Amid the destruction that Hurricane Sandy has unleashed on the East Coast, it’s also responsible for a lot of misinformation being passed around the Internet by people rubber-necking the storm via social media.
Here in Fresno, we go outside and see sunny skies and 80-degree temperatures. So when your mom shares something on Facebook that she got from someone she knew 20 years ago, it’s easy to believe it’s legit. We can’t just look out the window and know better. Besides, when did Mom ever lie to you?
However, many of the pictures getting passed most frequently are, at worst, totally Photoshopped or, at best, being used in the wrong context. This includes the original version of the now meme-ized pic above. The original, with a sky from Nebraska looking down ominously at Lady Liberty, is still the first thing that comes up in a Google Images search for “Hurricane Sandy.”
Happy day for those looking for a quick recap on everything they’ve missed on the Internet thus far: cat videos, weird babies, people falling down, Antoine Dodson — it’s all below, set to Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody.” Enjoy.
Well, here’s one way to make money off the Internet: the city of Philadelphia has started charging bloggers $300 for the privilege of documenting what they had for dinner, and how they felt about the ending of “Lost.”
The city reasons that any blog with the potential to make money is fair game, so they want a cut, demanding bloggers pay for a privilege business license, plus taxes on any profits they may have made from ads. The problem is, most blogs make little to no money at all — far less than the $300 charge — yet the city doesn’t care. Their reasoning: “simply choosing the option to make money from ads — regardless of how much or little money is actually generated — qualifies a blog as a business.”
What do you think? Is this a fair way for Philadelphia to raise capital? Should other cities, cities like Fresno that also are cash-strapped and have a blogging community, follow suit?
Remember Antoine Dodson, who became an instant star when news footage of him giving the greatest eyewitness account ever made its way across the Internets? As what usually happens on the Internet, that footage has been taken and enhanced, auto-tune style. Check it out:
In case you’re wondering, Antoine has been made aware of his new star status, and is taking it all in stride.
Seriously, Vh1, where is that reality show already?
Why is the guy from “Office Space” just now jumping on the Keyboard Cat meme? Maybe because he’s still only known as the guy from “Office Space,” a movie that came out 11 years ago.
You may not realize it, but YouTube is a helpful resource for many of life’s problems. For example, if you’re a mother bear, and your precocious cub gets stuck up a tree, you can turn to YouTube for answers on how to get it down. Observe:
Bonus lesson: if you’re a human being trying to escape a bear attack, do not climb a tree.
As we told you yesterday, Fresno submits its proposal to Google this afternoon, saying why we should be the test market for its ultra high-speed Google Fiber Internet service.
Part of it is this eight-minute video pitch with local leaders explaining why Fresno is a great fit for Google. It also includes a bunch of the community pictures and videos generated online. The video is quite impressive, if you ask me. Bravo to all involved in it.
Remember, there’s a rally today at 1 p.m. at City Hall. Bring signs!
IN OTHER FRESNO FIBER NEWS:
A new study released this morning ranks Fresno fourth among cities making noise online about Google Fiber. We were No. 6 last week. The study says our online presence has increased 174%. Duluth, MN leads and Grand Rapids, Mich. is second.
The City of Fresno is officially submitting its Google Fiber application on Thursday and there’s a corresponding rally at City Hall at 1 p.m. People are encouraged to bring their “I Want My Google Fiber” signs. One person will get picked to hit the “submit” button.
Fresno’s Google Fiber campaign has picked up a lot of steam since we last talked about. The Facebook page has more than 8,500 fans, which is not only one of the biggest for any city, but it’s also the largest Fresno-related page or group on Facebook.
If you haven’t seen them yet, here are some of the cool videos that people in the community have made for the Fiber Fresno effort:
How often have you, whilst in the middle of some dispute or another, wished you could publicly shame and abuse your adversary until they bent to your will? Like, all the time, right? Well, the tactic of public humiliation seems to have worked for a soccer mom in Pasadena who was having trouble with her local Volvo dealer.
When Freya Svensson couldn’t get Volvo to accept responsibility for giving her a faulty transmission, she took to the Internets, creating a blog, taking to Facebook and Twitter, and creating a series of YouTube videos in which she dons a Viking helmet and sings about her experience:
Long story short: the attention Svensson received for her efforts seems to have worked. Now Svensson is offering helpful tips on how to receive better care for those with Volvos, and her story is serving as a good lesson for those without Volvos who feel they, too, are being screwed in some way.
It’s been awhile since I’ve found something on the Internet worth wasting the precious minutes of my day on. Happily, three amazing sites have come into my life today, guaranteeing me at least fifteen whole minutes of Internetty entertainment (or Intertainment — woo pah!).
The first, which is not safe at all for work unless you work from home or have a cool boss who doesn’t give a s*** about swear words, is called F*** Yeah Neil Patrick Harris. The appeal of this site is obvious:
Ah, the Internet. Has there ever been a better medium for asserting one’s superiority over others? I mean, from the comfort of mom’s basement your home, you can sit at your computer and destroy others’ lives with your superior knowledge and unmatched ability to cut people down. Funsies!
To keep the proud flaming tradition going, I’m offering up a very quick guide to spelling errors most frequently made in the comments section of this blog. Learn these easy spelling rules, and not only will others be daunted by your amazing wit, they’ll think you finally mastered fourth grade.
Here it is, quick and dirty. Feel free to print this out and tape it to your monitor for quick reference. (Disclaimer: I’m by no means an expert in grammar or spelling. I did, however, finish elementary school.)
Found a new site today that has already taken up at least 1525 45 minutes of my time with its voyeuristic, Internet-y goodness.
It’s called Texts From Last Night (warning: language nsfw), and it has shown me just how much more fun than me everyone in the country is having. How do I know it’s everyone in the country? The texts are submitted with accompanying area codes. A few examples:
(805): Dude?? where did you go after Wildcats last night? Last I heard you went off with one of the girls we danced with?
(1-805): Negative – This is his GF, Bobby is in Jail for a DUI. Thanks for the info.
(317): I swear to god I’m with a high end prostitute right now and shes the most interesting person I’ve ever met. She just took me in to share an evening.
(317): And as an added bonus she seems to have gotten a blood stain out of my favorite t-shirt
I’ve always wanted to have a blog that called out people who don’t know how to park their cars. I’d post pictures of how crappily people park so we could all laugh at them, thus quelling the urge to actually key their car.
Today I encountered an even better calling-out-lame-ass-people blog. It’s called (get ready for this mouthful) People Who Sit In The Disability Seats When I’m Standing On My Crutches. Aside from perhaps the longest blog name, I’ve ever heard, PWSITDSWISOMC also provides us with pictures of the offenders, should you want kick them in the knees:
