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August 9, 2007 2:51 PM PDT

JibJab's 'Starring You!' is the greatest office time-waster in history

by Caroline McCarthy

Trust me--I know procrastination. But this one really takes the cake.

JibJab, as you probably know already, made a name for itself by creating corny (yet socially relevant) musical skits that superimposed the heads of politicians and celebrities onto cartoon bodies. Now that user-generated content is nothing new, it almost seems overdue that JibJab would introduce a "make your own" feature. But now, at long last, here it is: "JibJab Starring You!"

The concept, at least according to the creators, is to JibJab yourself by uploading a photo, easily crop it with the Flash-based tools to make a bobblehead-like image, and then revel at the absurdity of watching yourself dance the Charleston.

But don't let that fool you. The real purpose of "Starring You!" is to dig up photos of your boss and put them into any number of the dorky dance videos. As a bonus, most of them require two dancers, so you can use the likenesses of multiple co-workers--or choose from a small library of celebrity heads that range from Donald Trump to Barack Obama.

As a demonstration, I present to you Josh Lowensohn, Hot Mamacita. (No, Josh isn't my boss, but he's more...photogenic.)

Caroline McCarthy, a CNET News staff writer, is a downtown Manhattanite happily addicted to social-media tools and restaurant blogs. Her pre-CNET resume includes interning at an IT security firm and brewing cappuccinos. E-mail Caroline.
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wow, time well spent
by blrhead August 9, 2007 7:04 PM PDT
i guess now i have something to entertain myself in between projects
Reply to this comment
wow, time well spent
by blrhead August 9, 2007 7:04 PM PDT
i guess now i have something to entertain myself in between projects
Reply to this comment
MushyGushy.com also great for procrastinating!
by lhghbabe August 13, 2007 12:42 PM PDT
I just saw JibJab's "Starring You" and this reminds me of another site that I am obsessed with, MushyGushy.com. It uses similar "time-wasting" tech fun..but there are TONS of animated flash videos to choose from. It's lots of fun and worth the time to check it out.
Reply to this comment
MushyGushy.com also great for procrastinating!
by lhghbabe August 13, 2007 12:42 PM PDT
I just saw JibJab's "Starring You" and this reminds me of another site that I am obsessed with, MushyGushy.com. It uses similar "time-wasting" tech fun..but there are TONS of animated flash videos to choose from. It's lots of fun and worth the time to check it out.
Reply to this comment
by terigarrett February 8, 2008 8:12 AM PST
This is great! Read this new article about JibJab and the new hit - SmashMash!

http://www.thetechbrief.com/2008/02/08/smashmash-versus-jibjab-comrades-competitors-or-kaput/
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