The Digital Dojo

Fresh Squeezed Orange Juice and Video for SHVH

2011-01-21T14:44:00.000-08:00

One of the things I love about living at the Ojai Digital Dojo is the abundance of orange trees, oranges and, best of all, tasty, fresh squeezed orange juice. I picked a huge bag to squeeze for tomorrow's Super Happy Vlog House. Here's a fun picture of Amanda and our oranges by Lan Bui from a past SHVH.

I think it would make a great painting for one of those old fashioned orange crate labels.

Super Happy Vlog House 2011

2011-01-21T10:29:00.000-08:00

See earlier posts for more information about this free and open event.

Activities start at 10am and go on into the evening. There is aschedule for those who like structure, but this is an "open space" event and you are free to self-organize activities related to video and blogging. Participate, collaborate or just hang out.

Want to make a weekend of it? Please do! People are welcome to come up Friday or stay over Saturday. First come, first serve on rooms, couches, the RV or camping space (it's nice weather, but a bit chilly at night at this time of the year). Please RSVP is you want to one of our guest rooms.

The event is hosted at the Ojai Digital Dojo at 963 W El Roblar Drive, Ojai, CA 93023 in the town of Meiners Oaks. Activities start at 10am.

Here's a map:

View Larger Map

Get away to Ojai for a SHVH weekend

2011-01-21T10:05:00.000-08:00

Wondering how to sneak off to Ojai for a fun time at the Super Happy Vlog House? Don't sneak! Bring your partner with you. What? They say they get enough tech during the work week? We can digg that, but have they considered all the other cool things there are to do in Ojai? Here's a short list of things to do:

The Ojai Arcade - Lots of shops and restaurants.
Ojai Spas - Perhaps a day of pampering is in order for your non-geek partner.
Hiking - There are some great trails in Ojai. One is right down the block and goes into the Ventura River Preserve. Horse back riding available.
This week's events: www.ojaievents.com
Arts Center: Renaissance Do Wop
Visit Lake Casitas - boat rentals, water park
Visit the beach at Carpinteria - very scenic drive past the lake, just 20 min away
Golf at either Soule Park or the Ojai Valley Inn
Ojai Museum, art galleries and local artist studios.
Ojai Playhouse runs feature films and a Sunday indie films series. Movies. Films.

Your friends or family are welcome to meet up with you at the Ojai Digital Dojo and join us for meals. We have a few guest rooms available or check out one of our nice local Ojai hotels/motels, such as the Emerald Iguana.

node101, ojai, shvh,vlog, digitaldojo apperceptions, super happy vlog house, videoblogging

SHVH is Dog Friendly

2011-01-21T09:46:00.000-08:00

As long as your dog is friendly too and doesn't chase our chickens! :)

We have large spaces where they can run and play.

SHVH Update for Saturday Jan 22, 2011

2011-01-19T18:45:00.000-08:00

Here's an update of schedule and activies for this Saturday's Super Happy Vlog House.

This is an open and free event where we learn, share and play with web video, blogs and the like. Come and geek out for the day at the beautiful Ojai Digital Dojo with others who are passionate about making video. All levels are welcome, beginners to experts.

There are both scheduled and unstructured activities. Feel free to come for the whole day or just the parts that interest you and fit into your schedule. Drop-in's are welcome.

Likely Activities (it's up to you what we do):

8am - Jim Joseph's coffee and morning geek talk. Jim makes the best coffee. Truly.
9am - Alicia's Ojai Guest House breakfast for those who stay over Friday night or come early on Saturday. Fresh eggs from our chickens. UPDATE: belgium waffles!
10am - Welcome and introductions. Self organize the day's activities.
11am - What's new with HTML5 video? Lots of fun examples.
Noon - Pot luck lunch and BBQ, hot dogs (beef or vegie), sausages, burgers.
1pm - How to add fun video-related features to your web pages using HTML5, CSS3 and jQuery.
2pm - Meet the vloggers. Jim Joseph, Chris Ritke and Tyler Suchmann. Chris will be sharing his experiences making the Ojai Artists Video and Jim will be leading a demonstration around ball room dancing music. UPDATE: Social media pioneer Douglas E. Welch said he's ~~hoping~~ coming up with another member of the New Media Interchange to join us!
3pm - Internet Archive Cleanup Day - A tour of the Internet Archive, new features and a call to action.
3:30pm ~~4pm~~ - Vlog walk. Join us for a video walk and visit with local vlogger friends like artist Uta Ritke, plus a stop for a snack or tasty beverage in Meiners Oaks.
5pm - Dinner, pot luck. Tri-tip, chicken, pulled pork, fried rice, beans, salad.
6pm - Open video and web clinic. Get help with your projects; collaborate with others. Edit and post that cool video you shot today.
7pm - Next to Heaven: vlog screenings. Whiskey and cigars, ports and chocolate.

This is a free event. We'll organize some sort of pot luck lunch and dinner; please bring something or toss a few bucks into the kitty if you can. This is an adult friendly event with wine, beer and frank discussions. Children are welcome if accompanied by an adult.

For additional information, please leave a comment, email markus.sandy@gmail.com or call 805-798-0436.

Overnighters are welcome. First come, first serve on rooms, beds, couches and the RV. Pleanty of room for camping if that is your style and weather permits.

Rain or shine.

DIY: Digital Publishing and Ballroom Dancing at SHVH this Saturday

2011-01-18T11:47:00.000-08:00

Great news! Jim Joseph has agreed to lead a discussion on digital publishing a book (which involves videos too, so very super happy vlog related). DIY!!!

Also, Jim has offered to teach us some basics about ball room dance music.

How does that related to video? Well, in lots of ways. Some may wish to just capture the fun and create content. Some folks may find tips and tricks that boost your audio skills and know-how. Some will realize that making video is itself a dance and, as such, general principles of movement apply.

This is a free event. Come for this or for the whole day. Jim's session will be at 2pm, Sat, Jan 22, 2011.

If you are interested in attending, please leave a comment/rsvp.

Space is limited to about a dozen people (for this one session only).

Super Happy Vlog House

2011-01-18T11:08:00.001-08:00

Our friend Jim Joseph is in town and asked about hosting a Super Happy Vlog House. Jim is an author and restauranteur who has recently published a book on ball room dancing.

For those who recall, Jim organized our last SHVH and it was a blast.

So let's geek out together on video for a day. Learn and share tricks, tips and techniques about video and the web. All are welcome, beginners and advanced. Folks are welcome to drop in anytime Saturday, January 22nd. The fun formally starts at 10am, but the structure is open to whatever people want to do.

Here's a short list of topics I'd like to touch on. We will have one session in the morning and two in the afternoon.

10am - What's new with video in web browsers. The <video> tag, video formats, compression and more.
11am - Open web video clinic. No question is too small or too big. Bring your laptop and camera or play with ours. Get help or help others.
12 noon - pot luck lunch and BBQ
1pm - How to add fun video-related features to your web pages using Javascript and jQuery.
2pm - DIY digital-publishing videos and books about ballroom dancing - Jim Joseph.
3pm - Internet Archive Cleanup Day - Jan 1, 2012 - a brief discussion about this project and how you can help make the video world a better place.

This is a free event. We'll organize some sort of pot luck lunch around noon; please bring something or toss a few bucks into the kitty if you can. This is an adult friendly event with wine, beer and frank discussions. Children are welcome if accompanied by an adult.

For additional information, please leave a comment, email markus.sandy@gmail.com or call 805-798-0436.

Overnighters are welcome. First come, first serve on rooms, beds, couches and the RV. Pleanty of room for camping if that is your style and weather permits.

Rain or shine.

Weekly Website Clinic back to Fall Schedule

2010-12-15T13:27:00.000-08:00

Our free Wednesday night Drupal clinics are now from 6:30pm to 8:30pm. Free wi-fi, coffee, tea and help with your Drupal, WordPress, jQuery, GNU/Linux, Cloud Computing and Videoblogging related questions. Drop-ins are welcome, but it's always great if you can give us a heads up via a comment or send a direct tweet to @digitaldojo or @apperceptions.

Exceptions:

October 13, 2010 - on the road to San Francisco, no meeting
December 15, 2010 - openmedia LA eatup, no meeting.

Good ol Boys Alive and Well in the Ojai

2010-10-25T17:27:00.001-07:00

Alternate title: Sexism and Scapegoating for Managers

On a regular basis, the meter reader from the Meiners Oaks Water District pounds on our door and incites household panic by claiming that we have a leak. On more than one occasion, I have called plumbers and leak detectors to help resolve the problem only to find out that there is no leak. This happened last month again, but this time there was a new twist: we received a water bill for $7500.

I have a very nice veggie garden, but it doesn't drink that much thank you.

To make a long and painful story short, we eventually determined the reading was in error and reported our findings to MO Water. When we called to inform them they simply said "yes, we know". Someone there had eventually caught the error and even mailed me a hand-written, but unsigned, note with an apology and the corrected amount.

This was, of course, after we hired two different plumbers to come out and find the leak, or the lack there of.

This insanity seemed behind us until last Friday, when a newly hired meter reader person came barreling down my driveway in his little truck to claim we had a leak.

At that moment, I decided it was time to ask the management at MO Water for some help.

Mike Hollebrands is listed as 'Genral Manager' on their website. I made an appointment to meet with him to discuss finding ways to reduce the number of misreads and help his staff work in a less reactive and more professional manner.

Mike immediately apologized for the recent billing error and said it was the fault of "the girls in the front office".

I pointed out that the error was clearly made by the person who read the meter and came to our door to bawl us out. I also pointed out what bad form it is for a manager to blame it on their staff and how doubly inappropriate it is to say "the girls".

Mike went on to clarify and explain that it was "the girls" job to double check the figures reported by the meter reader, who Mike referred to as "the gentleman" and "the guy".

Nice! I'm betting the note was sent by one of the women in the front office, who actually did catch the error. Thank you.

I left feeling like I had just met one of the Ojai's "good ol boys".

Blaming "the girls" is unacceptable.

It's sexist.

It's past time to change.

I'm calling out to my brother workers and managers everywhere to at least stop the sexism.

We'll work on the scapegoating after that.

Drupal meeting 20 October, Wednesday

2010-10-16T05:58:00.000-07:00

Pia is organizing a meetup:

Hi Everyone,

Things have been hectic on my end, but I would like to have a meeting next Wednesday, 20 October, at 6:30pm at my house. Wednesday because I have been told that Tuesday conflicts with some other activities for some people.

This time, instead of talking about pros and cons and whys of Drupal, I would like to either deal with a real issue someone has, or create an actual View, with perhaps two displays, a page and a block for instance. My intent with the group is to have actual demonstrations, actual "how-tos" and problem solving meetings. So if you have something specific you would like to solve/demo/see done, please let me know.

There is a chance that my grand daughter to be might arrive before Wednesday, if so, I will let everyone know and I will have to reschedule because I will then be in San Diego :)

Have a great weekend everyone!

