The other day, I was about to upload a video on Vimeo when I noticed this note from them:

It says:

Please note: We have changed the way our download feature works. From now on, the original uploaded source file will be removed after one week from the upload date. However, the encoded version will always be available for download.

When I clicked on the Learn More link, it brought me to their blog and there, they explained in detail why they are limiting the usage of this feature to Vimeo Plus (paying) users:

Since the very beginning, Vimeo has retained the original video files that you upload, and allowed you to grant people permission to download those files. We always take these original files and convert them so that they will play online and in the Vimeo player. We kept the original files for download because we wanted you to be able to save your video exactly the way it looked when it left your hard drive. This aspect of the service was not a huge burden on us when the site was younger, but we’ve had to take another look at what we are realistically capable of offering for years to come, while making sure the site stays on budget. Original file storage of every file for every user is a massive cost, and we have noticed that only a very small set of users actually ever download their own files. We want to keep original file storage around as a feature for people who use it, but we can’t continue to do it for everybody.

I’m one of those users who finds original source file downloading very useful. As we all know, converted video files are very much different in terms of quality; source file downloading allows me and my readers/viewers to share raw, high-quality videos in a flash. It allows collaboration with other video bloggers much more manageable. And that’s what I liked about Vimeo – it’s video sharing and file storage rolled into one site.

It’s disappointing because I created Video Chops with a very special feature in mind – to be able to make stock video footage free-for-all to download. This concept is experimental but resorting to Rapidshare downloads is not an option for the site. First, its a waste of upload time (one for video sharing and another for file storage), second, Rapidshare’s free download service just plainly sucks. But then again it’s rare to find free GOOD stuff in the internet nowadays so I saw this one coming.

Vimeo’s reasons are pretty understandable. I know it was a hard decision. But something about their new policy bothered me:

This new one-week policy applies to all basic accounts’ videos uploaded from this point onwards. For videos that were uploaded before this blog post, those original files will be available until August 1st, to give you some time to download them if you need to. After August 1st, those files will also be removed.

It’s one thing that they are removing a pretty nifty feature from basic users but doing it retroactively just leaves a very bad taste to most. I suggest they just leave old source files in their system and start the new policy with newly-uploaded videos. At least the free-users’ panic mode will be reduced to a minimum.

Well it’s not the end yet. The converted video file will still be available for download in mp4 format and Vimeo Plus users won’t be affected by the change. Now, I’m thinking – do I upgrade to Plus for $60 a year? Or do I just stick with the converted (less quality) files? I really don’t have patience (and the time) for other file hosting services.

I’ve had news about this from the show producer, Japs but I still waited for something to come up online before announcing it. And it’s confirmed. Qtube of QTV Channel 11 will be having their Best of Season 1 episode tonight! Here’s their tweet:

Missed out on past episodes? Tonight, we’re bringing back all your favorites in the best of Qtube’s season one! Catch it 10:15 PM tonight.

And great to know that two segments of the show will be about video blogging – featuring yours truly, CokskiBlue and one of Flippish.com‘s hit virals, Workout with Roldan! So tune it, 10:15 tonight guys!

Wanna Change? Wala Nang Change... a play on these phrases produced a character so unique and magnificently-written. Ladies and gentlemen, do I still need to introduce Juana Change?

The first week her first video entitled “Cha-Cha” came out, it generated an impressive 3, 000 views. She was literally an overnight sensation. But Juana is no one-hit wonder. Her impact still engulfs the Youtubesphere as her videos get more controversial and relevant to today’s political issues.

Juana Change, Mae Paner

Kudos to talented actress Mae Paner, who I’ve spotted quite a number of times in great theater productions. I read she has been in PETA (Philippine Education Theater Association) since 1983. Not only that – she already has several successful TV ads and films under her belt. There’s no other person who could encapsulate the color, variety and range of Juana Change’s character which Mae Paner tried and has wonderfully portrayed.

So who really is Juana Change? For those who are new to her work, here’s a good summary of who the character is (from JuanaChange.org):

“Juana Change” is a character who represents the everyday Filipino. She is the street sweeper, the jeepney driver, the government employee, or the overseas Filipino among others. She can also be a congresswoman, a faith healer or a general. She is our mirror. The Convergence Team, a group of creative artists, advocates, activists and communicators developed Juana Change and filmed short “virals” of vignettes that depict what we have become as Filipinos.

In the first week alone of the release of the first viral, more than 3,000 hits were logged on You Tube. To date, there are almost 40,000 hits on the most popular of the series. Immediate interest from major networks, other creative artists, advertising firms and reform groups brought Juana Change to prominence in a very short time. Interviews and features in television and radio both local and international continue to bridge the internet campaign with the broader multimedia audience. More important are the reactions, comments and feedback from Filipinos here and abroad on how they could relate with the character and how they could help work for change. This connection with and call to Filipinos will continue to be the focus of the group as it evolves Juana Change and its broader multi-media campaign.

