this is justwebcontent.com

I’m beginning to discover the world of streaming webcams. For about two years I ran a webcam which showed the front of Somerset House in London’s trendy West End. Every 30 seconds it took a picture — 320px x 170px — of the road outside, at a crazy angle. This was because the tiny camera was perched precariously on the window ledge between the double glazing of my office in Brettenham House, off Lancaster Place.

Exciting it wasn’t. It did give a good view of the roadworks outside to strengthen Waterloo Bridge and add an access hatch to the Strand Underpass (which even has its own Wikipedia page). The downside was that you only got a glimpse every 30 seconds or so: even British workmen can move faster than that!

Look around the web and you’ll find lots of webcam sites. My favourite is the Times Square HD webcam, and I once made my own .gif movie prancing around in front of this one at 4am in the morning.

The best webcams obviously have the best views, but it’s not as simple as sticking a camera on some lofty building overlooking a recognisable landmark. Take a look at the Hoe Webcam which sits on Plymouth’s old aquarium site and points out over Plymouth Sound. It’s a lovely view, but nothing (much) happens.

In formulating a policy for placing webcam feeds we quickly come to several conclusions.

• It must be a good view
• Something must happen
• It must be of sufficient size

The key to motivating people to contribute to any project or activity is finding their personal angle: what’s in it for them?

I’ve not been a member of the Regus team for very long to meet enough people to know what flicks their switch but, in the wider world, behavioural scientists say that it comes down to food, habitation and mate competition. Now, I’m not sure we can introduce online dating, planning rules prohibit using offices for residential purposes and, trust me, I’ve tasted Regus’s sandwiches.

Contributing to the website MUST become a part of everyday life for selected Regus employees and to facilitate that it has to be made painless (or as painless as we can) as well as rewarding. I faced similar problems at my previous emplyer in recent years and only recently — with endorsement from higher management AND extra resource and incentives — did people begin to realise that online HELPS them, not hinders.

What will be make or break is a good Content Management System. The CMS displayed today by Ektron sets a high standard. Above all, it appears to be an easy sytem to use with and intuitive interface.