Pia

Drupal workgroup forming in Santa Barbara

2010-09-21T09:22:00.000-07:00

I recently attended a productive meet-up in Santa Barbara hosted and organized by Pia Oliver. This group is aimed at solving everyday issues with Drupal that members encounter. Several of the members have expressed that they enjoy the UCSB meetups and LADrupalCamps, but feel a need from something more concrete and can be applied to their day-to-day tasks with Drupal.

The 7 or 8 group members are of all skill levels, but generally new to Drupal. Some were brand new to Drupal and websites, some have design backgrounds, some had already installed Drupal on their laptops, running as localhosts using MAMP or the Acquia stack. See the discussion at GDO post for more background on the group.

There seems to be an initial interest in learning cck and views. Here are some links to DrupalCon videos that relate. A good starting point for both modules is the 'Tracking Events Results with CCK and Views' from Boston Drupalcon 2008. This describes a system used to track fishing tournament results, across multiple events.

CckDemystified
TrackingEventResultsWithCckAndViews
CckMashupOhTheThingsYouCanDo
ViewsTheKeyToTheDrupalCastle
ViewsDemystified-Part1
ViewsDemystified-Part2
ViewsExamplesUsingArgumentsAndRelationships
JqueryViewsAndViewThemeing
MakingDatesAndCalendarsRock

The next SB Drupal workgroup meeting is Tuesday, 9/28, 6:30-8:30p, downtown, Cota St, directly across from Jr. High School. Bring questions, get/give help.

For more information, please contact Pia via her contact page.

Extended Hours for Summer Digital Dojo Clinics

2010-07-27T21:07:00.000-07:00

Our free Wednesday night Drupal clinics are now from 6pm to 10pm. Free wi-fi, coffee, tea and help with your Drupal, WordPress and Video questions. Drop-ins are welcome.

Video Compression Saturday in Santa Barbara

2010-07-24T02:38:00.000-07:00

I'm teaching a video compression workshop at the Santa Barbara PEG Access Stations 17 & 21. Here is a link to the notes.

Cheshire & the Possum

2010-07-20T15:04:00.001-07:00

Cheshire & the Possum
Originally uploaded by msandy

This cat has adopted me in the past few days. He seems to get along with most of the other animals (well, except bitch-cat Nibby, of course).

Here is a little surprise we found outside the Dojo.

Wed July 21st Drupal Clinic at the Digital Dojo

2010-07-19T21:22:00.000-07:00

We're still recovering from all the fun last week and plan to host this week's clinic poolside at the Ojai Digital Dojo.

Time: 7pm - 9pm PST
Date: Every Wednesday
Location: Varies, but usually at people's homes, pizza parlors or the Ojai Digital Dojo.

Everyone is welcome at these drop-in clinics. If you have questions about Drupal, jQuery, mySQL, PHP, Apache, GNU/Linux and web site building in general, this is a great place to get some 1-on-1 time with someone who can help you find the answers. If you're an 'expert', stop on by and help someone out.

Free water, ice, oranges, coffee and tea. Pizza, burgers, mexican food and organic market just a few blocks down the street.

This week's Drupal Clinic will be in Santa Monica

2010-07-11T00:30:00.000-07:00

Our good friends Jay and Ryanne of RyanIsHungry and ShowInABox are traveling to Thailand for a videoblogging project. They are the folks who got us started with Drupal back when Ourmedia.org was Drupal 4.6. Since then, they have been using Drupal for several projects, including Homestead.com, which is an ArrayShift distribution, which provides the basis for a 'clone' of the well-known StackOverflow Question & Answer site. They would like some help with (1) video, (2) notifications and (3) theming the site.

Always fun and motivating, they are planning to stop in Los-Angeles this week on their way eastward and so what a better excuse than to take the clinic on the road down to, where they are staying with videoblogger friends Steve & Zadi who just moved to Santa Monica. Also, West LA and Santa Monica are my old stomping grounds as a young boy and teen and so I'm always delighted to find an excuse to visit there.

So the agenda is set: arrayshift enhancements. For the moment, we are planning to meet at the Coffee Connection.

Wednesday, July 14th, 2010 @ 7pm-9p
Coffee Connection
3838 S Centinela Ave
Los Angeles, CA 90066
(310) 391-1380
westsidecoffeeconnection.com
Yelp Reviews
Yelp/Google Map

Ventura Drupal Clinic Wednesdays @ 7pm

2010-07-07T09:40:00.000-07:00

The Drupal Clinic is now every Wednesday night! Meeting locations vary from people's homes to local pizza joints. Bring your Drupal and general web-site questions. Newbies welcome. Experts are welcome to come and answer questions for others.

This week's Ventura Drupal Help Clinic will be at Papa Lennon's pizza in Meiners Oaks.

515 W El Roblar Drive, 93024
http://papalennons.com
Wed July 7, 2010 @ 7pm-9pm.
Drop by with your Drupal and website related questions.
Look for us in the outdoor patio.
Google Map for Papa Lennon's

Alicia Coral,
http://ojaidojo.com
805-640-7248

Markus Sandy,
http://apperceive.com
805-798-0436

Flickr Photos from DrupalQue

2010-07-06T11:30:00.000-07:00

Thanks mainly to @aliciacoral and @critke for photos! :)

Vegas Vegan Option for Saturday DrupalQue

2010-06-22T09:38:00.000-07:00

I've asked Brian Shae Sveniker to cater our workshop this Saturday. Of course, we want the usual options for a 'Que' or 'Cue' as some refer to BBQ's. That is, burgers and dogs. But I asked Brian to host because he's a creative chef and he's a vegan. I figured he'd come up with something interesting as an alternative to the usual faire. Many of our Drupal friends are vegetarians and vegans, so we thought we'd do something special for them.

Well, it looks like Brian's going to really knock our socks off!

He's planning to make something called a 'Vegas Vegan' which sounds like a great dish. He described it to me and I was immediately hungry for it :) Here's some pics from a wonderful article at quarrygirl. They graiously licences there content cc-by-nc-sa and so we can share some of it here. Enjoy until the real thing.

Please let us know if you want the Vegas Vegan option when you reserve your spot in the workshop. Also, each workshop participant may invite one guest to lunch (see the workshop posting).

Drupal Clinic in Ojai, Ventura, Wednesday evening, June, 23rd, 2010, 7pm-9pm

2010-06-21T15:25:00.000-07:00

This week's Ventura clinic (aka workgroup/studygroup) will be at

Ojai Digital Dojo
963 W. El Roblar Drive
Ojai, California 93023
http://ojaidigitaldojo.net

Google map:
http://tinyurl.com/ojaidigitaldojo

Wednesday, June, 23rd, 2010, 7pm-9pm

This is actually what is known as 'Meiners Oaks' area of the Ojai Valley.

Free wi-fi, coffee, tea, kitchen access if you want to brown bag it. We can also send out for Pizza. There are organic market, burgers, Mexican food, etc within a few blocks if you want to pick something up.

No presentations on Wednesdays, just a small group of folks helping each other with Drupal questions.

Aimed mainly at newbies, but open to anyone with questions or anyone willing to help others find answers to their questions.

Flickr photo licensed cc-by-nc-nd thanks to deadstar

It's summer and time for a DrupalQue

2010-06-10T16:06:00.001-07:00

UPDATE: we have about 4 seats open for this small workshop. Please contact Markus Sandy @ 805-798-0436, or skype msandy for reservations. This workshop is suitable for beginning level Drupal users who have some experience with using Drupal and building websites.

UPDATE 2: Local chef Brian Shae Sveniker has graciously agreed to cater this event. This means that we can offer a gourmet vegan alternative to the usual BBQ hamburgers and hot dogs, which of course we'll also have on hand. Watch for a post on his great menu. Please note the date change from the original posting.

The vloggers are having a VloggerCue, so what the heck! Let's have a DrupalQue. :)

A DrupalQue is two slices of lean Drupal learning, wrapped around a Bar-B-Que. So let's all queue up for some Drupal learning fun on Saturday, June 26th. It's lean, because each session is about one a specific aspect of Drupal.

For our first Que, we'll be giving a brief introduction to using the Views module in the morning session. The afternoon session will be about theming views.

These sessions are aimed at people who want help getting up to speed on specific topics, The first session is aimed at beginners and assumes no specific prerequisites, but you should know what Views is basically for and have a goal in mind for using it. The second session, builds off of the first and assumes a basic understanding of CSS and HTML in addition to a basic understanding of Drupal views, types, displays, settings and uses as explained in the first session. Note that we will not be covering the use of too many views plugins unless specific requests received in time to add that plugin information to the session handouts. Sessions are designed to encourage participant questions on specific uses.

Here is an outline for each session:

Morning Session - Introduction to Using Drupal Views
Example views. Finding and using existing views.
Creating views.
View types. View displays. View and Basic settings.
Page, block, feed and attachment settings.
Fields. Sorting criteria.
Arguments, filters and relationships.
Additional display and style plugins.

Afternoon Session - Theming Views
Blocks, pages, feeds and attachments.
CSS styles common to various views display styles.
How CSS and HTML change with view setting changes.
Theming information and theme template files.
Quick theming aids and tools.
Brief tour: Using Skinr, panels and 960 grid-based themes.

Watermelon photo licensed cc-by-nc-sa by jliba

Please note:

THESE ARE SMALL GROUP WORKSHOPS WITH GENERALLY NO MORE THAN 8 PARTICIPANTS. SPACE IS LIMITED.

YOU MUST HAVE A CONFIRMED RESERVATION TO ATTEND SESSIONS.

PREFERENCE WILL BE GIVEN TO PEOPLE WHO ARE AT THE APPROPRIATE LEVEL AND CAN ATTEND BOTH WORKSHOPS.

WALK-INS ARE NOT ALLOWED AT THESE WORKSHOPS (please come to one of our open Wed night events instead).

PARTICIPANTS SHOULD HAVE A WI-FI EQUIPPED LAPTOP OR NET-BOOK COMPUTER TO USE DURING WORKSHOP (we may be able to provide a limited number of workstations for participant use if prior arrangements are made).

The first session is from 10:00am - noon. Lunch/BBQ/Swim is from noon - 1pm. The afternoon session is from 1-3pm.

At the same time. there will also be a meeting of the unofficial Drupal widows and orphans group. This group has nothing to do with style sheets and intends to join in on the bar-b-que, but otherwise intends to just relax, hang around the pool, take nature walks, visit Ojai shops, swim, get a massage or partake of the treats and libations offered at the Ojai Dojo Guest House next door while session participants geek out. Dog friendly. Less so for kids.

Notes:

Swimming is at your own risk. Clothing is optional. Minors must be supervised by an adult guardian with the understanding that this is an adult oriented event with alcohol present (e.g., we might all have a beer with lunch, jump in the spa and start telling racy Drupal stories).

Smoking is allowed outside on the decks. Please do not smoke in the Dojo, house or offices. Please watch your butts :)

Please feel free to bring food and beverages, especially if you have special needs. Sharing is encouraged. Kitchen available.

Please park on the street outside the gate. Dog friendly with both open and gated areas

Please be respectful of neighboring orchards and ask before picking. There's plenty, but not all ours.

