I watch a lot of YouTube, and with the stay-at-home order issued in the state of North Carolina during the COVID-19 days, I watch more YouTube than ever. There's something about watching makers and creators do what they love best for their audience that seems so wholesome and enjoyable.
Many of my favorite YouTubers use their platform to educate and they have become experts in their own fields. While this is great for spreading awareness, I have found it takes a toll on me personally. Many are much younger than me (I'm turning the big THREE OH this year), and they are significantly more successful than me. In many ways they are experts turned minor celebrities. The great thing about YouTube is that anyone can create on it and find success. Anyone, regardless of skill or knowledge, like my new favorite creator, TylerTube.
Tyler's channel, TylerTube, is a breath of fresh air amongst popular YouTube content. He's not the best at what he does, he's not an expert, and he doesn't really care. He makes the videos he wants to make, and the community loves him for it.
Tyler's videos follow a simple format: each video he has some sort of experiment he wants to run, and he explains what he plans to do, showing off the materials on a cheap white table in his unfinished garage. The "experiments," and I use the term lightly, usually involve some level of danger.
Shocking Things With 300 9 Volt Batteries!youtu.be
In his video "Shocking Things With 300 9-Volt Batteries!" he gives a quick explanation of how connecting 9-volt batteries in a series can amplify their output, then proceeds to, for lack of better words, shock things. The results are dangerous, he shows arcing electricity and plasma shooting from leads, all within his garage that clearly has no protective measures installed.
I Left 5 Things In Acetone for 30 days...youtu.be
In the video "I Left 5 Things In Acetone for 30 days…," Tyler soaks a number of random items in acetone, then shows how they have dissolved after a month.
While Tyler has a curious mind, there's no scientific process at play here. He doesn't establish a control or give a hypothesis. He simply picked five items based on comment suggestions and shows off the effect of acetone. I have watched hours of his videos and I have learned NOTHING (and I love it).
I think creators like Tyler are important in the sea of popular creators online. Everyone has their favorites that they look up to, and rarely do those creators make mistakes or show weakness in their videos. That content is simply left on the cutting room floor. Tyler's videos are not only the opposite, he includes his mistakes.
Is This Cheap Drone From Wish Worth It? - Wish Wednesdayyoutu.be
In the video "Is This Cheap Drone From Wish Worth It? - Wish Wednesday" Tyler has me shaking my head when he ends the video explaining how he landed his new drone on his neighbor's roof and can't close the video out with it. He could have easily just omitted it from the final video and had a perfectly fine review video. But that's not Tyler, and that's why I love watching his content.