Here are links to interviews and articles about Juana Change:

Juana Change Blasts Charter Change

10 Questions for Juana Change

YouTube Venue for “Juana Change” Awareness Campaign

Juana Change Satires: A Powerful Awakening of the Filipino Sense

Do you have an article about Juana Change? Let us know and we’ll link you!

Registration with Ms. Aileen Apolo,  and other volunteers. More after the jump! Read the full story

Online video blogging contests have been the latest craze for the past year – usually sponsored by big-time companies who wants their new service promos to spread like wildfire. But rarely do I see a video contest campaign that got the results they really want in terms of volume in entries. I avidly join these competitions and what I notice is that the participants who usually join are either bloggers, plurkers, or tweeters who creates their own videos. And they’re not that many.  Even spending hundreds of thousands on a TV ad is not an assurance of large entry numbers.

Well it seems Globe knows that by now. While I was uploading the latest VideoChops archive clip, I was surprised by a cool flash advertisement on the side bar.

Hey! That’s Paramihan Challenge! And what better way to pick up lots of QUALITY entries than plug it on YouTube right? It makes the most sense, but most haven’t realized the simple brilliance of it. So I guess now we would expect a tougher batch of participants and video makers  – and VideoChops will be on the look out of the ones that rock.

Now meet Johnny Stunts, the main man behind the Paramihan Challenge. Watch how many fishballs he could tusok-tusok with one stick:

How about you? Paramihan ng ano ang kaya mo?

WRITTEN BY MANUEL VILORIA

You know how some Filipinos can be: shy, self-effacing, mahiyain. Most of us tend to receive compliments with awww-shucks and not-really’s instead of the Western “thank you.” And if you point a video cam about us, don’t be surprised to see a hand or shirt or handkerchief shielding one’s face.

So let’s take the a-typical Filipino: a blogger. Imagine, someone willing to expose oneself online. Through the written word at that!

That’s enough to send most Pinoys scampering away. The lack of confidence in writing or in speaking English is evident. You’ll find numerous disclaimers at the start of this or that blog entry, or self put downs in blog comments.

No wonder Pinoy vlogging hasn’t taken off. People are scared to express their thoughts, and are petrified about showing their faces online. Read the full story

WRITTEN BY ARBET BERNARDO

As I was taking pictures during a fire near our place (blog entry here), taking a video came into my head. However, I only had a 64MB M2 loaded in my Sony Ericsson P1i (the bundled 1GB M2 was being used by my brother for the M600i; the phone doubles as his music player), so I was not able to take a video. The phone’s internal memory is actually 160MB.

There is another reason why I did not take a video.

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Video blogging or vlogging is relatively new here in the Philippines. Vlogging is actually blogging using video as medium (as opposed to the traditional text). But why engage in vlogging at all? Read the full story

REPUBLISHED WITH PERMISSION OF JANETTE TORAL

Aileen Apolo started experimenting with podcasting more than a year ago with the Band of Bloggers (BoB) and ventured into video blogging in You Got Tech.

She thinks video blogging is more worth pursuing compared to podcasting. “Because you’ll manage to gain a lot more skills when you do it. Aside from content, you have to contend with editing. Both have their uses and both can be used for educating and entertaining people, making videos though allows you to: Read the full story

WRITTEN BY MICAELA RODRIGUEZ

Ang pagiging blogista mula noong ako’y nasa hayskul ay isa sa mga bagay na sobrang ikinagagalak ko. Sa pamamagitan kasi nito ay naibabahagi ko sa buong mundo ang aking saloobin, opinyon at kung anu-ano pang kuro-kuro ukol sa iba’t ibang bagay – mapa-personal, pulitika, showbiz, lovelife and mga kakornihan.

Naaalala ko noong ako’y nag-umpisa bilang isang blogista. Sa katunayan nga’y hindi ko alam na ‘blog’ pala ang popular na tema para sa mga online journals. Naalala ko pa noong napilitan akong kabisaduhin ang iba’t ibang html codes para lamang maayos ang aking entry sa araw na yun.

Bago ako tumapak sa colegio ay pumunta ako sa livejournal. Halos lahat ng kalokohan ko at mga saloobin ay naroon. Muntikan pa nga akong napahamak dahil sa ilang entries ko doon kaya natutunan ko kung paano ihihiwalay ang mga “bloggable” at “non-bloggable” entries. Read the full story

WRITTEN BY JON MAGAT

Jon: Have you heard about Pinoy vlogging?
aajao: seriously, it was only introduced to me by Coy just this year. Well, vlogging, that is, and since Coy is Pinoy, then I guess he and his “work of art” can together be labeled as Pinoy vlogging, don’t you think so?

Jon: Well, yeah. So what can you say about Pinoy vlogging?
aajao: Ok, let me see… first, I’d like to put into words my amusement in the term “vlogging”. So I’ve learned that it is a shortened term for the two words “video” & “blogging”. From the words combined, I can easily define that vlogging is an online anecdote of the authors life (or adventures) posted in video. In this case the author is not only considered as a plain author of his blog but also an artist. Read the full story