Certified massage therapists available with prior arrangement (for your partner foo! you get Drupal!)

Overnight lodging or camping available. Campers must supply their own gear or make prior arrangements.

Drupal Workgroup and Clinic Starting up in Ventura

2010-06-10T09:05:00.000-07:00

We're starting a Drupal Study Group in Ventura. Last night was the first meeting at Chief's Pizza in Ventura.

At first, I thought it would be more convenient for folks if we tried to hold meetings closer to the main parts of town or nearer to the freeways. To my surprise, the first meeting was attended by people from Santa Barbara and Los Angeles, as well as Ventura and the location did not really seem to help or matter to people.

It was a small group, but we quickly ate up the 2 hour meeting time discussing and working on solutions to specific questions that we had about our day to day use of Drupal. We pretty much just opened our laptops, moved some benches to make for better viewing and jumped in on specific questions. Here is a summary of our main discussion points.

* Installing multiple Drupal sites under OSX, using MAMP. This turned out not to be a discussion of Drupal multi-sites,but more about simple Drupal configuration issues in settings.php. Also mentioned how etc/hosts and Apache configuration files can make this easier.

* Discussion of specific theming challenges associated with the Nice Menus module. In particular, we discussed how certain CSS selectors effected menus made from <ul> and <li> elements. Also discussed related id's css classes and selectors, such as .menuparent and #block-nice_menus-1

* Turning on built in web developer tools in Safari to examine Nice Menu html and CSS.

* CSS selector weighting and matching and how it applies to Drupal theming, especially sub-menus.

* Discussed use of jQuery Cycle plugin and corresponding Views Cycle module with Views in order to create a 'slider' like one that a participant had seen on an existing site.

The participants made it clear that what they want is basic help. They feel that Drupal Camps and regional meetups are great fun, but that many of the discussions and presentations are either way over their heads or not something they can directly apply to their own Drupal sites at this time. They appreciate those events, but are also looking for something more basic and practical.

We plan to hold bi-weekly meetings of a 'clinic' nature; one where you come in and get help on specific questions and work on your own projects and exercises.

One thing I noticed is that the Pizza parlor was a nice place to meet, but not an ideal working and learning environment like the Dojo is. Wifi, no sports/TV's, more space, projector, etc all make for a nicer workspace. Also, it looks like being in central Ventura is not that big of a convenience and that Ojai is not that far out of the way for many.

So we plan to hold future work group, or clinic if you prefer, meetings in people's homes or at the Ojai Digital Dojo (which is part of our home). In the spirit of the Drupal Dojo, we will open our homes and dojos to small groups who wish to improve their Drupal skills. I've emailed one of the Drupal Dojo organizers and they are supportive of our goals. We plan to post future event notices in the Drupal Dojo group and here on the Ojai Digital Dojo blog.

Image from Drupal Dojo group at groups.drupal.org

All are welcome, but these clinics are aimed at addressing specific questions, with an emphasis on helping 'beginners'. Please leave a comment or send us an email to let us know you are coming.

For Digital Dojo located events, directions are in the sidebar (be sure you come to the 963 West El Roblar address, not the mailing address on Ojai Ave). Also, If folks are hungry, there are pizza, burgers, BBQ and several Mexican food takeout, plus an organic market within a few blocks of the Digital Dojo and people are free to come by during the 6-7pm hour to work on their own or eat pot luck. Pizza can be delivered. Kitchen facilities are available. We have filtered water, teas, coffees and various jucies and sodas. You are always welcome to squeeze all the fresh orange juice you like.

There is no cost for these workgroup meetings, although it would be nice if you chip in a few bucks towards any food or drinks if you can't contribute to pot luck.

For more information or to set up your own private digital dojo learning session, please contact Markus Sandy at 805-798-0436 or via markus.sandy@gmail.com.

We will also be announcing some Drupal learning events coming this summer. The first will be a Views intro and theming class on June 19th. Stay tuned for more info.

Video Compression

2010-03-24T02:34:00.000-07:00

10:00 - Introductions, tags, overview, off topics/parking lot
10:10 - Survey, concepts, images, sites, resources, videos, tools
10:20 - Explore files, resources, show & tell
10:30 - Demo - capture - video from flip
10:40 - Demo - compress - mpeg stream clip
10:50 - Demo - upload - flickr
11:00 - Q & A I
11:10 - Break
11:20 - Demo - mac or windows compress
11:30 - Demo - vimeo upload
11:40 - Q & A II
11:50 - Clinic - capture
12:00 - Clinic - compress
12:10 - Clinic - uploads
12:20 - Summary, More Resources, Q & A
12:30 - Done! go make a video!

Introduction

Best practices
know your targets. e.g., iphone, YouTube, desktop, appletv, etc
target a format?
compress to target
save upload time
best quality for the moment
avoid queues
presets
increase understanding and remove mystery
inter/intra and relation compression to editing
learn about free tools for win, mac and linux

Ask people to intro with three tags (mine are video compression, videoblogging and drupal based media web sites)

Survey
======
How many: Mac, Apple, Linux
Experience:
Hi Def?
Video Camera Type: DV, HDV, Still, pocket, flip, phone
Who has a blog or vlog?
Who has an account on YouTube, Blip, others?
Who actively uploads?
Who is a compression expert?
left or right brained

related, but off- topics
========================
video streaming
audio compression
audacity
content data networks
creative commons
subtitles
animation
video editing
adv audio & video capture

Putting the You in YouTube
with Markus Sandy

Saturday, July 24
10 am-12:30 pm

The Santa Barbara Channels
7000 Hollister Ave. Goleta
(805) 571-1721

Course description

More and more people turn to the Internet searching for entertainment and news, and your videos can be what they find. This seminar covers the basics of compressing and preparing your videos for uploading to the web. Find out the best format and file size, and workflow strategies for using different content delivery services. Video sharing websites besides YouTube, such as Blip.tv, Flickr, and Vimeo, will be looked at and discussed as well.

from YouTube
http://www.google.com/support/youtube/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=77268
If you already have a digital camcorder (one that captures in Digital8, MiniDV, HDV, or any of the DVD formats), then you're ready to start shooting your masterpiece. Your camcorder will need some kind of direct connection to your computer, either to the USB or FireWire ports or by inserting the DVD you've recorded. Once you've downloaded the video from the camera, you can upload it to YouTube or bring it into an editing program to play with it some more.

If you have an analog camcorder (one that uses VHS, VHS-C, SVHS-C, 8mm, or Hi8 tape), you can still get your videos onto YouTube. It will require an extra step and some additional equipment, though, since these camcorders are not usually equipped with computer connections. You'll need to digitize the video with a converter box, which will convert the analog signal from the camcorder to a digital signal that the computer can understand. After the video has been digitized, you can manipulate it further or upload it.

from wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Video_compression

Video compression refers to reducing the quantity of data used to represent digital video images, and is a combination of spatial image compression and temporal motion compensation.

compressed video can effectively reduce the bandwidth required to transmit video via terrestrial broadcast, via cable TV, or via satellite TV services.

Most video compression is lossy — it operates on the premise that much of the data present before compression is not necessary for achieving good perceptual quality. For example, DVDs use a video coding standard called MPEG-2 that can compress around two hours of video data by 15 to 30 times, while still producing a picture quality that is generally considered high-quality for standard-definition video. Video compression is a tradeoff between disk space, video quality, and the cost of hardware required to decompress the video in a reasonable time. However, if the video is over-compressed in a lossy manner, visible (and sometimes distracting) artifacts can appear.

The programming provider has control over the amount of video compression applied to their video programming before it is sent to their distribution system. DVDs, Blu-ray discs, and HD DVDs have video compression applied during their mastering process, though Blu-ray and HD DVD have enough disc capacity that most compression applied in these formats is light, when compared to such examples as most video streamed on the internet, or taken on a cellphone.

Since interframe compression copies data from one frame to another, if the original frame is simply cut out (or lost in transmission), the following frames cannot be reconstructed properly. Some video formats, such as DV, compress each frame independently using intraframe compression. Making 'cuts' in intraframe-compressed video is almost as easy as editing uncompressed video — one finds the beginning and ending of each frame, and simply copies bit-for-bit each frame that one wants to keep, and discards the frames one doesn't want.

It is possible to build a computer-based video editor that spots problems caused when I frames are edited out while other frames need them. This has allowed newer formats like HDV to be used for editing. However, this process demands a lot more computing power than editing intraframe compressed video with the same picture quality.

=====

from http://www.animemusicvideos.org/guides/avtech/video4.htm

Now that you know the basic concepts and terminology behind video compression, we can talk about various formats and codecs, and which one is right for you. First off, we need to point out what the difference between a Codec and a Format is. Codec stands for Compressor/Decompressor, meaning it is something which can both encode and decode something, in this case video. When we talk about video format in this context, we're talking about how that information is stored on disks. Formats include things like AVI and Quicktime. Codecs include things like MJPEG, Sorenson, Cinepak, and DivX. Some Codecs are also formats (or have specific formats attached to them), such as MPEG and ASF.

A format does not necessarily mean anything about the video quality, it only dictates the underlying structure of a file. I always scratch my head when people say things like "I like AVIs better than MPEGs because they're smaller," which is a statement that makes absolutely no sense. I've had an AVI file that's 26GB large, orders of magnitude larger than most MPEG files. The fact is that formats like AVI and Quicktime have little to nothing to do with the underlying Codec, except that the limitations of a format must be adhered to in the codec. For instance, AVI does not support bidirectional-predicate frames, therefore the MPEG4 implementation that Microsoft made for AVI/ASF is incomplete as it does not implement this essential feature of the MPEG specification.

http://www.animemusicvideos.org/guides/avtech3/

how capture video? camera (firewire or usb, hdmi?), webcam, screen capture, video input (e.g., tv, dvd) via converter box, stitching images together to make normal, time-lapse or stop motion, download stock or public domain footage, graphics and special effects

slides
======
dilbert
standards
mac & windows dialog box with codecs
Which one do I pick - I'M SO CONFUSED! - Sorenson Squeeze 4.5 Format & Compression Settings (too many of 'em)
kent bye's H.264 Video Compression Settings

software
========
mac: %I, imovie, quicktime pro, fce, fcp/compressor, avid
pc: movie maker?, premier, pinnacle, avid, roxio, sony vegas, ms expression encoder 4 (windows media encoder)
linux: ffmpeg and many others

handbrake - HandBrake is an open-source, GPL-licensed, multi-platform, multithreaded video transcoder, available for MacOS X, Linux and Windows.

mpeg stream - closed source - MPEG Streamclip is a powerful free video converter, player, editor for Mac and Windows. It can play many movie files, not only MPEGs; it can convert MPEG files between muxed/demuxed formats for authoring; it can encode movies to many formats, including iPod; it can cut, trim and join movies. MPEG Streamclip can also download videos from YouTube and Google by entering the page URL

ffmpeg - FFmpeg is a complete, cross-platform solution to record, convert and stream audio and video. It includes libavcodec - the leading audio/video codec library

vlc - The cross-platform open-source multimedia framework, player and server

flip share -
snapz pro x -
I Show U -
windows media encoder -
windows media maker -

Show and tell
=============
* canopus video capture device
* HD cards and reader
* external firewire drive
* usb flash drive
* firewire, hdm, dvi, vga, usb cables
* xacti and charger

Group Exercises
===============

Who has a video to capture? Who can help?
Who has a video to compress? Who can help?
Who needs to set up an account? Who has an account?

