How many YouTube videos do you watch on a daily basis? Worse, how many YouTube videos do you send to your friends on a daily basis? If the answer is anywhere near "one or more," and I bet it is, then I've found the perfect Web app for you. Because one of the tough things about forwarding along a funny YouTube video is that you're forced to watch said person enjoy the experience at their leisure. You can't force them to click play, nor can you really appreciate their laughter and enjoyment as it happens in real-time: You don't know how far along they are in the video, after all.
To address this grave concern, some enterprising folk have come up with a Web App that's one part chat-room, two-parts edit bay. It's called Synchtube, and I bet you can guess exactly what it does by the name alone. It might only have two real features, but they're absolutely solid when you want to share the hilarity and joy of a single YouTube video with one or more people at once.
Using the free Web app is easy. Just head on over to the main site and enter in the URL of a YouTube video that you'd like to share with your friends. Up pops a chat room of sorts with the video queued up in the left-hand corner of the screen. Send your friends a link to the room, and they'll pop in and be given the opportunity to set up chat handles of their very own. When you're ready for your film to begin, just hit the synchronize button and play the film. The leader of the room can rewind, fast forward, pause, and play the video as much as he or she wants--your actions will be reflected on the screens of the room's other participants.
It's as easy as that. You can now "bask in the lols," as it were, at the exact same time your friends do. While this app might have a bit more use for things like presentations and what-have-you, it's nice to know that we can now all enjoy the wonders of a good ol' YouTube cat video simultaneously across the Internet. Technology, ain't it grand?
Every Thursday, Maximum PC picks a new Web App as its favorite of the week. Have a Web App that you can't live without? Twitter David Murphy @acererak with your latest suggestions.
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