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Getting "Embed" With YouTube

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By Bud Kraus
bud@joyofcode.com
Joy Of Code
Creator And Instructor

v4 i17
Originally Published: October 23, 2008

I have to admit to an addiction. I am a YouTube Junkie. I have no intention of kicking this habit any time soon.

I don't have VCRs, DVRs or TiVO. Somehow I manage to get by without missing a thing. That's because I have YouTube.

Missed Tina Fey brushing past Sarah Palin on SNL? Missed the opening ceremonies of the Summer Olympics? Too busy to see the Presidential Debates? See it now on youtube.com.

But YouTube is far more important than a gigantic video replay machine. It's strength lies in anyone's ability to upload a video at no cost and to, as the YouTubers say, "Broadcast Yourself." The growth of YouTube and the manic use of video on the web have come at the same time is no coincidence. Looking back at the last few years the web was a very different place until broadband allowed video to burst onto our screens.

Now here comes the power. YouTube gives you the code (you knew I'd get around to code, huh?) of every video in their system so that you can embed (stick in) the video into any web page you might be working on.

The lovely Arlene from Desserts To Go takes a break at the last Cleveland Indians game ever at Yankee Stadium. That's me singing an American Classic.

Here's the code YouTube generated for this video. All I had to do was copy and paste it into my web page.

<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/sgcMhFc8b2w&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/sgcMhFc8b2w&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>

How cool is that? Transformatively cool!! Do you have to know what all this code is? Not really, but if you do, you might find that knowledge useful.