References
----------

glossaries
http://www.manifest-tech.com/links/video_terms.htm
http://www.discount-security-cameras.net/video-compression-glossary.aspx
http://desktopvideo.about.com/od/glossary/g/vidcompression.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Video_codecs

articles/snaps
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/moviemaker/expert/digitalvideo.mspx
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Video_formats
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_video_editing_software

flip and others, kodak Zi8
http://www.theflip.com/
http://store.kodak.com/store/ekconsus/en_US/pd/Zi8_Pocket_Video_Camera/productID.156585800

http://www.squared5.com/
http://handbrake.fr/
http://www.ffmpeg.org/
http://www.theora.org/

http://www.mirocommunity.org/
http://www.getmiro.com/
http://www.videolan.org/vlc/

YouTube - Getting Started: File formats
http://www.google.com/support/youtube/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=55744

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Video_formats
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Video_codecs

Compression Guidelines
Vimeo: http://vimeo.com/help/compression
YouTube: see below

articles/tutorials/videos
=========================
Compressor Settings for Vimeo/YouTube HD http://vimeo.com/3552513
YouTube High Definition http://www.squidoo.com/youtubehd
How to Make YouTube Videos Look Great http://www.squidoo.com/youtuberight
Web Video Compression and Codecs http://www.YouTube.com/watch?v=_13PCNDO-pE
How To Compress Video http://www.YouTube.com/watch?v=cBm8wandPew
Video compression for Mac http://www.YouTube.com/watch?v=5BnX-2tYoDw

Tips and Encoding Settings for Long Duration Screencasts http://groups.drupal.org/node/2424

A&E's Technical Guides to All Things Audio and Video (v3) http://www.animemusicvideos.org/guides/avtech3/

Best video compression settings for You Tube http://www.robbmontgomery.com/2007/10/best-video-compression-settings-for-you-tube/

10 Reasons Why Blip.tv is Better Than YouTube for Uploading & Sharing Videos on the Web http://labnol.blogspot.com/2006/12/10-reasons-why-bliptv-is-better-than.html

10 Interesting Things You Can Do with YouTube or Google Videos http://labnol.blogspot.com/2006/07/10-interesting-things-you-can-do-with.html

How-to produce an online video Show: Export & compress. The blip.tv Learning Center. http://blip.tv/learning/export/

http://explore.live.com/windows-live-movie-maker

Vimeo - TUTORIAL: From miniDV to Vimeo in High Quality
http://www.vimeo.com/forums/topic:4038

*** this has links to many tutorials for lots of software
Vimeo - TUTORIALS: Vimeo HD exporting guides from many editors
http://vimeo.com/forums/topic:3671

YouTube - Learn More: File format / editing tips for Apple users
http://www.google.com/support/youtube/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=165543

YouTube - Learn More: Optimizing your video uploads
http://www.google.com/support/youtube/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=132460

YouTube - 4K Video!?!?
http://youtube-global.blogspot.com/2010/07/whats-bigger-than-1080p-4k-video-comes.html

YouTube - 10 minute limit
http://www.google.com/support/youtube/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=71673

Wikipedia - AviSynth
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AviSynth

YouTube - processing time
http://www.google.com/support/youtube/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=71674

Wikipedia - Deinterlacing
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deinterlacing

Yahoo! Videoblogging Group
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/videoblogging

Izzy Video 066 – Compression
http://www.izzyvideo.com/videos/compression

Izzy Video 140 – Turbocharge Your Compression!
http://www.izzyvideo.com/videos/izzy-video-140-turbocharge-your-compression

Glossary/Topics
===============
aspect ratios - 4:3 , 16:9 - letterbox
importance of external drives
two pass compression
workflow: compression time can be 10:1
Common Dimensions (and aspect ratios)
720x480 DV NTSC
320x240 ipod 1-3
new dimension on iPod4
standard YouTube sizes (with & w/o frame)
640x480
480x264 - iPhone
HD: 960x720, 1280x1080, 1440x1080
show picture showing relative sizes, also standard web pages sizes (960 - 220), fullscreen
total bit rate (apple finder)
channels - 1 for mono, 2 for stereo
filter
encoder
ftp
batch
ins and outs
MPEG
mp3
ogg
ISO
HD
SD
HDV
HDTV
ACHA
DIVIX
AVI
quicktime
archive.org - the Internet Archive
video editor - person or software
real video
Microsoft Windows Media
H.264
Video hosting provider
Content delivery network
AAC
preset
Sony Vegas
Miro
de-interlace
interlaced video
ffmpeg
brakepad
mpeg streamclip
vlc
key frames
any word or phrase found on a export dialog field
video hosting services - youtube, dailymotion, blip.tv. archive.org, vimeo, flickr,
Sorenson Squeeze - commercial - pros and cons
FOSS - Free and Open Source
Canon V20
Sony VTR17
Sony Cybershot
Flip ???
Mac iSight intenral (web cam) or external
daily motion
internet archive
blip.tv
understanding DV and other popular capture formats
preprocessing video for editing
facebook and twitter videos
qik
iphone
appletv and boxee and others
progressive scan
anamorphic
cropping
aspect ratio
letterbox
bit rate
digital video
spatial image compression
temporal motion compression
for internet, we care about file size and quality
smaller size => more compression => more cpu needed to uncompress
time vs space
bandwidth
mobile video
do the math:
sd 30fps x => 1 hour of uncompressed SD is xxx GB
hd 30fps or 24.9fps (check)
film 24fps x
29.97 fps, 25 fps, 23.976 fps, 15 fps
inter vs intra frame compression
intra not good for editing
keyframes
data rate
bits per second
pits per frame
mpeg1/2/4, VP8, avi, flv, wmv, mov. m4v
aac audio
workflow
demo deinterlace TV capture video
time lapse?
compressing for the big screen?

Summary
======

* lots of options
* can be intimidating
* no one size fits all solution
* but a few sizes often suffice
* workflow and consistency is your friend
* best practices too
* log it! science!

Free Web Video Clinics
Ojai Digital Dojo
http://ojaidigitaldojo.net
markus.sandy@gmail.com
805-798-0436
Wednesdays 6-10pm
Some Saturdays, see vlog.

Ojai Cleanup Day - Saturday Sept 19, 2009 - 9am-Noon

2009-09-04T13:16:00.000-07:00

Click image for full size poster.
I used the button below to request information on a local coatal cleanup action that I could join and guess what? There's one right here in Ojai! This place is so hip. But you knew that already. The CCC organizer in Simi sent me this really cool poster. Come and join in the cleanup. Millions of pounds of garbage have been cleaned from our waterways in the past few years, DURING A THREE HOUR VOLUNTEER EFFORT ONE DAY EACH YEAR. You rawk people!!!

Saturday Sept 19, 2009 - 9am-Noon

Meet at the ROTARY COMMUNITY PARK PARKING LOT (next to the old Ford dealerships).
part of California Coastal Cleanup Day

Ojai Trail Rides

2009-09-01T13:10:00.000-07:00

A slideshow of photos and videos uploaded to Flickr from iPhone and FlipHD cameras. Flickr is my favorite "social media" application. I get the best comments there and have the most fun viewing friends media and leaving friendly comments. When all is said and done, I still like Blogger a lot too. It's not Drupal, but it's free and has a lot of great features these days. I was using Twitter a lot during the last year, but that is tapering off for me. What's your fav social media sites these days?

Dojo Garden Bounty

2009-08-15T13:02:00.000-07:00

Goodies from the Dojo Garden. Do you need a place to garden? We have more space than we can manage. Let us know if you want to set up a plot. Hopefully you would like to vlog about it too.

Red sunrise in Ojai

2009-08-13T12:59:00.000-07:00

Woke up this morning and saw this view from the Digital Dojo looking east at sunrise. There are fires all over California.

Bird Bash II

2009-07-22T12:51:00.000-07:00

Birds have a tendency to fly into the Digital Dojo when the Shoji doors are open.

It's been a while since we opened the doors for a workshop or event. I've been thinking about getting geeky and organizing some Drupal Clinics and some Cloud Computing Clinics. Are these of interest to anyone? What floats your boat these days. Let's meetup and geek out. Talk to me folks :)

Visiting with Cheryl Colan

2009-04-06T15:05:00.000-07:00

Click To Play

Here's our first video for VideobloggingWeek 2009. We visited our friend Cheryl Colan in Phoenix, AZ. She and Gary let us park our vlog bus in front of thier house and treated us to a wonderful breakfast with their friend Wendy (who made some great pancakes). We stayed up late Friday night and most of the morning Saturday talking about videoblogging and teaching. Cheryl showed us boxee, which is something I had been wanting to take a look at. Thanks a bunch Cheryl! I wish we could have stayed longer. What a fun way to finish up our five week RV trip across the United States.

BTW, this is first time with new iMovie09 template. What do you think?

Internet Archive page with OGG, MPEG and Flash video formats is here: http://archive.org/details/Apperceptions-VisitingCherylColan597-2

SHVH this weekend - Rain or Shine!

2009-02-06T08:34:00.000-08:00

We're still on for the Super Happy Vlog House. There's plenty of warm indoor spaces where people can collaborate and meet up with other great folks. You can get some great rain shots in the gardens and bamboo forests. Those who have the right kind of shoes can still head out to the river preserve for a media walk.

Here's a video showing what the rain will bring:

Super Happy Vlog House next weekend Saturday, Feb 7, 2009

2009-02-01T16:56:00.000-08:00

Flickr slideshow of pictures from past Super Happy Vlog Houses.

What's a vlog house? It's a place where people geek out over audio & video, software, poetry, music, story-telling, television, web sites, new media and technology in general. We get together to share and learn, to have fun, to take a walk, get things done and break bread.

Our third Super Happy Vlog House is set for the weekend of February 7, 2009. Official time is from 2pm - 11pm Saturday, but folks are welcome to camp over Friday or Saturday. We have some extra rooms, beds, couches, floor space, RV parking and tent space. Rooms and camping space is limited, so please RSVP in the comments or send an email to markus dot sandy at gmail dot com.

UPDATE: out-doors campers please note that current weather forecasts are for rain Thursday, Friday and possibly into the weekend.

While the event is very free form, we do have a few activities planned. These include:

* Welcome: 2pm-2:15 - Welcome to old friends and new comers. Introductions. Orientation.

* Session: Planning for your next social media site. Saturday 2:15pm-4pm. This session is aimed at people who are starting a new Drupal project, whether it be your first or not. More than a demo of media-related modules, this is a facilitated group discussion around best practices, tools and services for building a new-media based web site or social network. Topics include: design considerations, platform features and choices, hosting services, out-sourcing, DIY, team-building, project planning, estimating resource requirements and costs. This session is intended for content creators and project managers, as well as developers. The emphasis is on project planning.

