YTMND
Encyclopedia
YTMND, an initialism for "You're the Man Now, Dog", is an online community
Virtual community
A virtual community is a social network of individuals who interact through specific media, potentially crossing geographical and political boundaries in order to pursue mutual interests or goals...

 centered on the creation of hosted web pages (known within the community as YTMNDs or sites) featuring a juxtaposition of an image (still or short animation) centered or tiled along with optional large zooming text and a looping sound file. Images and sound files used in YTMNDs are usually either created or edited by users. YTMND is generally a humor website, owing its tone and culture to the original YTMND and its early imitators. Many YTMNDs, however, range the entire spectrum of what may interest the viewer, from high art to simple entertainment to the political.

History

YTMND originated in 2001 from Max Goldberg's original website, "yourethemannowdog.com", which he registered along with "dustindiamond.com" after seeing a trailer
Trailer (film)
A trailer or preview is an advertisement or a commercial for a feature film that will be exhibited in the future at a cinema. The term "trailer" comes from their having originally been shown at the end of a feature film screening. That practice did not last long, because patrons tended to leave the...

 for the movie Finding Forrester
Finding Forrester
EnglishFinding Forrester is a 2000 American drama film written by Mike Rich and directed by Gus Van Sant. A black American teenager, Jamal Wallace , is invited into a prestigious private high school. By chance, Jamal befriends a reclusive writer, William Forrester , through whom he refines his...

in which Sean Connery
Sean Connery
Sir Thomas Sean Connery , better known as Sean Connery, is a Scottish actor and producer who has won an Academy Award, two BAFTA Awards and three Golden Globes Sir Thomas Sean Connery (born 25 August 1930), better known as Sean Connery, is a Scottish actor and producer who has won an Academy...

 says the line "You're the man now, dog!". Originally, the website featured the text "YOURE THE MAN NOW DOG.COM" drawn out in 3D
3D computer graphics
3D computer graphics are graphics that use a three-dimensional representation of geometric data that is stored in the computer for the purposes of performing calculations and rendering 2D images...

 ASCII text
ASCII art
ASCII art is a graphic design technique that uses computers for presentation and consists of pictures pieced together from the 95 printable characters defined by the ASCII Standard from 1963 and ASCII compliant character sets with proprietary extended characters...

 with a sound loop from the Finding Forrester trailer of Sean Connery reciting the phrase "You're the man now, dog!". The advent of zoomed text currently on the website was seen in the following months, where the website also featured a photograph of Sean Connery
Sean Connery
Sir Thomas Sean Connery , better known as Sean Connery, is a Scottish actor and producer who has won an Academy Award, two BAFTA Awards and three Golden Globes Sir Thomas Sean Connery (born 25 August 1930), better known as Sean Connery, is a Scottish actor and producer who has won an Academy...

. Goldberg's new
creation inspired others to make similar sites with other movie and television quotations (or any other sound clip they wished to use). At first, Goldberg maintained a list and mirror
Mirror (computing)
In computing, a mirror is an exact copy of a data set. On the Internet, a mirror site is an exact copy of another Internet site.Mirror sites are most commonly used to provide multiple sources of the same information, and are of particular value as a way of providing reliable access to large downloads...

 of these sites, but the list soon became exceptionally long.
In 2004, Goldberg wrote a press release
News release
A press release, news release, media release, press statement or video release is a written or recorded communication directed at members of the news media for the purpose of announcing something ostensibly newsworthy...

 after winning a lawsuit filed by Dustin Diamond
Dustin Diamond
Dustin Neil Diamond is an American actor, musician, director, and stand-up comedian best known for his role as Samuel "Screech" Powers in the television shows Saved by the Bell, Good Morning, Miss Bliss, Saved by the Bell: The College Years and Saved by the Bell: The New Class.-Career:Diamond's...

 for the "fan page" at the aforementioned dustindiamond.com. He mentioned yourethemannowdog.com, as well as a new website, YTMND, that would be ready by April 10. The website opened that day after a rushed coding and design process. The site caught on in popularity and became an Internet phenomenon when major weblogs
Blog
A blog is a type of website or part of a website supposed to be updated with new content from time to time. Blogs are usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in...

 and Internet forum
Internet forum
An Internet forum, or message board, is an online discussion site where people can hold conversations in the form of posted messages. They differ from chat rooms in that messages are at least temporarily archived...

s began linking to the Picard Song YTMND.

