BitCoins: The World's 1st Digital Currency

With the current world economic climate, it's becoming clear that the American dollar, among other currencies, is becoming weaker and weaker as our domestic and foreign policies continue to falter. As this happens, inflation rises, prices go up and income goes down, the world looks for a new way to acquire goods. In the beginning days, everyone provided for themselves, and bartered for everything else. If you didn't have it, someone else did, and you'd better have something that they wanted if you wanted it. Then came bullion or gold used as a medium for transaction, where the weight of the gold indicated its value. As the world began to run short of gold, they began using fractional value to create the paper money that we use today. Finally, as paper money grew thin, the credit market arose so that if you didn't have it now, you could pay it back later (debatable). Now that the credit market is beginning to fall apart due to speculation and over-borrowing, it seems as if online is the way to go, as is the case with most things nowadays.

Enter BitCoins: the world's first digital currency. The coins are generated through an algorithm that will only allow for 21 million by 2040. Additionally, bitcoins can’t be frozen (like a PayPal account), can’t be tracked, can’t be taxed and have extremely low costs as opposed to credit. The resulting feeling is that bitcoins will be a viable alternative to physical or credit-based money, given the world governments don't crack down on them, which is becoming more likely as of late. PayPal and the credit card companies have already halted their transfer, as they cannot (or do not want to) exchange currencies legally. Additionally, governments seem poised to take action against them because bitcoins completely eradicate the need to use gold or federally-based forms of currency. Also, at around $6.70 per bitcoin, the average person would never take that risk. Yet the idea is an enthralling one. It's taking the power away from the government and putting it in the hand of the user. Also, it can be used on the black market to buy anything from drugs to playing poker, so the government also has vested interest in taking them out. Overall, I can see this idea only taking shape if governments are willing to admit that their money is losing its worth. Maybe by that time, I'll have saved up enough bitcoins where I won't need dollars...

Blackberry Playbook

Remember about a week and change ago when I said the first round of 'iPad killers' would be making their way into the mainstream in the coming months? The first one was the Samsung Galaxy Tab was the first one to hit the market, and now, the good people over at RIM have prepared their answer to the iPad: the Blackberry Playbook. Billed as the first 'Professional tablet,' ironically the Playbook is going to be an 'amazing gaming platform' according to Research in Motion co-CEO Mike Lazaridis. That's a big departure from the usually business-oriented Blackberry mantra, but I'm interested to see how they pull it off. The Playbook will have Flash out of the box, so that immediately puts it at an advantage over the iPad. In addition, the Playbook has an impressive spec list that clearly outdoes the iPad, with a 1 GHz processor, 1 GB of RAM, and a bigger screen. The Playbook also features a front-facing camera for video chatting over either a 3G or 4G network. The introduction of the Playbook might be a lost cause considering the iPad's hold on the market, but then again, what's a market without options? Not to mention, the Playbook looks pretty and polished. Check out some flicktures and rendering in the video...

Looxcie Bluetooth Camera

Think someone's just on a Bluetooth idly chatting with what seems to be themselves? Think again. For those moments that you want to record, but can't see yourself lugging around a video camera, there's the Looxcie personal video recorder. You wear the Looxcie just like you would a Bluetooth earpiece, and when you want to record, you just turn on the camera to get 30 seconds of video. The idea looks interesting, especially because you can instantly upload those videos to Youtube, Facebook or Twitter from your phone. Speaking of phones, the Looxcie functions as a regular Bluetooth headset. The video quality is mediocre, but the possible applications for the Looxcie are attractive. Live video blogging and World Star Hip-Hop can definitely make use of this. Check out the Looxcie in action...

Catfish (2010)

Everyone, their mom, aunt, cousin, and dog are clamoring about the Aaron Sorkin-directed 'The Social Network', which is improperly being dubbed the 'Facebook movie', when in all actuality, that movie is about Facebook's creation, not the phenomena stemming from it. I stumbled upon the trailer for 'Catfish' while watching 'The Last Exorcism' (terrible movie; don't waste the $12.50), and was immediately drawn to the movie's portrayal of what would be called 'computer love' these days. 'Catfish' follows a young New York City photographer who begins an online relationship with a woman he's never met, after her younger sister sends him a moving piece of art. The woman turns out to be everything short of a perfect dream, until he decides to try and meet his online love, with mysterious results. Apparently, the ending is nothing short of a mind-bending, heart-crushing revelation, indicative of society's obsession with online interaction. This movie looks to be one hell of a thriller. Maybe I'll check it out before I see 'The Social Network'...