* Worldwide Videoblogging Video Conference. Saturday 3pm-5pm. Topics include: new media trends in 2009, sheer curation and public access television. Come say hello to vloggers around the world and join in on the often lively conversations with other creatives, geeks, amatures and pros.

* Media Walk in the Ventura Nature Preserve. Saturday, 4pm-6pm. Let's see if we can capture one of those famous Ojai Pink Moments. This is a easy to moderate walk. There is one small hill. The nature preserve is 1 block from the digital dojo. Bring your walking shoes and camera. Note: current weather prediction is for rain on Thurs/Fri and possibly into the weekend. So bring your all weather gear too :)

* Interview Challenge:Saturday, 4pm-6pm. Let's take the NMI Interview Challenge - see http://newmediainterchange.wordpress.com/2009/01/29/new-media-challenge-002-interview/ may be best option if it's raining to hard to go outside :) Improve your interviewing skills. Tell a story and post it to the web. Learn how to 'mic' someone with a remote Lavaliere. Use a shotgun mic. Shot the video,

* Video Sharing and Screenings - Saturday, 8pm-10pm, Share your favorite new vlogs and sites. Special premier of Andrew Davis' new Internet Archive mashup and music videos. Have you made or found something you'd like to share? Please bring your favorite urls, thumb drives or DVDs.

* Help clinic and open lab - Saturday, 2pm-11pm - Come and talk or work with others. Get and give help. Join a Q&A session. Bring your laptop, camera, recorders, etc and some friendly person will help you get where you want to go. Want to set up a blog, vlog or podcast? Need some help sweetening that audio? Want to become a better photographer? Need help with web compression? Need Drupal, WordPress or Blogger help? Youtube, Archive,org, blip,tv, Vimeo? Got something cool to show and tell? Come and hang out with us while we help each other out. Free wifi available. Play with our cameras and gadgets or show off yours. If you're new to all this, this is a great place to drop in and find out what's going on.

* Pot-luck Dinner - Saturday 6pm-8pm - Bring something if you can, but don't worry if you can't. BYOB.

* Self-Organizing Workshops and Discussions - We have several rooms and outdoor areas where people can organize around topics of interest. Whiteboards, large display monitors, LCD projector & screen, and PA equipment available for workshop use.

Please come and join us. Stay all day or just an hour. Stop by and say hi or stay the weekend. RSVP's are great for helping us plan, so leave a comment or sign up on the wiki. This is a free event. Dinner is potluck; bring something or toss a few coins in the kitty if you can. BYOB. Lots of water, coffee, tea and fresh squeezed orange juice available.

Date: Saturday, Feb 7, 2009
Time: 2pm-11pm
Location: 963 W El Roblar Drive, Meiners Oaks (Ojai), California, 93023
(directions and map here)
(upcoming.org and ical here)
(wiki here)

Notes:
Dog friendly environment.
Pool, spa and showers available for general use.
Mature content and frank discussions are common and may not be suitable for all ages.
Alcohol and caffeinated beverages may be available to adults.

SHVH - Ojai, CA - Feb. 7th, 2009

2008-12-29T16:27:00.000-08:00

Feb. 7th + OjaiDigitalDojo = SuperHappyVlogHouse

Lets find our mojo together. Everyone is invited to this laid-back, over-friendly, often serendipitous meetup of vloggers. Open agenda: share vids, discuss projects, ask questions, make merry. Info and sign-up on the wiki (password to the wiki is: sh1vh). Newbies welcome.

http://superhappyvloghouse.pbwiki.com/OjaiDigitalDojo

Dan Musick of Nordoff High and OUSD speaks about Ojai PEG Access

2008-11-20T09:30:00.000-08:00

Dan Musick of Nordoff High School and the Ojai Unified School District outlines a plan to the Ojai city Council for housing and managing Ojai's Channel 10 as part of a Media Arts Academy at Nordoff and other schools. Recorded Tuesday, Nov 18, 2008. Great news!

Santa Barbara Drupal Meetup

2008-11-12T23:09:00.000-08:00

We had a nice Drupal meetup in Santa Barbara tonight. A few of us started out at the Goleta Sushi House and then moseyed over to the Java Station, both on Hollister Ave. Attendees included chris (christefano), lee, jason, joe, felicia, joe (artlung), jim, owen (grugnog2) and myself (markus). Topics included introductions, current projects and interests, wysiwyg editing, drupal 5 vs drupal 6 and finding drupal developers. A fun time and free wi-fi were had by all :)

Drupal Warhol image by morton.dk

Update: Here's a short video of some highlights.

Free Podcasting Workshop

2008-10-06T17:19:00.000-07:00

Welcome to new Carpenteria resident Jason who requested a podcasting workshop. Let's have some fun talking about video and audio podcasting basics. For a change of pace, this time we'll be emphasizing audio, keeping in mind that much of what we share will apply to video as well. Jason's also into Drupal and so we'll say a few words about building your own podcasting site with tools like Drupal. Bring your laptop and microphone or camera if you have one. Mac, Windows and Linux friendly. Everyone is welcome, please leave a comment if you plan to attend.

Thursday, October 9th, 2008, 2pm-4pm at the Ojai Digital Dojo.

Topics:

* Free and open source software and services. Commercial products.
* Capturing, converting and compressing audio. Using Audacity. Garageband.
* Finding and using media players. Playlists and multiple files.
* Hosting at the Internet Archive and others. Free and paid services.
* Blogs, sites, urls, feeds and aggregators. Feedburner, Drupal and more.
* Promoting your podcast. iTunes, Ourmedia and other services.

* Q&A session

Map and directions

French Bleu Cheese Chicken

2008-07-13T09:54:00.000-07:00

I made this French Bleu Cheese Chicken recipe last night. It was absolutely delicious.

Much is happening at the Digital Dojo these days. The garden is kickin out some rad vegies and fruits. I picked some beautiful black berries for the meal and lots of herbs and tomatoes for the citronette-based salad. The plums are delightful right now and apricots coming soon. Lots of cucumbers and zucchini. We are already trading with the neighbors.

Here's a video from About.com (who knew?) for the chicken (I used chicken broth because that was all we had):

I had to mess with the embed to get it to fit, but i love having found this video recipe.

Videoblogging Course Next Weekend in Santa Barabara

2008-04-13T22:04:00.000-07:00

Video Blogging 101
with Markus Sandy

Saturday, April 19
10 am-12:30 pm

The Santa Barbara Channels
414 East Carrillo Street

Create your own videoblog, and promote you and your production on the Web. The workshop covers video compression and publishing for the Internet, video hosting services, posting video to a blog, cool videoblogging tips, RSS feeds, aggregators, social networking, and rights and responsibilities.

$10 members/$20 nonmembers
Limited to first 20 participants who pay!
RSVP to lisa@sbchannels.tv

The Santa Barbara Channels
414 E Carrillo St
Santa Barbara, California 93101
805-963-3893 (voice)
805-962-3703 (fax)
www.sbchannels.tv
info@sbchannels.tv

Super Happy Vlog House II

2008-01-27T16:29:00.000-08:00

Lan just iChatted and said that a group of OC'ers had gotten together recently and been thinking how great it would be to have another Super Happy Vlog House here at the Dojo. Nuff said. It's set for the weekend of Feb 16th. Feel free to come by anytime that weekend from Fri-Sun. Come and make video or spiff up your vlog. Beginners to advanced. Photography and podcasting/audio buffs too, plus geeks and nerds of all kinds. Rooms and couches are available, plus camping and RV spots. All are welcome. Pot luck. Free, but please RSVP so we can plan. Pool, spa, bbq, firepit, bathrooms, wireless, kitchen, large meeting room with projector.

Update: I made some minor changes on the wiki to reflect this year's date. Have at it and make it your own.

Update #2: While a Super Happy Vlog House is generally a fairly unstructured event, we do have some planned activities for those that are interested. Here is a general outline of some times and events for Saturday, Feb 16th:

8am-10am: coffee, breakfast, pre-day organizing

10am-12am: workshop: intro to videoblogging

12pm-2pm: photo/video walk in ventura river preserve, lunch, discussions

2pm-4pm: workshop: setting up your own videoblog show, content, tools, audience, statistics and more

4pm-6pm: siesta, work on a video, take a swim in the pool or spa, drinks, snacks, music, one-on-one time

6pm-7pm: potluck dinner/bbq, open source music

7pm-9pm: special live, mixed video and music performance and discussion

9pm-11pm: vlog screenings and discussions

11pm-9am: whatever, it's a sleep over (or work on a video all night), roasting marshmallows, stuff like that.

9am sunday: coffee and breakfast

Digital Dojo Ojai in Winter

2008-01-08T23:47:00.001-08:00

Click to Play

We treated ourselves to a new camera for the holiday season. Here are some scenes from around the dojo, just before the rains started last week.

LA Drupal Camp

2007-07-31T08:57:00.000-07:00

It's official! We're organizing a Drupal Camp for LA. The dates are set for September 8-9 and I'm told that AOL will be hosting the event! Too cool. Check out LADrupal.org for more info. Also, check out this great post on organizing a camp by our lead organizer Chrystal Willams. Now we need a logo too. Here's one I found on Flickr by thinkhive.

More Drupal: if you're into Drupal and love independent media, please check out tools.ourmedia.org and join in on all the fun.

Biker Madness

2007-03-26T19:03:00.000-07:00

We're really looking forward to Super Happy VLOG House. A number of people are expected, and we're getting excited! Although we encourage everyone to stay for the whole event, part-timers are welcome. One group we're always happy to see is a merry band of bikers (that's road bikers, people, as in bicycles) who regularly stop here at the Ojai Digital Dojo, as a sort of half-way point on their frequent centinniels. Yes, that's 100 miles, people! Perhaps they'll give interviews!

Super Happy Vlog House

2007-03-06T12:48:00.000-08:00

March 31st - April 1st, 2007. A vlogothon! 24 hours of videoblogging! All are welcome. Time to get that next videoblogging project started. Or finished! Come, work, learn, teach and play with other vloggers at the Ojai Digital Dojo. Find out all about it on the wiki. Just add your own name and ideas. It's free! Need help? Contact us directly at (805)640-7447 or email us. Or just leave a comment here on this vlog.

Ok, so it seems that every time I try to type the name of this event, I type the word supper instead of super. I just guess that means will have to have some good eats too! :)

Mexican Breakfast - Made With Love

2007-01-26T11:13:00.000-08:00

Click the pic to view the vid.

Alicia made me a great breakfast the other morning. One of the most important ingrediants is love.

Formats available: Quicktime (.mov)

Tags: alicia, ojai, digitaldojo, apperceptions, breakfast, love

A Brief Visit

2006-12-16T08:43:00.000-08:00

Click the pic to view the vid.

Do you pay attention to animal signs? Lately, there have been a number of sign involving birds of prey. The other day my wife an i were relaxing in the dojo when suddenly a friend dropped by for a minute. It's always good to have the proper tools handy and ready to go. I can't tell how long it seemed to take to reach the few inches to my camera...

