Having just purchased a webcam myself, perhaps I can help here.

First, do NOT bother with the $30 webcams you'll see in Wal Mart or Target. It had been nearly ten years since I bought a webcam, and I had thought that perhaps the technology would have improved and that low cost cams would now be a safe purchase. Not so. Image quality is awful and the cheap cams do not function well in low light situations. I tried a $30 cam, installed it, hated it immediately, returned it the same day.

You want to start with the best possible quality video -- certain webcam broadcast software will end up lowering quality as it is anyway, simply due to the fact that there are compression restrictions when you send video out online. So the better your image is to start, the better it will look online (though direct cam to cam connections, such as Yahoo, will give a better image).

It all depends on what you want to spend. You can purchase a mega-high quality cam for $300 - $500, but this is overkill for most people. Personally, I think $100 to $150 for a cam is reasonable. After researching various cams and reading user reviews (once I returned the crap cheap-ass cam), I decided to go with a Logitech.

Creative cams in the $100 and up price range get good reviews, as do 3 Com cams. However, Creative's software is obnoxious and intrusive -- and they like to load you up with AOL trial icons and all sorts of other superfluous bullshit. Since you are an admitted PC novice, I'd highly recommend the Logitech for you. The install is FAST and completely painless, as it should be. There was no bullshit installed (except for a couple items that load at boot, but these can be removed using the MSCONFIG utility I told you about in the last PC thread -- but leaving them there is just fine, too -- they won't hurt anything: the cam works fine with or without them).

You have a new PC and that means you have Windows XP. In which case I'd recommend the Logitech QuickCam Orbitz. I had to get the QuickCam Pro because the Orbitz does not run on Windows 98. The Orbitz is a step above mine -- it allows for some nicer positioning of the cam and has pan, tilt and zoom functions. It looks pretty damn slick, too. The Orbitz is $130 in retail stores. If you want to go with the slightly lesser cam for $100, get the Logitech QuickCam Pro like I did -- it will run on any operating system. I recently had a guy email me and ask what cam I use. He liked the color and image quality of my broadcasts and snapshots.

The software is easy to use. I'd HIGHLY recommend you set the cam for FULL AUTO adjustment. You won't have to fiddle with gamma settings and light levels, etc. Just click ONE check box and the cam will adjust itself perfectly -- every time. NICE! It takes about four seconds for your image to adjust. The first moment it appears, it will look grainy and dark. Just hang on. A few flickers later, the image will clear up and look beautiful.

LONG USB cord, so moving the cam around is easy. Heavy, sturdy base. Oh... the built in microphone actually WORKS -- and works very well. One less thing sitting on your desk, too.

The image I posted here of my travel bag is NOT indicative of the quality of the cam, however, so don't judge from that. This was a close up shot and there was reflective glare from the American flag pin on the front of the case. If you want to see some representative images of me (your choice, X rated or G rated or both), just email me and I'll send you some pics. I don't care if you or anyone else knows what I look like.

You can find MY cam at NewEgg for $75. I really should have ordered from them -- but I had cash burning a hole in my pocket. NewEgg has been around forever. FANTASTIC customer service and FAST delivery. I just got a scanner from them as well as a sound card and I am 100% satisfied with the service and the price. And really... I hate everything, so for me to recommend them is a serious compliment.

http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduc...108-105&depa=0

Or... just go to Best Buy and spend the $100. Best Buy does NOT charge a restocking fee if you return an item.

I didn't search NewEgg for the Orbitz, though. You can do that on your own if you want to spend the additional $30 for the cam with more options.

These are OEM products (original equipment manufacturer) -- the ones sold on NewEgg (mostly). What this means to you is... essentially nothing at all. You'll get a full warranty and all the software. If buying a motherboard or a CPU... perhaps retail is the best bet for a newbie -- but I think you can pretty much not have any concerns about OEM peripherals, so just ignore this. I only added it here because some purists would berate me for leaving this out.

Now, as far as jerking off online with your cam...

Direct cam to cam connections are fine, it just all depends on your personal taste. If you want to broadcast your penis to the masses, WebCamNow is a good place to do that. You can also meet guys on WCN and arrange to enter a private video session with them on Yahoo. I do believe you can also broadcast on both at the same time, though I also think image quality on WCN suffers if you send the signal to Yahoo, too. I'm not sure, though: I've just heard some people bitching about this.

