Crazy videos launch YouTube to Internet stardom

NEW YORK (AFP) - It takes only a few minutes to see why YouTube.com has rocketed to the top of the Internet -- hilarious amateur dance routines, a hypnotic juggler, a Hong Kong bus fight and the most incredible caterpillar you've ever seen crawling across a floor.

Barely a year and a half after it was launched to host short videos posted by the public, YouTube is showing more than 100 million clips every day, putting it at the center of on-line culture.

And it's already popular enough to be embraced by "old world" media, with a new tie-up with NBC television after its replays of clips from the US network's "Saturday Night Live" comedy show drew more viewers to the show itself.