I have a friend who is a major geek. (No big surprise there. Most of my friends are major geeks. Maybe I need to get out more.)

Mike, the aforementioned geek-friend, is into producing video. He's bought a fairly nice consumer HD video camera and is looking to trick it out so that it performs sorta like the Red cameras, but at a fraction of the cost.

He's been asking everyone for old SLR lenses so that he can rig up a way to capture super wide-angle, super long telephoto, and super macro videos. Apparently, if you have the time and patience, you can cobble together a system that will let you use SLR lenses on a garden variety HD camcorder.

I told Mike to just buy a Canon 5D Mark II and the lenses he wants. Canon's new full frame (full frame means the sensor that replaces film is about the same size as a 35mm film frame) can take incredible HD video and I figure it would set him back about $5k, a fraction of what a Red system would cost. Still Mike figures he can beg, borrow, or steal enough stuff to get similar output for about $1,500.

Like I said, Mike's a true geek and it isn't about the money, he just wants to build this Frankencorder and then use it to make hobby movies.

I'll let you know if Mike's movie making efforts bear any fruit.

In the meantime, if you are interested in seeing what other Michael Bay wannabes are doing with cheap camcorders and cheesy scripts, well, darn-it! You're in luck.

This is Free on iTunes after all.

First up is a video podcast from a duo who really seem to enjoy what they do. Smosh Videos features a couple of guys from my city, Orlando, who produce weird and funny music videos.

The video quality is good enough, but what sets these guys apart from others is the content, which is original and surprisingly well done.

I like the Transformer videos (there are two), but all are worth watching. There are well over 40 episodes, each about two to three minutes long. Grab a few for the commute.

OK, tell me if you've heard this one: A horse walks into a bar and steps up to the counter to order a drink. The bartender sees him and says, "Hey buddy, why the long face?"

Badda Boom!

I love me some old jokes, the kind that our parents told each other when they thought the kids weren't listening.

Like this one: How do you make a hormone?

You don't pay her!

Yep, they were often off-color, delicately laced with profanity, and definitely not politically correct. But man were they funny. That's why I was as happy as a kid in a candy store with a pocket full of nickels when I found Old Jews Telling Jokes.

These are all very short, very well done, and very funny videos of old Jewish folks telling their favorite jokes.

Be mindful that, like any good joke from back in the day, these joke are often punctuated with profanity and/or adult humor, but these are gems that you'll want to repeat, in private of course.

My favorite so far is Broccoli and Plumber. It's a shame each episode is only about a minute long and that there are only seven so far.

Old Jews Telling Jokes is a fun podcast Check it out.

I'm not really sure how I got off topic and wound up with Old Jews Telling Jokes, but to get back on topic... Here's a set of amateur stop-motion videos that are kinda fun to watch. Inanimate Productions Videos are all first efforts by various people and some are really not bad.

They are all extremely low budget and very short, more of a proof of concept than a real offering, but they show lots of potential.

I like "Small"ville, which emulates the opening scenes of the popular Smallville TV series.

There are only five episodes and all are short, but if you are thinking of making your own stop motion flick, this will either encourage or dissuade you, depending on how badly you want to make one. The rest of us will just think Inanimate Productions Videos are fun.

OK, that's a wrap for this week.

By the way, you iPhone and iPod touch users who enjoy comics will be pleased to learn that there are a bunch of free or cheap digital comics available at the iTunes Store.

I downloaded at least five of the freebies and have read through four. So far all have been entertaining and they seem ideally suited for viewing on the iPhone and iPod touch. These are all from independent comic shops, but often that's where some of the most creative stuff comes from.

My favorite so far is Atomic Robo and Proof, but all are well worth your time, even if you are not into comics.

Check it out by searching for comics in the iTunes Store.

Until next week.

More free stuff below, with direct links:

Vern Seward is a writer who currently lives in Orlando, FL. He’s been a Mac fan since Atari Computers folded, but has worked with computers of nearly every type for 20 years.