The Viral Video - I will never solve thee

So, you say you want a viral video? My best advice is to try, but not too hard. It seems like a crap shoot to me.

For my group's ENGR 407 project, Forging Fame, we were given the assignment to take an invention and to try to get it to make it big on Youtube, Metacafe, etc. The winner of this assignment would be the group that got the most hits on their invention/idea/marketing.

Our idea was to take Guitar Hero or Rock Band and add a pyrotechnic element to the common household show. In order to accomplish this, we made a flamethrower, linked it to the motion of the guitar during "STARPOWER," and set the room ablaze when the guitar was tilted verticle. Pretty cool, huh? What responsible pyromaniac (giant paradox here, I know) wouldn't want that. With the huge success of the Guitar Hero and Rock Band franchises, I thought this was destined for viral status. At the very least, I thought it would give our team a legitimate shot at winning the Forging Fame contest.

Since Seeing is Believing, here is our video that best illustrates the concept:


Since Friday, this video has recieved 147 hits. We switched to Metacafe because Youtube froze our hit-count. However, that is another post for another day. We posted this video at the same time:


I Am Rambo! - For more funny videos, click here

The result? 5332 in the same amount of time. I have a few theories as to why, but this is a blog and maybe I will let this be an interactive post.

If you have time, please help out the team:
http://www.youtube.com/user/teamfire2009

http://www.metacafe.com/channels/Teamfire09/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/teamfire2009/

Click on Everything!

B.K.

Spring Break Takeaways - Spring Breakaways

So I went on a Carribean Cruise with Carnival Cruise Lines for Spring Break this year. This was the first time I had ever been on spring break. Seeing as this is my last Spring Break at PSU, I figured I would finally break down and pay for a trip. I consider it the best decision I could have made.

The cruise we took went from the port at Jacksonville, Fla. to Key West, Fla. and the Bahamas. It was a five day, five night cruise. That seemed to be the perfect amount of time as I was begining to get sick of the crowds and the tiny cabin. I didn't begin to get sick of the weather or the comradery.

I know this post seems kind of hodge-podge, but that is exactly how the cruise was. It wasn't exactly relaxed or orderly, it was a "fly by the seat of your pants" experience. We went from port to port and only relaxed to lay out on the deck or sing a little karaoke. I was pleasantly suprised in all areas and would definately consider a Carnival Cruise again.

Most importantly, this spring break gave me an opportunity to recharge my batteries. Rather than going home work at my old job or sit around the house all day, I spent this spring break traveling the warm Carribean. Although I didn't get much rest during the trip, I feel more recharged coming back from this break than I ever have. I just about ready to tackle the rest of the semester.

B.K.