Look Ma I'm on TV
by Gary Woods

We are closer now to realizing Andy Warhol's famous statement that everybody will get 15 minutes of fame than we've ever been before. YouTube.com has made it possible for everybody to put their likeness on the Internet for everyone else to admire.

To help you make that moment of fame happen for yourself I found the Flip Video 1GB (http://www.theflip.com/) which retails for $150 which will give you 1 hour of recorded video and there's also a 512 MB version that retails for $99 which will give you 30 minutes.

The Flip is designed just for the YouTube generation who doesn't need to impress people with High Definition reproductions on 60 inch 1080p TV Sets. But it does give you a 640X480 image that will look just fine on your computer.

The really cool part of the Flip is the built-in USB connector which copies the videos to your PC. There's also a program that's stored on the unit that will allow you to view, edit or share your videos. You can upload directly to YouTube or Grouper.com from the device and even send an email notification to your friends and family that you've just posted your latest work of art.

The only un-cool part of this little program is that it appends a little commercial for the Flip Video to the end of your pictures. So get on it and start taking those pictures to let the rest of us see what you're up to.

If you have any suggestions or questions for me please drop me a note at garyandlaury@santabarbaraproperties.com or see my column on the Internet at http://www.santabarbaraproperties.com or call me at (805) 729-0910