The Internet World Map

You ever wonder where everyone's internet allegiances lie? By that, I mean the random social networks and websites that everyone frequents. Well, here it is people. The Internet World Map. On this map, there lies every major social network and website, complete with a bunch of different municipalities, bodies of water and populations of each. This is so funny because it makes the internet look like an imperialist world, which it is. Companies vie for bragging rights and revenue as they try to increase theit populations and conquer their nearby rivals. Notice, that Google has an outpost almost everywhere in the internet world. That's not a coincidence... Nor is the massive amount of land they have compared to the rest of the internet. If I had to put money on who is winning the Internet World War, Google would be my guess, though Facebook might put up a pretty good fight. Whatever the case, check out the Internet World Map, and see where you would reside if websites were countries...

Antoine Dodson: The REMIX

The funniest part about most viral videos that hit the internet isn't always the videos themselves, but sometimes the spin-offs, remixes, and responses that come with them. From mashups between videos, to reaction videos, and ultimately to remix videos, they've got it all on Youtube. In this case, we've got the story of Antoine Dodson, and his epically heated warning to the perpetrator in his sister's attempted rape. The man, who's... let's say... a bit zestier than most had some harsh words for the criminal, which were turned into an autotune track. As much as autotune might leave your ears ringing, you can't deny how hilarious this remix is. Antoine's head motions look like he's really in a music video, neck snapping and everything. What's crazier is the fact that he's relishing his newfound web fame, complete with Facebook fan page, and of course, the remixes. Check out Antoine Dodson: REMIXED....

Dear Readers (re: the Black Weblog Awards)

One of my favorite songs, and a reason to beg you guys for nominations...

PREAMBLE: I realized a few weeks ago, that I've never written a letter to you guys, the readers of Dear Whoever. That's my bad. You'd think that after a year and a half, I'd have something witty and poignant to say to the people that I do this for. I suppose when you're that focused on putting out good content, the reaction doesn't really matter as much. Regardless, here goes...

Letter readers of the blogosphere, it's been exactly 1 year and 3 months since I typed my first words into Blogger under the guise of Junior, aka the Mailman, bka Everic. My first letter was a stinging diatribe about the ills of Drexel University and the many gripes I had about the school I'm still attending. While my writing's gotten a lot less profane, it's still very cutting in its criticism and flowery in description. When I started Dear Whoever as themailmancame.blogspot.com, I never knew I'd be doing this a year from now, much less that I'd have plans to continue doing it (much more to come, people!) in the foreseeable future. One thing I've gained from writing this blog is a sense of consistency, in that, I simply need to post, or I feel like I missed something in my day. I love sharing the quirky, introspective, frustrated writer side of myself with you guys and hope you guys enjoy reading every word as much as I enjoy writing it. Blogging doesn't pay the bills (for now), so I guess another joy I get is hearing and seeing your comments. That said, it's also cool to have some accolades to add to that list of joys. That, my friends is where you come in...

The Black Weblog Awards is an online contest, established in 2005, commending the best black-run weblogs on the internets. Blogs all across the blogosphere enter to win in categories like Best Blog Design, Best Blog Post Series, Best Fashion/Hip-Hop/Culture Blogs, Best Writing in a Blog (hint, hint) and Best Blog, among other awards. It'd be an honor not only to get nominated, but to win one of these awards. That's why I'm asking you, the readers, to vote for Dear Whoever in the Black Weblog Awards. Tell your friends, co-workers, aunties, uncles, cousins, nephews, nieces or whoever loves (or might love; put them on!) reading the blog to nominate www.dear-whoever.com. Yes, this is somewhat of a shameless plug. I guess one of those a year isn't a big deal. Even so, make sure you click the link below, and nominate the blog for whatever award you think necessary.

