10/5/07

What's a Podcast, anyway?


A podcast is kind of like an episode of a radio program.  I’m told that in the “olden days” folks would gather around these enormous mahogany (or maybe they were faux mahogany, I guess it would have depended on your station in life) radios with gigantic steel knobs, and listen to the latest episode of the Lone Ranger and Tonto.


Here's the breakdown today: Somebody with some content - a music critic, news provider, Adobe Photoshop instructor, marketing professional, or tech geek - records a program, and then registers with the Apple iTunes store or other services to be a Podcast provider and distribute their content. Yes, you or I could be a Podcast producer and in effect run our own online radio program. 

A podcast can be brief, like 30 seconds, or 10 minutes. It can be entertainment-based, news, whatever. A lot of times Podcasts are provided as a marketing vehicle - yes, you get some purportedly “valuable” content about a topic that interests you, but there may also be a plug for a company in there as well.


Anyway, if you want to check out some podcasts,  launch iTunes, head to the Podcast directory, and find one you like. When you subscribe, your iTunes library will automatically download the latest episodes as they become available. You can listen to them at your computer, copy them to your iPod, or save them for later. You can also subscribe to podcasts through a content provider’s web site. You click a “subscribe to podcast” button if one is provided, and your default audio player will open the file. Or you can download the podcast episode as a straight file and store it on your computer.

Here’s a page of podcasts I produced for Godfrey.  These are also available on the iTunes store - they’re free, despite being located in a “store.”

Which reminds me, some content providers have subscription-based Podcasts that are full versions of their broadcast shows - Rush and Hannity, for example. With a paid subscription, you can download the entire audio Podcast of every day’s show. It’s all about time shifting - think, Tivo but for radio. Sure it’s free if you tune in your AM radio dial, but you may not be able to listen at 3 pm. With a Podcast, you can listen whenever you like.


By the way, despite the name, Podcasts do not require that you have an iPod. They're standard mp3 files, which means you can play them on a different type of mp3 music player, your computer, stereos that are mp3 compatible, etc.


Ironically enough, you can probably now find those old radio programs as podcasts or streaming channels for your iPod or computer!