Watchers
Posted: Wednesday, 01 March 2006 |
In my linklist features a webcam, which looks out over the Outer Harbour at Stornoway. It's not that good, but it shows what the weather is like, which ferries go in and out (if at all). At night, you just see the lights in the Coastguard Station as well as the regular blinks of the beacon in the channel off Arnish Point and Arnish Lighthouse (sic). The beacon carries a red light, and as this features in the description for the cam, anyone looking for a red light will be directed to an innocuous buoy outside Stornoway Harbour.
Associated with the cam comes a list of all the people that are watching it. This does not give names or addresses, but a rough indication of location and their ISP is included. It shows that the Stornoway webcam is well frequented, people from all over the world watch it. Australia, Brazil, Argentina, Poland, USA, South Africa, Egypt, Palestinian Occupied Territory, Vietnam - to name but a few. The list stretches to 105 countries, the majority are not listed. What never ceases to amaze and amuse me is the question why people would want to watch a Stornoway webcam? At the moment, the weather is the leading reason. Since advertising on Metcheck that snow is falling here, the number of watchers has jumped to over 200 a day, from an average of about 70. Having in interest in weather is perfectly valid. But sometimes, people look at it through their boss's Internet connection. There are some odd names in there, have a look:
National Institute for Biological Standards and Control
Orkney Islands Council (as if they don't have enough of their own snow)
London International Financial Futures Exchange
Kingston Council, Kingston upon Thames
and those just from the last 2 hours or so. We're REALLY busy at work there.
Anyway, any sort of publicity for the islands welcome, I assume.
Comments
Probably homesick ex-pats?
Sunny from Arran, Costa Clyde
We do not in fact have much snow at all in Orkney - about one inch fell this morning, about tripling the total in this cold spell. It does cause an awful lot of disruption though as the winds can carry it for hundreds of yards as the open landscape contains little to detain it. This means very little snow can rapidly give very hazardous roads, and Orcadians are rightly wary and cautious. Even in the time I have been here I can recall roads being closed by blowing of already fallen snow. It certainly knocks a few social events on the head.
hrossey from Mainland Orkney
Well Arnish, as one of your regulars I can quite simply explain this. There are two choices, 1) the view from the verhanda onto the M74 extension works, (even though these have not actually been officially passed by the Parli)....or your webcam, Campbeltown, Orkney, Shetland, in fact anywhere that I would rather be than my beloved home town. Just because I love it doesnt mean we have to be joined at the hip for ever. I would like to think there will be time off for good behaviour.
GrannyE. DBE.RM from Auchenshuggle tryin to work out where weegie fits
its all good but we need a macdonalds
g from stornoway
ive heard alot about stornoway. i would love to see more webcams of the island so i can undersdand more about what its like. thanx
andy from usa
I have been in Lewis since late 2004 and am observing life on this fascinating island from an outsider's perspective. I look out at the lighthouse every day - as it looks out over the island and the sea. 
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