Friday, February 26, 2010

The Internet Has Eyes

Chatroulette.com lets you see what the internet sees. It is the mirror of our collected mind and puts faces on the nodes of our human superorganism.

Basically, how it works is that the site connects you to video/audio/text chat with a "random stranger. Both parties have the option to hit "next" and move on to a new "random stranger."

People don't seem to know what to do with this site yet, how to act, or what new possibilities this opens up to us. While there are definitely some dicks out there (literally and figuratively), mostly people just stare at the person on the other end and hit 'next'. Flipping through humans like you would flip through channels on television. What are they looking for? How do they decide who to give time to... and how do you get somebody to give time to you? The funny thing is that people get really excited when they land on someone they recognize, and the ultimate is spotting a celebrity.

Entire websites are being devoted to chat roulette screenshots. These mostly display the funny/weird chat moments. (guy dressed like cat, scary clown mask, etc.) There are also regular people out there who are connecting and having conversations across the globe with people they might have never interacted with. They get less attention from the blogs, but these interactions are probably more meaningful as they spread information, stories, and culture in a whole new way. We can learn about people's aspriations in a new way too. Yesterday i spoke with a group of engineering students in Ranchi, India who were mostly interested in what kind of car i drove and the sports i played. Now, you probably think i left them completely disappointed, but my explanation of laser tag left them wide-eyed.

Also, hung out with my friend Tom the other night checking out chatroulette. see our misadventures HERE

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