Formats available: Quicktime (.mov), Flash Video (.flv)

Tags: apperceptions, digitaldojo, falcon, animal sign. ojai

Node101::Guerrero Negro, Baja California Sur, Mexico

2006-11-26T19:16:00.000-08:00

Click the pic to view the vid.

Just across the border is the Mexican state of Baja California Norte. South of that is another one of Mexico's 31 states: Baja California Sur. Just south of that border is the town of Guerrero Negro. There are hugh salt processing facilites there. And ecoturism with the whales January-March. There were lots of Internet Cafes, as they call them down there. There is often no coffee and no wireless. These guys were nice enough to let me hookup my laptop. The place was defintely a Node. Lots of folks stop by and use the half dozen computers. There is a great feeling about the place. Lots of laughter. It's simple and bare, but there is a warmth that comes from the people there. No one spoke english, but I was able to show them the Spanish version of freevlog and they got all excited. I left them with a small donation towards small shop. It's hard to imagine how they keep the place running at 16 pesos / hour (that's less than $1.50/hour), but they do. I asked the guy who was running the place what motivated him. Luckily someone who could translate had just walked in. The next morning, I met a guy from Canada there checking his email. It was a great place. And you can get the best food all up and down the street! I love Baja.

Formats available: Quicktime (.mov)

Tags: digitaldojo, node101

Mexico Maddness

2006-11-13T16:11:00.000-08:00

Click the pic to view the vid.

We made back home at last! It feels so good here. I needed this. Been too long. Ju know?

Formats available: MPEG4 Video (.mp4)

Tags: mÃ©xico

ACM Western Region Conference 2006

2006-10-24T17:57:00.000-07:00

Click the pic to view the vid

We're looking forward to helping podcast and videoblog this weekend's upcoming conference for the Alliance for Community Media in San Jose. Dave, JD, Ann Theis and I are leading a videoblogging workshop on Saturday afternoon and the whole Outhink team is volunteering to help record the action at the event.? Looks like this is going to be both an interesting and fun event.

Techonrati tag: acmwest2006

Vlog Teach-in Wrap-up for Node 101 Weekend

2006-08-18T13:02:00.000-07:00

Click the pic to view the vid.

Here's a little video that Dorothy Littlejohn of People2PeopleTV shot, using my Sanyo Xacti C5 camera, at the end of the Santa Barbara Vlog Teach-in she organized for Node101 Weekend. Click the pic to view the vid.

Formats available: Quicktime (.mov)

Tags: digitaldojo, santabarbara, node101weekend, apperceptions, node101

Node 101 Weekend - Vlog Teach-in - Santa Barbara

2006-08-12T21:52:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Dorothy Littlejohn of People2PeopleTV for coordinating this Node101 and Digital Dojo Sponsored workshop. Thanks to the participants who made it such fun. Here's a short video we made using my little Sanyo Xacti C5 and a T-Mobile cel phone. Music is excerpted from "Wow!," by Russ Garcia, his Orchestra and Chorus via SpacePop via BasicHip via Oddio OverPlay. Click the pic to view the vid.

Tags: node101weekend

Vlogger Jailed!

2006-08-03T20:01:00.000-07:00

Gena from Out on the Stoop sums it up well ...

Josh is being held for refusing to release the un-aired tapes he shot at a protest meeting. According to the SF Chronicle article, he could be in the slammer for up to a year.

Tell somebody and have them tell somebody else. This young man has no business being in jail, prison, detention or being a guest of the current administration.

He does need $15,0000 to mount an appeal. If you are able, go ahead and bust open the piggy bank. Send whatever you can. There is a link on his blog for donations.

Josh Wolf's July 19th Video Post

If you are an American, you know that this is wrong. If you are not an American I'm telling you this is not our way. You can't force someone to give up his property, especially under these conditions.

If you want to find out what the fuss is about check out http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/08/01/MNGVQK97AK4.DTL

I'm not asking you to agree or disagree with Josh's decision or the Feds. I'm asking that you inform yourself of this situation and then do what you believe to be the right thing. Another way to help is to visit the Free Josh Wolf wiki to help build support for Josh.

Technorati Tag: joshwolf

Workshop This Weekend

2006-05-03T13:23:00.000-07:00

A few people have asked about having a workshop this Saturday from 1-3pm on "Podcasting and Videoblogging Feeds and Subscriptions". This workshop will be geared towards explaining how to set-up and use "rich media" RSS feeds with your video and audio pod casts. This discussion is suitable for both beginners and more experienced internet users. We will demo several free and useful products and services.

Topics include:

* What is podcasting?
* What are feeds and subscriptions?
* How do I use them?
* How do I publish my own feeds?
* How do I create my own subscribe buttons?
* How do I make these work with my iPod?
* What are the costs? (answer: you can do it for free!)
* Free players and aggregators (iTunes, Fireant.tv, etc)
* Free services (Feedburner, iTunes, MeFeedia, etc.)

Bring your laptop if you have one. Don't have a blog or podcast? or a computer or camera? That's ok. We have some you can use here and we're happy to help you get started creating your own media. Our workshops are free and open to anyone. We generally potluck afterwards for an hour or two and help each other out with specific issues.

See the sidebar for directions to the Digital Dojo. Please leave a comment if you plan to attend.

Apple Store Grove

2006-04-08T20:01:00.000-07:00

Here is the video we made tonight during a presentation at the Grove Apple Store in Los Angeles, California.

Videoblogging Week 2006 - Post #6 - What Is A Node?

2006-04-08T00:16:00.000-07:00

We're talking Node101 of course. A bunch of folks in a workshop decided to make a video with some of their own answers. Then we edited them together. Here's the result (it was our first time using FCP). If you're interested in creating video and putting it on a blog, come to one of our free workshops.

Here's the hi-res version. Click the pic for the lo-res one.

Thanks to Richard, Alicia, Roger for contributing. Thanks to Ionia for leading the workshop.

Videoblogging Week 2006 - Post #3 - Digital Dojo Sights and Sounds

2006-04-06T07:16:00.000-07:00

Ok, this one's a bit late because I was having too much fun documenting some code. Please come and join us for a small sample of the sights and sounds that one encounters in this magical place. We are very fortunate to be able to work and live at the Ojai Digital Dojo. The Digital Dojo is a Node101 affiliate. Please come and visit us sometime for one of our free videoblogging events. Check out our website at digitaldojo.blogspot.com. Click the pic to view the video. Enjoy.

Friday Meetup and Saturday MeetTheVloggers

2006-04-04T02:28:00.000-07:00

Two events this coming weekend...

First, there's a casual Be The Media meetup in Ventura at Zoey's ~~The Underground~~ on Friday from 8pm-10pm. Drop on by and meet other locals interested in blogging, podcasting and videblogging. If you're interested in indie media, the web, making connections or just having fun hanging out with creative types, please come and join us for some coffee and conversation. Need some help with something or have something new to show off (your latest creation, perhaps), then please come on over and say "hi".

Second, several of us are going down to LA on Saturday to a Meet The Vloggers presentation at the Apple Store at the Grove. Zadi Dias is leading the presentation. Videobloggers Jay Dedman and Ryanne Hodson are in Ojai that weekend and will join us. There will be a pizza meetup afterwards in the Farmer's Market from 8pm-9pm. Call 805-640-8547 if you want to car pool with us.

Echo Park Film Center - Of By And For - Part One

2006-03-31T04:16:00.000-08:00

We went to the Echo Park Film Center to participate in a videoblog showing by Roger of 93mm.org. What a great place to learn about making media. The center's director Pablo was a wonderfully warm person and gave a great overview of the Center's workings.

Click the pic tp view the video (actually, it's dark in the room for the screening and so mainly just listen to this articulate and warm individual describes the center. It is obviously his passion.

Lan posted some cool photos.

Here are some more vids on my Apperceptions.org site.

Of By and For

2006-03-24T09:26:00.000-08:00

Our friend Roger of 93mm is organizing a videoblogging presentation next Thursday, March 30th at the Echo Park Film Center in Los Angeles. This looks like it should be an interesting and fun event, plus it's a good excuse to sneak down to LA for some local cuisine. He's asked us to give a short presentation about the Dojo and Node101.

Please join us for this "field trip". Leave a comment or email us if you're interested in car pooling. The event starts at 8pm. See the Of By and For website for details.

Here's a Google Map link to the Echo Park Film Center.

Update: Roger has sent out a press release about the event...

March 23, 2006
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
OF BY and FOR: videoblog selections from around the globe

Join us for an evening filled with videos from around the world made by people who have taken blogging
to the next level. On Thursday, March 30th at 8PM, HEADUCATE media presents “Of By and For: videoblog
selections from around the globe.” Gathered from various blogs, this showcase will feature videos from
different countries with topics ranging from experimental to documentary to comedy.

Stick around afterwards for a presentation by Markus Sandy from Node101. There will also be a Q&A session
so you can find out more on how to start videoblogging on your own as well as giveaways by Graphonic
clothing.

The event takes place at the Echo Park Film Center located at 1200 N. Alvarado St. and Sunset Blvd.
Seating is limited so arrive early.
Suggested donation is $5.
For more information go to: OfByandFor.blogspot.com or call 818-554-2731.

Center for Sustainable Design

2006-03-09T19:51:00.000-08:00

As part of a Node101 project, Dave Toole and Ryanne Hodson are helping the College of Marin's Center for Regenerative Design to make use of personal media tools.

Dave and Ryanne have already created a new vlog to get the word out about the Center's mission and they've posted several interesting interviews (video, audio) with Sim Van der Ryn, a renowned leader in sustainable architecture.

Ryanne, one of the founders of Node101, is moving from New York to California later this month to participate first hand in this innovative project. She and Dave will be setting up a node on the Marin College campus.

Dave is the CEO of Outhink and an active member in the personal media community. He is currently working together with JD Lasica on several Node101 and OurMedia related projects. Through Outhink, Dave has also provided genorous support for the Digital Dojo.

Final Cut Pro Workshop

2006-02-25T23:23:00.000-08:00

We will be getting together for a video editing working session with Final Cut Pro this Sunday, February 26th at 1:30-3:30pm. Ionia Kershaw will be at the dojo to help participants and share some video editing tips. Drop-in's are welcome at this free workshop.

Darknet and Lightnet Applications

2006-02-04T10:48:00.000-08:00

We will be holding technical discussions around the topics of lightnet and darknet integration and application. We are particularly interested in applications that might be useful to open-media communities such as OurMedia. Monday, February 13 20, 2006 at the Digital Dojo. This is an all day and evening event, start time is 8am. Please RSVP at 805-640-8547 so we can order enough pizza and goodies. Please email if you would like to attend the video conference.