2010 Black Weblog Awards Nomination Form

Remember to insert Dear Whoever's URL into the form (http://www.dear-whoever.com) into whatever category you want, and nominate some of the blogs on my blogroll (MichelleHuxtable, The Interludes, Uppity Negro Network, to name a few) too. HUGE #shoutout to AverageBro for putting me on to this opportunity. Like I said earlier in the post, I love writing this blog, and will continue to keep the letters coming. I do it for y'all (that sounds really vain, SMH) and hope you guys love it. Thanks for all of the support!!!!

- Ev aka Junior

Dear Youtube

via The New York Times:

Early this year, the most popular YouTube video of all time — a 2007 clip of a British toddler gleefully biting the finger of his older brother — was supplanted by a brash newcomer.

The upstart was Lady Gaga’s slithering, sci-fi-themed music video for her hit single “Bad Romance.”

The shift was symbolic: YouTube, a subsidiary of the search giant Google, is growing up. Once known primarily for skateboard-riding cats, dancing geeks and a variety of cute-baby high jinks, YouTube now features a smorgasbord of more professional video that is drawing ever larger and more engaged audiences.

“Our biggest challenge is making sure we don’t taste too many things,” Chad Hurley, YouTube’s low-profile and low-key co-founder and chief executive, said in a wide-ranging interview last week.

That cornucopia of content appears to be turning YouTube — considered by many to be a risky investment when it was bought for $1.65 billion at the end of 2006 — into one of Google’s smartest acquisitions. On Monday, YouTube will celebrate its fifth birthday by announcing it has passed two billion video views a day; YouTube said it reached the one billion mark in October.

It's funny growing up in the 'computing & internet era'. While I was born as computers were just starting to take their modern form, my generation is one that saw computers and most importantly, the internet grow into the phenomenon that it is today. We started out all on Macs pining for Oregon Trail day at school, saw video games go from pixels on a screen to almost lifelike graphics, and watched as the internet changed from a geeky collaborative tool to an integral part of modern everyday life. Unlike younger kids who always had computers in their lives, we experienced a truly analog world, at least in some sense. The ease of accessing information used to be nil to those without an understanding of computers, unlike today, which brings me to my point. Youtube, 5 years ago, it was LITERALLY impossible to find a good amount of videos online, professional or amateur. If I missed something on television, I either had to wait until it re-aired or came out on video, hear it from my friends, or just be in the dark about it. If I needed visual evidence of something, I was limited to pictures. Then in 2005, a great thing happened: YOU, Youtube.

Youtube, you single-handedly launched the era of the viral internet. Online TV and movies, video-blogging, and random, funny viral videos were born from your birth. Half of the content on this blog, and damn near every blog on the internet, features your embed code in some form. Think about it. Before you, there were no video-taped rants about anything. There wasn't such a thing as Web 2.0. The internet was what was given to us by the technologically advanced heads. Youtube, you made everyone their own videographer and content provider. Content is what we want it to be. Before you, there was no Google Video, no Twitvids, no nothing. I suppose this letter is a huge neck-off, but I can't deny the impact that you've had on the internet we know today.

At the same time, you made it so that no recorded event would ever be safe. Any gaffe, faux pas, or blunder that happens to be in front of a video camera is immediately placed at your whims, whether intentional or supposed. Along with the advent of this new method of reaching content, came a whole new batch of negatives and caveats. People now pay have to pay careful attention to what they post, much like Facebook (though, you're not as invasive or annoying). Whatever the case, no one misses the days before you. Your ease of use and breadth of content is ridiculous and something kids today will grow up with. No, I'm not jealous; just curious as to how that'll affect them. I suppose only time will tell. They (whoever they are) said computers would never catch on in the 80s; look what happened...

Apparently, this was the most watched video in Youtube history?? Go figure..

Ferris Bueller on Twitter

If you haven't seen Ferris Bueller's Day Off, then you're missing the greatest teenage fantasy ever. Skipping school, playing it off perfectly, and then having an epic day made for a great movie. Now, the main character Ferris joined the rest of us on Twitter and Foursquare (still don't know what it is..) chronicling his day off, from the ballpark to the parade and back home. Whoever did it even added accounts for his girlfriend, his best friend and his sister. Kind of a novel concept, but it's interesting to see creations from the past get juxtaposed with that of the future. Check out Ferris' Twitter page here...