Height of Popularity

2004 to 2007 was the golden age of YTMND, as various creations within the site gained massive popularity. It was during this time that many of the timeless YTMNDs were launched.

In November 2005, YTMND changed its layout and added new features, including a comment management system and new lists for the main page. A feature debuted soon after allowing users to donate money on behalf of a YTMND chosen by the user in exchange for its increased exposure through the main site.

On September 24, 2006, YTMND changed to a new layout and design. The re-design added new features, such as the YTMND digest.

Decline

After 2008 YTMND entered a period of rapid decline. User creations became less popular and less traffic entered the site. This dip is attributed to the change in the YTMND layout, as well as the increased popularity of YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....

 and other such sites.

On July 16, 2011, YTMND changed to its current layout and design and became "YTMND 2.1."

eBaum's World

In January 2006, eBaum's World
EBaum's World
eBaum's World is a website based in Rochester, New York featuring entertainment media such as videos, Flash cartoons and web games. It is controversial for many reasons, primarily because much of the content on the website is taken from other sources without permission and rebranded with the...

 hosted and watermarked
Digital watermarking
Digital watermarking is the process of embedding information into a digital signal which may be used to verify its authenticity or the identity of its owners, in the same manner as paper bearing a watermark for visible identification. In digital watermarking, the signal may be audio, pictures, or...

 a Lindsay Lohan
Lindsay Lohan
Lindsay Lohan is an American actress, pop singer and model. She began her career as a child fashion model before making her motion picture debut in Disney's 1998 remake of The Parent Trap at the age of 11...

 montage created by YTMND user SpliceVW without crediting either SpliceVW or YTMND. In response to their actions, users from YTMND joined users from other Internet communities and launched an attack on the forums on eBaum's World, using spam posting and denial-of-service attack
Denial-of-service attack
A denial-of-service attack or distributed denial-of-service attack is an attempt to make a computer resource unavailable to its intended users...

s to repeatedly crash them.

Goldberg denounced the ongoing attacks, stating that they had "really crossed the line" and were a "vulgar display of power." He later stated that any YTMND member whose site promoted attacks would have his or her account deleted, and that the conflict had placed both himself and his hosting company in a negative light.

On January 10, eBaum's World alleged the attacks were a form of cyberterrorism, and on January 11, Neil Bauman, the executive vice president of eBaum's World, publicly stated that arrests were being made in relation to the attacks. Eventually, Goldberg and Bauman came to an agreement: Bauman removed the montage from his website, while Goldberg removed references to "eBaum" from his. Though the conflict was resolved, both sites experienced DDoS attacks on the morning of January 12, 2006.

Church of Scientology

On June 10, 2006, a cease and desist
Cease and desist
A cease and desist is an order or request to halt an activity and not to take it up again later or else face legal action. The recipient of the cease-and-desist may be an individual or an organization....

 form was sent to Goldberg by lawyers of the Church of Scientology
Church of Scientology
The Church of Scientology is an organization devoted to the practice and the promotion of the Scientology belief system. The Church of Scientology International is the Church of Scientology's parent organization, and is responsible for the overall ecclesiastical management, dissemination and...

, claiming that several YTMND pages with Scientology-related content had infringed on Scientology copyrights. In response, Goldberg replied to the lawyer that the cease and desist form was "completely groundless" and he would not be deleting any Scientology-related sites. Days later, a Scientology
Scientology
Scientology is a body of beliefs and related practices created by science fiction and fantasy author L. Ron Hubbard , starting in 1952, as a successor to his earlier self-help system, Dianetics...

 page section appeared on the front page along with a disclaimer on the bottom stating the following: "This website is in no way affiliated, sponsored or owned by the Church of Scientology, L. Ron Hubbard
L. Ron Hubbard
Lafayette Ronald Hubbard , better known as L. Ron Hubbard , was an American pulp fiction author and religious leader who founded the Church of Scientology...