Attendees will include:

Eric Zimmerman, Outhink
Dave Toole, Outhink
Chris Ritke, 49Media
Markus Sandy, Apperceive
Lucas Gonze, WebJay
Morty Wiggens, 33rd Street Records
Joshua Paul, Overhyped Technologies
Alicia Shay, Apperceive
JD Lasica, Ourmedia
Ionia Kershaw, ExploreVentura

Agenda

Breakfast - 8am
Introductions, Stories and Issues - 8:30am
Breakout Issues Sessions - 10am
Lunch, Swim, Hike Break - 11:30pm
Technology Demonstrations - 1:30am
Problem Solving Sessions - 3pm
Video Conference (Jay Dedman, Michael Meiser and others) - 4:30pm
Next Steps & Road Map Discussions - 6pm
Dinner, Desert, Open Media, Spa - 7pm

link

Final Cut Pro Workshops in February

2006-01-13T13:56:00.000-08:00

Several folks have asked for some Final Cut Pro workshops and we are planning some for February. Please leave a comment or call us if you are interested in attending. ~~We are tentaively planning on the 5th and/or the 19th~~.

Update: At the recent BE THE MEDIA meetup, people met to dicuss these workshops and it was decided that we would meet Sunday, Feb 12th 1:30-3:30pm for a project-oriented workshop. Folks indicated that it would be fun to make a short group video about what we are doing at the dojo node for use at presentation that Roger of 93mm is coordinating in LA in March. Ionia Kershaw will lead the workshop and there will be people with all skill levels (including little or none).

Local Meetup

2006-01-13T13:39:00.000-08:00

We're planning another local meetup for folks who are interested in blogs, vlogs, podcasts and being the media. All are welcome, newbies and experts alike. We're getting together at Zoey's in Ventura. They have wireless, so bring our laptop or pda and show your stuff. Come make new friends and learn about what others are doing with new media on the web. Be part of the new media revolution! Tuesday, January 31st at 7:30pm. Here's is a map to Zoey's; it's located at 451 East Main Street. Lot's of parking nearby.

SpinXpress

2006-01-02T01:05:00.000-08:00

We use SpinXpress to share media and collaborate.

You can view our SpinXpress partner page here.

Register and download SpinXpress, create your own groups and invite us.

Videoblogging From The Digital Dojo

2005-12-18T14:31:00.000-08:00

We are trying out AudioBlog and Blip.TV for recording vlog posts directly from our webcams.

Meetup in Ventura This Week

2005-12-18T08:26:00.000-08:00

People interested in "Being the Media" are invited to join us for a casual meetup at The Underground cafe in Ventura on Thursday, December 22 from 7-9pm.

If you are interested in blogging, video blogging, podcasting, photo blogging, mobloging, wiki's, tagging, Web 2.0, digital audio/video or new media, please stop by and say hello. Find out what others are doing with new (and free) tools on the Internet. Share what you are doing with others and make connections. Our last meeting was great fun and full of good information. Come and meet other passionate and creative people.

Talking Macs

2005-12-07T10:22:00.000-08:00

Here's a short story (90 seconds) about teaching personal computing at UC Santa Barbara back in the "old" days (the 80's) and the early days of text-to-speech. Click the pic to view the quicktime video.

Click here for a slideshow of interesting flickr photo's tagged UCSB.

Sunday Video Editing Workshop A Great Success!

2005-11-22T13:53:00.000-08:00

Ionia Kershaw led our first "Video Editing" workshop last Sunday and several people attended. We had a great mix of people, including two with documentary film experience and ambitions, photographers, web masters and novices alike.

Carla Morganstern, a documentary producer who drove up from Los Angeles after we met at a Meet The Vloggers presentation at the Apple Store in The Grove, said

"Great day in Ojai. I really appreciated attending the workshop yesterday. Ionia is a thoughtful and thorough teacher---I got a lot from the workshop and all the people attending."

Ionia is teaching more of these free workshops this month and next. You don't have to be a film producer to attend this class, however. Ionia shows how to use simple and freely available tools, tips and techniques that anyone can apply to their own videos. Simple edits and a little music can often turn your simple snaphots into someone's favorite music video, journal entry or news story.

Fernando's Ex'pression

2005-11-18T14:55:00.000-08:00

Here is Fernando Macias' video for the Ex'pression event.

Wal-Mart Documentary

2005-11-16T11:15:00.000-08:00

Ryanne Hodson sent me an email about a local showing of the Wal-Mart documentary that was taking place in one of my neighbors home. I had just heard about the documentary on a vlog and so my wife and I had wanted to see it. Ryanne is in NYC, but she connected me to a network of great people here in my own small town. How cool is that. Thanks Ryanne and thanks Kris! Kris is a chiropractor and he and his wife kindly hosted the screening for about 30 people. We got into a great conversation about the film, the local community and the role of a local establishment and community focal point: The Farmer and the Cook. They even have their own Yahoo group (like videobloggers)!

Sunday Video Editing Workshop

2005-11-16T01:50:00.000-08:00

Ionia Kershaw, a multimedia designer and the creator of ExploreVentura.com, will be leading some free video editing workshops at the Digital Dojo. Bring your digital still or movie cameras and laptop, or use one of ours. Learn post production techniques to turn your raw footage, photos and sound into a movie you can post to the web. We talk about tools like Quicktime Pro, iMovie, Windows Movie Maker, Adobe Premier, Roxio and Final Cut Pro and Express.

There are still a few seats left for the first workshop this Sunday, November 20th, 2005 from 1:30-3:30. Please RSVP at 805.640.8547.

Teach the Children

2005-11-14T14:05:00.000-08:00

Something Ryanne said in an email reminded me that we need to think more about videoblogging for vids. Lots of issues there. Here's a moment from the Meet The Vloggers (the new MTV!) last friday in Los Angeles at The Grove Apple store. So how do we present videoblogging to kids? Josh Leo and others have posted related articles at We Are The Media.

Meet The Vloggers LA - Roger - 93mm.org

2005-11-14T02:10:00.000-08:00

Roger of 93-double-m joined us for the recent "Meet the Vloggers" presentation at the Grove in Los Angeles. He did a great job. Check out his site at http://93mm.org.

2005-11-14T01:55:00.000-08:00

Surprise Visit

Eric Rice stopped by the Digital Dojo today. What a great surprise.

Vlogger Re-Mix

2005-11-13T20:02:00.000-08:00

Kity-Kity, who recently gave a great videoblogging presentation at Node101::San Antonio, has another videoblog re-mix posted. In this video, she sees vloggers everywhere she goes. What's that sign ahead? Is it Verdi?

Also, Juan Carlos Gonzales, a.k.a. Mr. Multiple2, has a vlog re-mix posted on his "This Side of the Cave" site that may become another classic along the lines of our good friend Josh Leo's classic "We Are The Media". It poses the big question of "why vlog", while sampling from the explosion of online videoblog content. Juan Carlos is also a member of Node101:San Antonio.

Way to re-mix it up! Here's a link to the "NOW REMIX!" video from mrmultiple2, just in case you are not already subscribed to his feed.

Be The Media Workshop

2005-11-08T12:46:00.000-08:00

Wednesday night is "Be The Media" night here at the Digital Dojo. That means we will be screening new vlogs and podcasts starting at 7:30pm, followed by a discussion about new developments in personal web publishing. This is also an open clinic where you can get help with your audio and video podcasting and blogging issues.

If you don't know where to start, we'll be happy to discuss your interests and suggest how you might go about it. We'll even get you set up with some great tutorials and point out other free workshops that might be of interest to you.

Come on by and make some media. Or come by and find out how to create your own audio, photo and video recordings using the equipment you already have (or ours)

You say you're already doing that? Well please send us your "feed" and we'll share it with everyone at the meetup. Better yet, come on by and share it with us in person. Tell us the how, what, why. where and when of your website.

If you don't know what a "feed" is, then you should definitely come on down and we'll show you and tell you all about it and show you how you can get one in on all the fun. (Psssst: there's a media revolution taking place and a "feed" is like your own private TV channel or radio show, only better cause it's free)

If you think there is something better on television, then you really need to come and see what's happening on the web these days. Seriously, this is big.

Please join us! RSVP at 805.640.8547, instant message or email if you can, but feel free to drop by anytime between 7:30pm and 9:30pm. Directions are in the sidebar.

Jonny Goldstein on Videoblogging

2005-11-07T15:35:00.000-08:00

Last Friday, I was able to capture a small part of Jonny Goldstein's presentation on videoblogging that he was giving to some students in NYC. He shared some cool videos and stories that helps put them in context. I really like Jonny's presentation style. As Jonny would say "Digitized from New York ...".

How did I capture this from California? An announcement about the presentation was posted in the Yahoo Videoblogging Group earlier in the day. It pays to keep an eye on those videobloggers; they're always up to something interesting.

Here's a ten minute MP3 excerpt of Jonny's presentation. Click the button to listen or stuff it in your "pod", man.

Workshops

2005-11-04T17:49:00.000-08:00

Please check our blog for upcoming events. If you'd like to help organize an event around a topic of interest, please contact markus at ojaidigitaldojo dot net.

We've added some new workshop and meetup dates, as well as events, to the sidebar of this videoblog. Here are the highlights:

Ionia Kershaw of ExploreVentura.com will be holding Video Editing workshops. Ionia is a talented multimedia designer, filmmaker and local videoblogger (she designed the flyer).
There are several more Meet The Vloggers presentations at Apple stores and colleges in Los Angeles and the SF Bay Area.
We are planning more local meetups in Santa Barbara and Ventura. We are meeting this month in Santa Barbara at the main library, downtown. Local videoblogger Paul Sanchez of SoloRide.org will join us for a community presentation and discussion. We hope to meet in Ventura again soon, at the Underground Coffee House.
We have a new projector and will be screening recent podcasts and videoblogs in the Be The Media workshops followed by open discussion on related topics of interest. These are a great place to jump in to our workshops and find out what people are doing and what's going on in the other workshops. Join us for some videos, podcasts, demonstrations and conversation about personal media publishing. Sometimes we take field trips.
We offer Videoblogging workshops on Saturdays. Produce your own video channels. We present the basics of video blogging. If you have them, bring your laptop and digital cameras (did you know that many still cameras can take some kind of video?). If not, call to let us know and we'll arrange to have a Windows or Macintosh computer available for your use. You can take this workshop on-line at Freevlog.
We're now offering Audio Podcasting workshops. Make your own radio shows. We'll present the basics of audio podcasting. If you have them, bring your laptops and digital recorders, microphones and mixers. Or use ours.

Click the pic to see the flyer for the Santa Barbara event. Call 805.640.8547 for workshop more information, meetup details or workshop reservations. All workshops and presentations are free.

A note to parents and teachers: we welcome all ages to our workshops but wish to point out that personal media is often just that: personal; hence, the content we screen is often of an "adult" nature (mainly language). If this is of concern to you, please let us know and we will be happy to schedule workshops that are suited to specific audiances.

A note about "basics": generally, our workshops are aimed at helping people express themselves through the creation and publication of personal media. Thus, the topics in a given workshop will vary to suit the participants. Sometimes the workshops are more like clinics where you can get help. If you already are videoblogging or podcasting, please feel free to join us. We need your help and value your voice in our discussions. These workshops are a place for both beginners and experts alike.

