If you didn't realize that video will take over online this year, you haven't been paying attention.

Everything from video blogs to full-blown website infomercials keep cropping up all across the Internet.

The driving force behind this video explosion is a combination of cheap bandwidth, easy-to-use authoring tools, and Flash video (a video format that works on both PC and MAC).

With the sudden increase in homemade videos about everything from "how-to break dance" to infomercials about real estate products, it seems only natural that another explosion should follow: the appearance of numerous websites that showcase these homegrown Steven Spielberg's.

In fact, these online videos have gained so much popularity some have even crossed over into mainstream television.

Of the three main online video hosting services I looked at, they all shared the following characteristics.

They all allow you to upload your video and host it free of charge, making it super easy for even the most technically challenged videographer.

They all allow visitors to search their sites using keywords, so describing your video and choosing a good title (with keywords people search for) will help increase your exposure.

One of the most exciting features common to these sites is that they allow you and others to get copy-and-paste code that you can place on a blog or website (or anywhere else you can paste html code) and display a video without hosting it yourself.

This one feature can cause an explosive "viral" effect if you create a video that appeals to a mass audience because people can not only pass it along, but post it in additional locations for everyone to see.

Video.Google.com - Google's video service makes it possible to upload and play your videos for people searching through their growing catalog of homegrown video.

You'll find everything from web-cam karaoke to infomercials and "live" seminars. One of the best things about Google video is the daily report about how many pages views your video got during the previous day or week.

Also, Google allows you to charge for your videos if you want, something the other sites don't yet offer.

A disadvantage of the service is that, of the three, Google Video takes the longest to approve your videos and make them available, sometimes taking 48 hours or longer to make a video "live."

YouTube.com - YouTube seems to want to foster a feeling of community with its video portal.

Unlike Google Video, which requires a separate software program to upload video, YouTube allows users to upload video right through their website interface. Of the three sites profiled here, YouTube's embedded player makes it easiest to share and pass along video from a blog.

They also approved my video and had it live online in less than 10-minutes.

IFilm.com - The coolest thing about IFilm.com is the fact that they have a show on VH1 every Friday called "Web Junk 20" which features the funniest web videos of the week on real television.

They also actively promote the concept of "viral videos" with a separate category in their directory profiling videos you want to share.

The only negative was that their pass-along player forces viewers to watch a short ad about IFilm at the beginning, something the other two don't do.