, SeaOrg
Sea Org
The Sea Organization or Sea Org is an association of Scientologists established in 1968 by L. Ron Hubbard, the science fiction writer and founder of Scientology. Its members are found in the central management organizations of the Church of Scientology as well as in individual churches...

, Dianetics
Dianetics
Dianetics is a set of ideas and practices regarding the metaphysical relationship between the mind and body that was invented by the science fiction author L. Ron Hubbard and is practiced by followers of Scientology...

, volcanoes or aliens of any sort. We are, however, sponsored by Citizens for the Release of Xenu
Xenu
Xenu ,also spelled Xemu, was, according to the founder of Scientology L. Ron Hubbard, the dictator of the "Galactic Confederacy" who, 75 million years ago, brought billions of his people to Earth in a DC-8-like spacecraft, stacked them around volcanoes and killed them using hydrogen bombs...

, a not-for-sanity organization."
According to Goldberg, there have not been any recent updates regarding the potential lawsuit.

Sega

On January 11, 2007, Goldberg revealed that Sega Europe had sent a cease and desist
Cease and desist
A cease and desist is an order or request to halt an activity and not to take it up again later or else face legal action. The recipient of the cease-and-desist may be an individual or an organization....

 letter concerning the "Sonic Says..." fad, which features a clip from the Sonic animated series
Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog
The Adventures of Sonic the Hedgehog is an American animated series that was first broadcast in September 1993, and only for one season...

. The letter alleged that consumers "may be confused into believing that [the offending pages are] in someway [sic] linked to or associated with" the company. In its letter, Sega stated that it would take legal action after seven days if ownership of all "that's no good" web domains were not handed over. After almost two weeks of silence following the original 7-day limit, Goldberg declared the issue had "blown over."

Scholastic

On July 17, 2007, Goldberg was sent a string of letters and phone calls from lawyers representing Scholastic threatening legal action if sites revealing spoilers for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows were not removed, in response to several YTMNDs with scanned pages that Goldberg posted on the front page. As more sites were created with spoilers, additional letters were sent. Goldberg responded to Scholastic by declining to take down Harry Potter-related sites.

Pez

In May 2009, the Pez
PEZ
Pez is the brand name of an Austrian confectionery and the mechanical pocket dispensers for the same...

 corporation sent a cease-and-desist letter regarding two YTMNDs depicting a fake Pez dispenser with Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler
Adolf Hitler was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party , commonly referred to as the Nazi Party). He was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and head of state from 1934 to 1945...

's head on the container, which they found insulting, and demanded that YTMND refrain from allowing any Pez-related items to be displayed on the site. Goldberg responded by starting a fad contest involving the candy company, with the prize being a possible lawsuit
Lawsuit
A lawsuit or "suit in law" is a civil action brought in a court of law in which a plaintiff, a party who claims to have incurred loss as a result of a defendant's actions, demands a legal or equitable remedy. The defendant is required to respond to the plaintiff's complaint...

.

Fads and memes

YTMND features many memes
Internet meme
The term Internet meme is used to describe a concept that spreads via the Internet. The term is a reference to the concept of memes, although the latter concept refers to a much broader category of cultural information.-Description:...

 relying on intertextuality
Intertextuality
Intertextuality is the shaping of texts' meanings by other texts. It can include an author’s borrowing and transformation of a prior text or to a reader’s referencing of one text in reading another. The term “intertextuality” has, itself, been borrowed and transformed many times since it was coined...

; one YTMND frequently makes a reference to another. Series of these similar YTMNDs are referred to as "fads". The popular fads change frequently, and a list is maintained at the YTMND wiki.

