Omegle, Chatroulette, and Broken Bones

A couple months ago I discovered Omegle (sorry, I can't remember who told me about it. If I remembered I would give you credit!) Anyway, the concept is simple - you hit a button, and it connects you to another user. Anywhere in the world. You just IM back and forth, and you can disconnect at any point and move on to someone else.

This seemed like a recipe for disaster. I could pretty much write the story already - old creepy person convinces young impressionable teen to reveal details about themselves and meet them somewhere. Shocking news and law suit ensue.

But I came around. I mean, it's just text. How bad could it be? I decided to give it a shot. Here is a transcript of my first conversation:

You're now chatting with a random stranger. Say hi!
Stranger: hot male w pic?
You: no
You: no I am not
Your conversational partner has disconnected.

To be honest, I really should have seen that coming.
But of course, like all things on the Internet, it has been taken further.

If you haven't heard of Omegle, you may have heard of Chatroulette (thanks David for filling me in). It's the same concept - hit a button, connect to anyone in the world, and disconnect at any time. The difference is that instead of just text, its done using your webcam and microphone. So you actually see and hear the person on the other end.

Unfortunately, it appears that upwards of 46% of chatroulette users are...how shall I put this...males enjoying the pleasure of their own company. And I must say, I really do not need to see that. And by I, I think I speak for everyone. Chatroulette is once again a great idea taken a horrible direction by people of the world. A great big thank you to all those guys out there.

Anyway, try either at your own risk.

On a different note, a sincere Get-Well-Soon to Lisa, who broke her wrist snowboarding this weekend. David was able to avoid such an injury by, as he put it, "resisting the instinct to stop yourself with your hands." So kudos, David, for stopping yourself with your face instead. In a related note, do you snowboard in circles because one leg is shorter than the other?

My advice has always been the same - if you're gonna get hurt, do it in a car accident that isn't your fault. My BFF Carolyn had the same injury after getting T-boned, and I imagine it's a lot easier dealing with the recovery with a few grand to help out. It just seems like a logical solution, that's all.

Well that's all for now. This Computer Law paper outline isn't going to write itself.
Note to self: Invent self-writing outline.