Posted by admin on Jul 22, 2010 in
news,
technology 
The premise behind ChatRoulette was fiendishly simple. Utilise the webcam that’s built into most people’s computers and add an element of sex to it. Rather than create a paid for service, Andrey Ternovskiy decided to create a live version of the popular hot or not game, where users log on to flirt with each other and ‘next’ anyone they don’t find attractive or interesting. Annoyingly, the site is pretty much useless for anyone who doesn’t want to watch masturbation, as a quick play around reveals that 90% (a completely made up statistic) of users seem to be men.
Nonetheless, there’s something about this level of instant interaction that’s appealing, and if used correctly could be really positive. Healcam is a brand new service (barely been launched a month) which aims to take the premise of instant video chat to a new level, by putting people with various illnesses in touch with each other. Sure, if you have Diabetes or Cancer you already have a ton of support groups and forums, but that doesn’t mean you get to chat face to face with someone whenever you feel like it. Counselling sessions need to be scheduled, appointments made- sometimes you just want a one on one with someone who understand your issues.
It’s completely free to use the site, you simply go to the Healcam website, select your sex, say whether you’d like to talk to a male, female or ‘anyone’ and then choose your condition. At present there are 5 to choose from: Back &Neck, Diabetes, Cancer, Pregnancy and Childbirth, and Heart Disease. There’s a button saying sub topic next to them, but only the Diabetes one expands into the options of Type 1 and Type 2 (guessing this will expand as their user base grows). Their blog does mention that they will have health channels that will include ‘Weight Loss & Dieting’ and ‘Depression’, but at present they’re not on the site yet.
The concept is fantastic, and I’m hoping that the people who use the site will respect that, and that we will find those willing to share information and advice about their conditions to those who need it.
The Healcam creators say, ‘We envision the site as a large meeting place, where people can exchange information, get or give moral support, and learn from others’. It’s a resource I can imagine using, so I’m hoping others will feel that way.
The next step is working out whether the site will be able to keep afloat from advertising. Considering the topics involved, monetizing it once it gets popular should be fairly simple, as I’m sure many charities and organizations would want to get behind this.
The main problem will be assessing the potential of abuse that could happen if people give others bad advice, as that could prove dangerous to people with medical conditions. As long as the site is used therapeutically and not as a replacement for a doctor I see no reason why this shouldn’t do very well.
At present there are very few users, but as this gains popularity I’m hoping a huge community will spring up.
Check out Healcam here.
Source: Medgadget
Tags: Andrey Ternovskiy, Chatroulette, Healcam, health help
Posted by admin on Jul 18, 2010 in
books,
lists 
Sorry for overwhelming you with information, but there hasn’t seemed a right time to publish my latest literary forays. Seeing as it’s now July, I better just go ahead and publish what I’ve read for the months of March-June, which explains why there is so much to wade through. This is really a record for me, I totally understand if you just look at the pictures and skip away to something more entertaining like a dog on a surfboard.
Before I launch into my latest selection of mini reviews let me also draw your attention to an amazing offer from Transworld. Called ‘The Summer Reading Challenge’, the offer gives keen readers a whopping four books FREE, and all you have to do in return is write a review of each book on your blog or Amazon. That’s all, nothing else needed whatsoever, and to get your free books you simply leave a comment on Between the Lines HERE and they’ll get in touch with you. There’s a choice of ten to pick from, and I promise you that Dan Brown is the bottom of the pile (in my opinion). Now for the reviews (please take a deep breath). Read more…
Tags: Brandon Sanderson, Girl with a Dragon Tattoo, Mistborn Trilogy, Terri Paddock, The Summer Reading Challenge, Transworld
Posted by admin on Jul 9, 2010 in
random 
{National Velvet was a tad confused at the latest foal to hit the stables}
Now I don’t know too much about beauty pageants per se, my main experience is relying on the fact that I’ve watched way to many ‘Next Top Model’s, and at 17 years old was Runner Up Carnival Queen for the London Borough of Barnet. I lost the crown due to the fact that I naively said my favourite food was ‘Pizza Hut!’ (hey, I was 17) when the event was sponsored by McDonalds, but I have some idea of the intricacies of the judging process, and the hoops you go through to try and get their attention.
Pet shows have always been a bit of an odd event, as unless it’s something like dressage for horses, it seems to boil down to ‘My dog is better than yours’, cue lots of shine spray and ribbons. Fair enough if you do it sensibly, the dogs won’t mind being pampered, and everyone likes a trophy, but the world of Creative Grooming is so far removed from reality that I can’t decide if it’s villainous, voyueristic or simply vacuous.
Creative Grooming is the art of dressing up your pet to LOOK LIKE ANOTHER ANIMAL and they don’t do this with cute little kitten ear hats or drawn on whiskers, I’m talking full on body dye and weird shavings!! And now it’s here in the UK… Read more…
Tags: Creative Grooming, USA Dog shows
Posted by admin on Jun 19, 2010 in
news,
style,
technology 
As a journalist I get asked all too frequently what I think of this ‘3D rubbish’. The statement is then normally qualified with ‘well, I know it takes a lot in the box office,’ and then I’m looked at expectantly like I’m suddenly going to drop some amazing secret or share my wisdom on what the next big thing to replace the ‘3D phenomena’ is.
I got rather sick of trying to explain that 3D probably wasn’t going anywhere and that the main reason people get frustrated by 3D was the WAY they had to view it, as both anaglyph and active shutter glasses require -you got it, glasses. Then there are the EXTREMELY PRICEY TV’s that require no specs, but hey, you can only view them from a really small field of vision, so that’s not too helpful now.