Media exposure

Due to the nature and format of YTMNDs, the site has garnered attention from outside media sources
Mass media
Mass media refers collectively to all media technologies which are intended to reach a large audience via mass communication. Broadcast media transmit their information electronically and comprise of television, film and radio, movies, CDs, DVDs and some other gadgets like cameras or video consoles...

. In 2005, Reuters
Reuters
Reuters is a news agency headquartered in New York City. Until 2008 the Reuters news agency formed part of a British independent company, Reuters Group plc, which was also a provider of financial market data...

 wrote an article on Tom Cruise which made a reference to the Tom Cruise Kills Oprah YTMND. The site received further publicity when The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal is an American English-language international daily newspaper. It is published in New York City by Dow Jones & Company, a division of News Corporation, along with the Asian and European editions of the Journal....

 published an article about YTMND, and mentioned several popular website creations, linking to many of them through their website. The original "Tom Cruise Kills Oprah" video, on which the YTMND is based, was mentioned on Dateline NBC
Dateline NBC
Dateline NBC, or Dateline, is a U.S. weekly television newsmagazine broadcast by NBC. It previously was NBC's flagship news magazine, but now focuses on true crime stories. It airs Friday at 9 p.m. EST and after football season on Sunday at 7 p.m. EST.-History:Dateline is historically notable for...

's "The Mank Blog" segment, VH1
VH1
VH1 or Vh1 is an American cable television network based in New York City. Launched on January 1, 1985 in the old space of Turner Broadcasting's short-lived Cable Music Channel, the original purpose of the channel was to build on the success of MTV by playing music videos, but targeting a slightly...

's show "Web Junk 20
Web Junk 20
Web Junk 20 is an American television program in which Vh1 and iFilm collaborate to highlight the twenty funniest and most interesting clips collected from the Internet that week. The show is now hosted by comedian Aries Spears. Patrice O'Neal hosted the first two seasons, while Jim Breuer hosted...

", and CBC Newsworld
CBC Newsworld
CBC News Network is a Canadian English language Category C specialty news channel owned and operated by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation . It broadcasts into over 10 million homes in Canada. It is the world's third-oldest television service of this nature, after CNN in the United States and...

's "The Hour"
CBC News: The Hour
George Stroumboulopoulos Tonight is a Canadian television talk show broadcast on CBC Television and hosted by George Stroumboulopoulos. Originally known as The Hour from 2005 to 2010, it first aired on January 17, 2005. The program is currently initially broadcast on CBC Television at 11:05 p.m....

 with George Stroumboulopoulos
George Stroumboulopoulos
George Mark Paul Stroumboulopoulos is a Canadian television and radio personality, best known as the host of CBC Television's George Stroumboulopoulos Tonight and being a VJ for Canadian music television channel MuchMusic...

.

On the February 1, 2006, episode of Attack of the Show!
Attack of the Show!
Attack of the Show! is an American live television program shown weeknights on G4, G4 Canada and Fuel TV in Australia. The program is hosted by Kevin Pereira and Candace Bailey...

, viewers were asked to "make a kickass YTMND" for the show's "user created" segment. In order for sites to qualify for this YTMND competition, members were required to add "aots" at the beginning of the site's URL. In March, Game-Revolution held a contest for video game-themed YTMNDs. The winner won a PSP
PlayStation Portable
The is a handheld game console manufactured and marketed by Sony Corporation Development of the console was announced during E3 2003, and it was unveiled on , 2004, at a Sony press conference before E3 2004...

 as a prize. In the March 2006 issue of Stuff
Stuff (magazine)
Stuff is a men's magazine featuring reviews of consumer electronics, and other articles of interest to a predominantly male audience.- UK edition :...

magazine, there is a mention of the original "You're the Man Now Dog" website. YTMND was again mentioned in the magazine in June 2006 when a link to timetraveler.ytmnd.com was printed. In May, Current TV
Current TV
Current TV, or Current, is a media company led by former U.S. Vice President Al Gore and businessman Joel Hyatt. Comcast owns a ten percent stake of Current's parent company, Current Media LLC....

