| | |  Technology News 
Smile – You Could Be On an Internet Camera
 Steven Hill - Squamish Chief
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January 15, 2010
| | Live Cams: The world at your fingertips! | |
Today I spent some time watching Shamu the killer whale swim around in his enclosure at Sea World in San Diego.
Actually he could be a she, but what do I know about killer whales? Hopefully, they know the difference or there are bound to be a whole lot of awkward moments around the pod water cooler the next day.
After I got bored of that, I checked out what people were eating at a restaurant in Louisiana, before heading to Place des Arts in Montreal to look at the snow-filled streets of my old hometown.
The neat bit was I never had to leave the comfort of my home or change out of my Batman pajamas.
Indeed, I’m talking about the interesting, strange and slightly creepy world of live streaming Internet cameras. You should have already gotten that from the headline, but I had to do all that lead up so I could prove my parent’s funding of journalism school wasn’t a total waste of money.
In case you’ve not encountered one yet while zipping down the double lane information super expressway, a live streaming web cam lets you view certain people, places and things 24/7 online.
And, yes, you’ll certainly find a lot of cams of the adult variety out there as well, but there are a lot more interesting and sometimes-bizarre things to see in the non-naked world.
I had perused a couple such web cams in the past, like when I was anticipating a trip to Mexico and kept a link to a live Puerto Vallarta web cam in my bookmarks.
It was great to see, real-time, the waves rolling in and the palm trees swaying in the tropical breeze. You could almost smell the salt air and taste the guacamole.
But I hadn’t really thought about streaming cams until I recently purchased a new app (application) for my iPhone called Live Cams.
For the low, low price of $1.99, Live Cams gives you access to some 3,000 streaming cams from all over the world – right in the palm of your hand.
From bars and restaurants to beaches, attractions, traffic cameras and more, you’ll find hours of voyeuristic thrills watching people and places from all over the world with this little program.
In addition to being able to drop in on Shamu or watch diners in New Orleans whenever you want, Live Cams also lets you add your own computer’s web cam to your list of viewable cameras. This allows you to check in on your home from an iPhone anywhere in the world.
If you don’t have an iPhone, you can still launch your favourite browser and Google “live streaming web cams” or any variant thereof. Just skip the ones with a trio of Xs and you’re bound to find something that tickles your fancy.
Some cams even allow you to control them remotely! Imagine moving a live camera around a beach in Italy from your living room in Sea to Sky Country. I did just that yesterday.
And while trying to ascertain Shamu’s gender from a blurry and pixilated web cam, or watching someone’s pet’s sleep, or a bunch of Korean family eating may not be your idea of a good time, you may be surprised by what you do find interesting to watch.
Give it a try, and remember to smile the next time you’re out in a public place. Thousands of people just may be watching you on an Internet camera.
quix_ote(at)hotmail.com
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