Re-mix Month at WATM

2005-11-02T20:35:00.000-08:00

It's re-mix month over at WeAreTheMedia.com

Meet The Vloggers LA - Gena Haskell

2005-10-24T23:25:00.000-07:00

Gena gave a fantastic presentation in the Apple store at The Grove in LA on September 21, 2005. Approximately 10 minute MP3 (8.6Mb). There is a tiny gap at around 6 min 37 sec where I stupidly turned off the camera for a moment and then restarted. It was really dark, making for a poor image, and so I just extracted the audio portion.

Click here to listen .

Leah Meyerhoff's Film Twitch at the Ojai Film Festival

2005-10-24T02:05:00.000-07:00

I was at the Ojai Film Festival to participate in a panel discusion on "Distribution in the Digital Age". Just as we were all finishing up and walking out of the auditorium, this young lady came up to us promoting her filmand I asked her to describe it for us on camera.

Here is a brief interview with one of the film makers associated with the "Into The Limelight" shorts collections. Click the pic to view the vid.

Upcoming Events

2005-10-19T13:00:00.000-07:00

Lots of great events are taking place on this week and next ...

The Ojai Film Festival starts Thursday. I will be participating in a discussion of "Video Distribution in the Digital Age" on Saturday morning.

On Friday at 7pm, there is another Meet The Vloggers presentation at the Apple Store at the Grove in Los Angeles.

Next Wednesday at 6pm, JD Lasica and Doc Searls will be speaking at UC Santa Barbara.

See the sidebar for links.

The next videoblogging workshops are planned for 7pm Wednesday, October 26th (field trip to UCSB) and 1pm Saturday October 29th (open clinic).

Saturday Workshop

2005-10-15T12:43:00.000-07:00

It seems like today was more like a clinic. One person came who we had met at the meetup in Ventura last month. It does not matter how many people show up. One is nice, because I can geive them all my attention. She left after we had overcome a very basic issue that I see people struggle every day.

Even on a Mac, you can't always drag and drop a file from the camera to iMovie. Sometimes you have to go from camera to desktop and then to iMovie. Same for MovieMaker on the PC. Some cameras appear as drives on a computer when you connect them with a USB or Firewire cable and everything works as expected, but some use a special "camera browser" application that may provde all kinds of nifty features EXCEPT the ability to seemlessly drag video to an editor. It's amazing how inconsistant these applications can be.

The solution was to simply walk through the process of creating and uploading a video to see the issue. She left the workshop saying she was all inspired to be creative with her blog and camera. I can't wait to see what she does. She also has some great ideas about how she can use videoblogs with her work and I hope she continues to explore that and, hopefully, vlog about it.

Wednesday Workshop

2005-10-13T12:36:00.000-07:00

We had a small group last night. Didj, Alicia and I watched some cool new vlogs and discussed upcoming events. We enjoyed good conversation and a really great bottle of wine and hardly spoke of technical matters at all.

Didj has a great site called Bardo Surfer and has even linked to the video we all made at the first meeting.

Field Trip

2005-10-06T14:00:00.000-07:00

A few of us went down to see Kenyatta Cheese and Justin Hall kick off a Portable Video workshop series. Tonight's topic was videoblogging. Ojai represent! The USC Zemeckies Media Center was a great environment for the workshop. I wish I had just one or two of the over dozen projectors used in the room. Kenyatta was just in town for a day or two, but Justin is planning to hold several more workshops over the next few months. I hope to attend more.

For information about Justin Hall's Portable Video Workshops, visit http://interactive.usc.edu/projects/portablevideo/

Here's a short video (3 minutes) of our trek to Los Angeles. Click the pic to view the vid.

Dojo Kity

2005-10-06T01:55:00.000-07:00

I caught Jimmy sleeping in the Digital Dojo early one morning.

Soon things won't be so quiet and Jimmy will need to find another place to relax.

Click the pic to view the vid.

Field Trip To USC This Week

2005-10-04T09:59:00.000-07:00

Kenyatta Cheese is visiting Los Angeles this week. He and Justin Hall are holding a workshop at USC in "Portable Media" this Wednesday, October 5th from 6pm-9pm. We will probably go out for beer and burgers afterwards.

Based on the description, it sounds like they are covering videoblogging a'la Freevlog.org much as we have been doing in our workshops at the Digital Dojo. It will be interesting to see how they do it and to meet these well known videoblogging pioneers.

Call 805.640.8547, if you are interested in carpooling to the event in LA. We are planning on departing Ojai around 4pm.

The next Ojai videoblogging workshops will be Wednesday, October 12th and Saturday, October 15th (see sidebar for links).

Next Workshop

2005-10-04T09:45:00.000-07:00

The next Wednesday evening videoblogging workshop is planned for October 12th, 2005. This is an open workshop based on the material presented at freevlog.org. See this post for more information on past workshops.

Don't worry if you are new to all this, you can jump on in anytime and if you're already a pro at video, audio, web services or tools, then come on over and help other people to learn the things they need to "be the media".

Please RSVP at 805.640.8547 if you plan to join us.

Workshop Mash-up

2005-09-30T18:38:00.000-07:00

I made a video from some pictures and videos that we shot at the first workshop. I used iMovie on my Mac PowerBook G4. The videos are not all the great as the lighting was poor and people were just learning to use the camera (half the time we did not even know it was on). I need to plan to shoot more video during the sessions, but everyone was so busy having fun and learning that we just forgot. Click the pic to view the vid. You can also find a copy on the Internet Archive.

New Vlogger in Ojai!

2005-09-30T18:33:00.000-07:00

Danette has already made a video post! Way to go Danette!

Make That Tonight!

2005-09-28T13:22:00.000-07:00

Please do RSVP. See post below.

Wednesday Evening Workshops Start Tomorrow

2005-09-27T14:38:00.000-07:00

We're starting some introductory, hands-on workshops on videoblogging tomorrow night from 7pm-9pm. Please RSVP at 805.640.8547. If you have them, bring your laptfreevlog.orgop and camera. We will be following the tutorials at freevlog.org.

Think you already know all that? Then come on down and lend a helping hand and share your expertise (and equipment!).

Here's a link to a vlog post that my friends Ryanne, Michael and Jay made around one of their workshops in New York. It should give a feel for what we are planning.

Webzine Workshop in San Francisco

2005-09-27T13:28:00.000-07:00

Here's a quickie video I made as a demo for the Webzine 2005 workshop titled "You Are The Media: Video Blogging 101".

I could only attend Webzine for one day, but it was great fun seeing "old" friends like Eric, Schlomo, Renegade, Zadi, Carlton, Chris, Josh Wolf, Enric, Shawn and "new" friends Bre Pretis (you can see him way in the back in the picture above) , Charles Hope, Mike Huduck and Josh Kinberg.

I also got to talk with a lot of interesting people about all kinds of ideas including tagging, videoblog hosting, RSS, robotics and, of course, being the media.

Saturday Workshops In October

2005-09-21T07:37:00.000-07:00

Based on discussions with people at the meetup, we will be offering free Saturday videoblogging workshops starting October 15th.

I'm thinking it might be fun to combine the Saturday events with a short walk/hike in the Ventura River Preserve, workshops and a pot-luck meal. We could go out and capture pictures, movies and even sounds and then come back to the Digital Dojo for a videoblogging or podcasting workshop and some good eats.

Nature hike - short walk/hike into the nature preserve - 11am-noon
Lunch - pot luck and/or brown bag it, plus videos, of course - noon-1pm
Workshop - two hours of hands on videoblogging - 1pm to 3pm
Open Access to computers, cameras and help - 3pm to 4pm

What do you think? Sound like fun?

Please RSVP at 805-640-7447. These events are free and we have a limited capacity in our workshop.

If you have your own camera and/or laptop, please bring it.

Local Meetup

2005-09-21T00:42:00.000-07:00

Wow! Did I have a great time last night meeting some wonderful people interested in personal media like podcasting, blogging and videoblogging?

You bet! That's exactly the kinds of things we are doing here at the Digital Dojo.

Alicia and I met up with Ionia, Adam, Lana, Paul, Patrick, Chad and Danette to share ideas and discuss issues related to personal media publishing on the web.

We intend to hold some workshops at the Digital Dojo, create a wiki for networking and organize more meetups. What a great group.

Click the pick to view a vid of us all (actually Alicia had left already and I'm holding the camera, of course).

Meet The Vloggers LA

2005-09-15T23:55:00.000-07:00

Aaron made a great little video about out presentation at The Grove Apple Store. I cut it down a little for a quickie version that just shows the presentation and discussion afterwards for use in publicizing our work.

Click the picture to view the video.

Free Videoblogging Workshops This Fall

2005-08-22T00:53:00.000-07:00

We are planning to host a series of small videoblogging workshops in Ojai at the Digital Dojo this fall. We will offer introductory hands-on workshops each Wednesday from 7pm-9pm. If you are interested in attending, please call 805-640-7447 for reservations.

BTW, If you have any computer equipment or digital movie cameras that you would like to donate for use in our workshops, please contact us at the number above or via email.

Open House and Vloggercue West

2005-06-25T16:09:00.000-07:00

The Digital Dojo is opening it's sliding shoji doors on July 9th at 12noon PDT for a vlogger bar-b-que and video link up with the other Vloggercue's around the world.

Please come celebrate the opening of our new Node 101 teaching facility in beautiful Ojai, California and connect with videobloggers around the world.

Click here for more details.

Dojo Web Cam

2005-05-01T19:49:00.000-07:00

If there is no image, then either it is night time or those damned videobloggers have taken the camera again!

About the Digital Dojo

2005-04-01T22:38:00.000-08:00

We are the media. All of us, big and small. Independent or corporate. Personal workshops and services that empower people to be the media is what the Ojai Digital Dojo is all about. Founded in a beautiful Japanese styled martial arts studio in 2005 by Markus Sandy and Alicia Shay, the Digital Dojo is a magical place to learn about finding, creating and sharing personal media over the web. Media distribution in the digital age will make for great change in the very near future and you can bet that this revolution will be televised. The Digital Dojo is also a Node 101 affiliate.

Alicia is a water color artist when she can be and a java network programmer when she has to be. She and Markus love to share the beauty and magic of the Digital Dojo, personal media and the surrounding Ojai countryside and wilderness. Alicia's vlog is called "Alicia Coral".

Markus shares his experiences through video and other forms of media at his personal videoblog at Apperceptions. Markus also acts as an adviser and coordinator to several media organizations, including OurMedia, HaveMoneyWillVlog and Outhink's SpinFlow. He also is a moderator for the popular Yahoo! Videoblogging Group and a reporter for We Are The Media. Markus is a popular teacher and presenter; he is a member of the Meet The Vloggers team well known for their entertaining Apple Store and new media school presentations. Markus participates in a number of events, including Pixelodeon and the Ojai Valley Film Festival.

In another life, Markus was a Chief Applications Architect for Apperceive and Outhink, plus a popular instructor for the University of California at Santa Barbara and the US Navy at China Lake. Today, Markus concentrates on teaching and empowering others to pursue their creative passions and to help build online communities. In many ways, Markus has become a "Digital Urban Planner". An Ojai resident for almost 15 years. His personal passion is centered around traditional Japanese woodworking tools and techniques.