 host and producer Max Lugavere
Max Lugavere
Max Lugavere is American television personality, filmmaker, gonzo journalist, musician, and founding producer/host for Current TV, the Emmy winning youth-oriented lifestyle cable network started by former U.S. Vice President Al Gore, now the fastest growing network in TV history...

 was spotted wearing a YTMND T-shirt on the network.. In the August 2006 issue of WIRED
Wired (magazine)
Wired is a full-color monthly American magazine and on-line periodical, published since January 1993, that reports on how new and developing technology affects culture, the economy, and politics...

, an article under the "Expert" column by the name of "1 Web Site, 250,000 Idiotic Clips. LOL!" was printed. In the article, five of Goldberg's favorite YTMNDs (You're the Man Now, Dog; Vader Coaster; Lohan Facial; LOL Internet; Blue Ball Machine) were mentioned, along with commentary from Max himself for each one. The article's writer, James Lee, can be quoted as saying "Repeat an image loop and a sound file - as 24-year-old Max Goldberg with You're the Man Now, Dog - and pretty soon you'll have 4 million visitors a month and 120,000 contributors uploading their own clips." Also in August 2006, an effort of YTMND users to post satirical reviews on the Amazon
Amazon.com
Amazon.com, Inc. is a multinational electronic commerce company headquartered in Seattle, Washington, United States. It is the world's largest online retailer. Amazon has separate websites for the following countries: United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Japan, and...

 page for Tuscan
Tuscan
-Linguistic phenomena:* Tuscan dialect, the ancestor of the modern Italian language* Tuscan gorgia, a sound-Creative works:* Under the Tuscan Sun * Under the Tuscan Sun -Sports cars:...

 whole milk was covered by the New York Times http://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/09/technology/09milk.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=pogue%20tuscan%20amazin&st=cse.

YTMND was featured in an article for the July 30, 2006, issue of The Washington Post
The Washington Post
The Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...

. The article describes how Goldberg conceived yourethemannowdog.com, its rise in popularity, and the elements of a YTMND site. The article also referred to the creators of YTMNDs as "artists". Goldberg signed a release for The Colbert Report to show Stephen Colbert
Stephen Colbert
Stephen Tyrone Colbert is an American political satirist, writer, comedian, television host, and actor. He is the host of Comedy Central's The Colbert Report, a satirical news show in which Colbert portrays a caricatured version of conservative political pundits.Colbert originally studied to be an...

-related YTMNDs. A select few seconds of a YTMND was shown. On November 23, The Washington Post reported on telemarketing pranks in which they named a number of websites, including howtoprankatelemarketer.ytmnd.com. Various other news reporting sites have printed the same article, including Reuters
Reuters
Reuters is a news agency headquartered in New York City. Until 2008 the Reuters news agency formed part of a British independent company, Reuters Group plc, which was also a provider of financial market data...

 and The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal is an American English-language international daily newspaper. It is published in New York City by Dow Jones & Company, a division of News Corporation, along with the Asian and European editions of the Journal....

. A Swedish newspaper, metro
Metro International
Metro International is a Swedish media company based in Luxembourg that publishes the Metro newspapers. Metro International's advertising sales have grown at a compound annual growth rate of 41% since launch of the first newspaper edition in 1995. It is a freesheet, meaning that distribution is...

, also included the site in a separate article.

External links

  • YTMND.com
  • YTMND Wiki – YTMND's official wiki
    Wiki
    A wiki is a website that allows the creation and editing of any number of interlinked web pages via a web browser using a simplified markup language or a WYSIWYG text editor. Wikis are typically powered by wiki software and are often used collaboratively by multiple users. Examples include...

  • Yourethemannowdog.com – the "original" YTMND website
  • News - wise up – reflection and history of YTMND by Max Goldberg (30 April 2007)
  • The History of YTMND - another reflection and history of YTMND by Max Goldberg (1 April 2010)
The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
x
OK