YouTube look-alike called Guba

Anyway the service is available for Sky Movies 1 and 2 and Sky Sport, if you current subscription contains these channels (you’ll need to supply your Sky Card Number when you register) and allows you to download programs and watch them at your convenience. Content is protected with a 30-day DRM license, after which you can download the movie again if you want. Still .. excellent way for me to implement VOD at home

Addendum: The webcam is moved from one animal to another every now and again, so you might not get a koala, but you’ll surely see one of their fascinating animals.