Having given this topic a rather huge amount of thought, I’ve now come up with what I feel is a reasonable, if vaguely Matrixy conclusion.
It’s the glasses folks. It’s not about replacing them, it’s about creating some which become so essential to everyday life that they’re part of the shower and shave routine- wake, teeth, glasses, breakfast.
Read more…
Tags: 3D, 3D glasses, 3DTV, designer 3D glasses, future of 3D, Gucci 3D glasses, RealID, Vuzix glasses
Posted by admin on Jun 13, 2010 in
news,
opinion 
Every summer it happens. With minimum warning and fanfare, TV suddenly becomes a ‘blokes only zone’, matches are played with pomp and honour, and silence must reign in case one was to miss an all important stumble or kick. Of course, this tends to only apply to the non football fan, as it is fine for the fan themselves to groan, grasp and burp their way through unseasonabley long games. There are banners in every pub, glowing footballs in the supermarkets and dubious songs on the radio.
People speak in hushed tones about ‘football widows’ those poor aimless creatures who are left on the shelf and have to retire from any partner based activity till the season is over. A widow refers to anyone partnered with fan, so it can equally go the other way (and yes, I agree that’s a sexist term, but that’s not the point I’m making now).
These poor pathetic football widows must spend the football time crawling through ASOS online and trying to find outfits that will entice their no good halves away from the screen, for just a short while.
Really? Like, really? I understand that if you’re ACTUALLY A PLAYER then yes, your partner will get short shrift in the season, but as for all the fans, uh uh. If you’re into the game enough to forgo any sort of fun with your partner, then what the hell are you doing with them? You shouldn’t absolve yourself of all priorities when you get in a relationship, but putting TV over them, c’mon? Read more…
Tags: Football Widows, World Cup Football
Posted by admin on May 27, 2010 in
lists,
technology 
There are many things in life that are boring but necessary. These include taking out the garbage, having a cleaning rota if you share a house, and making sure you see the dentist once or twice a year. To go with those lovely mundane chores I have a selection of yawn inducing websites for you to peruse, that will nonetheless prove invaluable should you need any of their services. Entertainment definitely not included, but service is free.
Opening Times
It’s 10.50pm on a Saturday, you’re starving for a pizza, yet reluctant to pay an over inflated price for a grease ridden delivery. You know there’s a Tesco just round the corner, but will it be open? After ten minutes of debating it ‘Maybe’ ‘Maybe not’ ‘Umm’ you decide to search for it online. Once you’ve navigated through the Tesco website, narrowed you locale down by town and borough and then edited out the metro versions, whaddya know? It’s 12.01 and it’s most definitely shut.
Opening Times lists the various local businesses in your area and will give you a definite yes/no and till what time for anywhere you should choose to go. You’d be surprised how useful this is when nipping out for some emergency ice cream/toilet roll, but it most definitely comes under ‘boring’ in terms of websites. Read more…
Tags: boring websites, opening times, useful times
Posted by admin on May 11, 2010 in
beauty,
lists,
opinion 
I’ve been sitting on this post for a while for fear of offending any of my friends in the beauty PR world* but a recent rise in particularly impressive events has lead me to believe that a post like this could only be viewed as constructive. I’ve worked online for many years now in a variety of sectors, and whilst ‘meetups’ in other areas such as technology have been widely accepted for years now (probably due to the face that the web is a technological phenomenon) other sectors have been less than ready to accept the blogosphere as a reputable form of journalism. To ease confusion I will say that by blogs I encapsulate EVERYTHING from company run websites such as Cosmopolitan.com and Handbag.com to smaller sites such as www.Cultbeauty.co.uk, www.Kissandmakeup.tv and people who blog personally- every bit as professional, but not necessarily full time, such as British Beauty Blogger or Lipglossiping. To an extent one could even argue that those who blog personally are less restricted by advertising demands and the requirements of their companies, and are therefore either more honest or more in depth (due to no time constraints but that’s a whole other post.
Suffice to say, PR companies are now getting on board with bloggers and are hosting more and more events tailored specifically to this domain. I can’t applaud this more, it shows creativity, innovation and suggest that companies are embracing rather than being scared of new media. Just because you have an idea though, doesn’t always mean it’s implemented right, no matter how good the intention may have been. Here is my short guide on the things that companies are doing right and a couple of points on what they could do better.
Good things to Do.
Number One: Think about the Timing of The Event- and the Location
A meetup is all well and good, and a really nice way for the PR’s to get to know bloggers, and bloggers to meet each other in person. However many bloggers do NOT work full time and scheduling an event in the middle of the day means you’re automatically ruling out a majority of attendees. It’s a lovely plan, but you have to think realistically, and if it’s the bedroom bloggers you want to reach, and evening, or dare I say it-weekend- would be much more ideal. How are you planning for people who live out of town? Whilst major media outlets may be primarily based in London, for an event you’ll be bringing together from all over the country, so be prepared to offer travel expenses, or miss out on some high profile attendees
Number Two: Give them Images..of EVERYTHING!
Bloggers and web editors have one major thing in common- we work online. C’mon, that should be simple enough to figure out! So help us help you- give us IMAGES in JPEGs, CD’s, USB drives, we don’t mind, just give them to us NOW and don’t fill our bags with paper releases. Don’t promise to send us emails later, and then forget, hand us a USB stick with all the pics we could ever need. Make sure everything you say is there is ACTUALLY there, and if it’s not tell us why. If a product is an exclusive to someone, tell us why we don’t have the image, don’t let us run all the way home and then be infuriated when we load up our computer. Read more…
Tags: beauty blogger meetup, Beauty Bloggers, Beauty blogging