....I had to search today for free software/online apps for boring work purposes, but I might as well disseminate the results....because I know for a fact the some of you have webcams!
ONLINE APPS
Bog basic, no registration, name-your-chat-room-and-go MeBeam
You need to register to use, looks good for educational purposes (though I had some problems linking to another user that only had a headset/no webcam) probably worth the effort in the end! VYEW
I think I like this one best....but time will tell! PalBee
The Archive Hour "The Terrible Truth" Saturday 10 May 2008 20:00-21:00 (Radio 4 FM) when.... "Tom Robinson takes a nostalgic look back at the public service educational publications of the 1950s, 60s and 70s.Record companies and health educators issued a steady stream of documentary albums, radio programmes and films to educate parents and warn the young about the perils of drugs, alcohol and even the opposite sex. Some were broadcast on TV, others sold in record stores, shown in the cinema or projected to giggling children in school assembly. Tom reflects that while the tone and style may have changed, the messages are still relevant and contemporary." The Achive Hour website Should be available on 'Listen Again' for 6 days after broadcast
They say...."Welcome to our online karaoke system where you can start recording your own songs with your microphone. We offer a free service where people can play karaoke online. Simply start singing and our system will record your voice. Other visitors can rate your songs and comment."
.....at the Reg Vardy Gallery, University of Sunderland. Runs until Friday June 6. (Open: Tuesdays 10.00-20.00, Wed-Fri 10.00-18.00) Scents include odours found in a medieval plague doctor’s first aid kit, the smell of the fallout from an atomic bomb, the sweaty stink of a space station, the bouquet of extinct flowers and more. More information here and here
After a long holiday in Gateshead during refurbishment, the Tyneside Cinema re-opens it's doors for business on 22nd May. It opened as the ‘Bijou News-Reel Cinema’ on 1st February 1937, and is now the last news-reel cinema in Britain. Read more about it's history and resurrection to glory here, and there's a photogallery here at the BBC website. I'm hoping they've restored/retained the Tea Rooms menu, when the kids were tots it was the only place I knew where you could get soft-boiled eggs WITH TOAST SOLDIERS! Oh, and there's details of a celebratory free outdoor screening here if you fancy doing a bit of Dirty Dancing over the Spring Bank Holiday weekend here. I'll drone on about the, now sadly missed, Silk Shop next door some other time!
"Kiddie Records Weekly began in 2005 as a one year project devoted to the golden age of children's records. This period spanned from the mid forties through the early fifties and produced a wealth of all-time classics. Many of these recordings were extravagant Hollywood productions on major record labels and featured big time celebrities and composers.".....the project ended up running 3 years with some bonus tracks, and all of them available for download together with cover art. No apologies.....I just like it!
There's a great post (with links to a Flickr photoset) about The Bakelite Museum in Williton, Somerset here at "Nothing to See Here". Short extract....."Stepping in the door is like walking into a 1950s home. There are cookers, toasters, washing machines, and irons interspersed with smaller items like banks, clocks and egg cups."
I suddenly feel the urge to venture south.........
Waste hours at B Movies.com It's a positive celebration of bad dubbing, weak story lines and jumpy editing. Watch online only....so broadband essential.
Haven't tried this one yet, just found it on JayisGames.....looks like it might be worth a try from the description! "the atmosphere is captured fantastically, augmented by the complex and shadowy visuals" and "Otherworldly music sampled from Boards of Canada permeates the black-and-white Samorostian landscapes. No guidance is offered; it is up to the player to figure out what can and what must be done." Apparently only three short levels so far, but more on the way
There's a short video Czech video (1957) here to make your mouth water for the future.....I wouldn't mind one of those fridges! And watch out for the robotic serving trolley at the end
No, surely not! Less than a month to go and the excitement is rapidly building (???) Check out the latest hot news here (eg "Who will join Rodolfo Chikilicuatre on the plane to Belgrade?", now personally, I just can't wait to find out!) Watch the videos and read the press releases, dig out the tinsel and order in a case of Lambrini.
Previous winners can be viewed at Eurovision Winners (videos slow to load.....but you know it's worth it!)
And the wikipedia entry is.......................................................here
Personally, I don't think the UK has ever matched the heights reached by Pearl Carr and Teddy Johnson with "Sing little birdie, sing" in 1959.....we were robbed, only scraped second place!
Free interactive tourist guides to more than 200 destinations worldwide available here You can use them online or download the lot to use on your desktop (big download, broadband recommended).....you can even create your own with the downloaded version (maybe we could do one for Haltwhistle or Whitley Bay!) to embed on a blog or webpage. Newcastle already has (a limited) one. Try Amsterdam or Berlin to see a more fully-developed guide