I used to use a program called ICUII (I see you, too). It is still around, but I think you need to pay for it (or hack a code from somewhere). This is also direct cam to cam broadcasting, with previews. The problem with cam to cam is that some guys don't let you see their faces first. You may initiate a cam to cam contact and find that the guy you thought had a hot dick also has a really bad case of facial acne or something. In this case, you can certainly just close down your cam and sign off, but that can be really hurtful to the ugly dude on the other end. So... do you go through with it and jerk off together, or do you insult him and sign off?

Also problematic with cam to cam... a guy may ask you to do something you don't want to do, or pressure you for certain kinds of sex talk (typed or via the microphone). Or any number of little annoyances. With something like WCN, which has hundreds of broadcasters and chatters, you can easily ignore any requests or demands which you deem out of line.

It's like hanging out in a group of guys having sex together in the woods or at the baths -- you can leave anytime you want or avoid doing things you don't want with relative ease when there are larger numbers of men. But in a one on one situation -- extricating yourself from it can get tricky if you don't like it as you thought you would.

The good news is that a lot of guys are just used to this. A cam partner that suddenly disappears isn't necessarily insulting to everyone out there: we all know tastes may vary. I personally don't like insulting guys, so I avoid cam to cam stuff. I also don't want to be insulted myself!

WebCamNow takes some getting used to. Sometimes, you will be the life of the party: everyone will flock to your cam and give you great compliments. Other times, no one seems to watch you at all. It's the luck of the draw. Men who like twinks, I am quite sure, will NOT be interested in your cam. You can't take that personally, of course. Also, lots of guys (mostly immature kids, I suspect), will pressure you for something specific, or to cum quickly, etc. Just ignore them. They'll go away. But what bothers me the most (and it doesn't bother me all that much, to be honest), is guys who are seemingly into you and then suddenly move along to another cam. MEN ARE FICKLE. They want something NEW to look at, and WCN offers hundreds of cams. So what you'll find is that your audience rotates frequently. Men watch, move along, then new ones show up.

Sometimes, a really nice looking guy gets on cam and NO ONE watches any other cams at all, or so it seems. Weekend nights seem to have more good looking guys, but also more kids online, so it's a crapshoot. But hey... the good looking dudes deserve their fun, too. Just don't expect too many people to watch any cam that doesn't have a perfect muscle body if one of those is available. However... this isn't always true. Some fans are very dedicated and you'll find that they stick with you no matter what. You may even make a few "cam buddies" who seek you out often.

Your personality makes a HUGE difference. If you are friendly, more people will like you. No surprise there, right? You are NOT obligated to answer EVERY comment sent your way. Speak when you wish to speak, play with your dick when you want to play with your dick -- or just do whatever you like. Obviously, you've been to the WebCamNow site and have an idea of how it all works.

One tip -- you MAY need to update your Java. Your new cam, whatever it is, should work just fine with all instant messenger programs out there. But WCN's broadcast software is Java code. I won't bore you with details of the little feud between Microsoft and Sun Systems, but what you need to know is that MS doesn't automatically update Java anymore. So try your cam on WCN first. If you get errors or it doesn't work, just update your Java. SAVE THIS LINK:

http://www.java.com/en/index.jsp

Just click the "GET IT NOW" button. The install is painless. Your cam will work fine with WCN after that, if it is necessary to do so.

If anything here sounds too technical, I apologize. It is really not all that complicated. I am quite sure you won't have any problems at all. If you can hook up a printer or a USB device, setting up a webcam will be easy as pie.

As always, this is just MY opinion on the Logitech cam. I am EXTREMELY happy with my final purchase, so it's only fair I recommend it. Others may like another brand of cam. I will say, however, that Logitech has served me VERY well over the years, providing OUTSTANDING customer service. I use a Logitech cordless keyboard and mouse, and just happened to get a bad mouse many years ago, which broke after three months. Logitech replace the keyboard AND the mouse, mailing me new ones in less than TWO days. They did NOT ask for the old one in return, hence I have a perfectly good, brand new keyboard as a spare. But the new mouse and keyboard have worked perfectly for about six years now. I love them. Getting a lemon now and then is expected, so I don't blame Logitech for the busted mouse: shit happens. Their service and support were flawless. I also love the fact that they don't force bullshit software onto your PC. Creative really pisses me off with this crap (though they do make a nice sound card).

Hope this helps. Have fun!

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