Some of you probably wonder why I am pushing MegaVideo over YouTube. There are several reasons for this.
- Easier For Me - MegaVideo has no file length limit and a 5GB file size limit. YouTube has recently increased their file size limit to 2GB, but they still hold a 10 minute limit. I may or may not ever hit this new size limit, but while I have a choice I'll go with the larger limit.
- Rewards Program - MegaVideo offers a rewards program based on the number of views my videos receive. Each IP address can get me one point per day. As these add up, I may be able to redeem these to help pay for a new camera. I currently shoot my video with a Kodak EasyShare V610. It is a nice small camera for still shots, but certainly not the best for video. Going HD would be awesome, but that would require a lot of points...
- Download Original File - MegaVideo allows me (and premium users) to download the original file. This is convenient because I am currently having trouble finding all of my original project files. Due to my lack of organization when it comes to files, they are currently scattered somewhere across 2 computers and multiple backups. This way I will at least be able to always have access to the final exported file.
Yes, I have come across a couple of shortcomings as well. - Ads - At least 2 per video view, and they are annoying (BUT AVOIDABLE! KEEP READING!). A small square ad appears first with a red play button in the middle of it. Clicking the red button causes a pop-up which must be closed. This also causes the button to change from red to green. Clicking the green button causes the video to start. The best way I have found to get around it is to use Mozilla Firefox and install AdBlock Plus. AdBlock Plus removes just about all ads from any site. If it is installed you will NOT see the square ad in the middle AND clicking the red play button will start the video.
- It has been 3 days (as of 7/23/09) since I uploaded the first video to MegaVideo. My profile still shows (0) videos. Clicking 'My Videos' on the home page, however, displays my video. It is NOT set to private and yet it is not on my profile and is invisible to search. I have sent an email but have yet to get a reply. Hopefully this is a fluke, but regardless, this site should hopefully become the place people check for updates, so I'm not too worried about it.
Both sites have benefits and issues. As of now I prefer MegaVideo, but I will attempt to keep everything on both sites because YouTube has a much larger user base and people generally go there to search for anything. I will, however, include annotations in YouTube with the address of the MegaVideo version of the video in hopes to attract more people there to increase my reward points. |
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