I wrote a blog entry a while ago about a USB thumb drive that can be worn as a bracelet. Skullcandy does this one better with their Bully watch. This thing has a built-in 1-GB MP3 player. It's even durable and attractive. I still prefer to use my phone for my podcast listening, but it's nice to see some alternatives out there.
NPR has updated their site with more podcasts, and it just keeps getting better. They explain in their FAQ why you can’t download full shows such as Morning Edition and All Things Considered, and I agree with their reasoning. However, I’m still waiting to be able to get a handful of hour-long shows such as Wait Wait…Don’t Tell Me and Speaking of Faith. With 132 shows listed on their site, why is it I can’t get these two?
Adam Curry and partner Ron Bloom had a nice interview on CBS MarketWatch where they talk about podcasting, Podshow, and their recent infusion of venture capital. Take a look.
Wow. I happened to visit the npr.org web site to see if there was any news about how they are going to distribute archived audio now that their contract with audible.com has lapsed. What I found was a link to a site that lists dozens of podcasts of radio shows produced by various public radio stations around the world. There is some good stuff here. It was a whole lot easier when there were just a few podcasts to choose from. 
MSNBC now has a list of podcasts available to download, including headlines from the Today Show and MSNBC.com, NBC Nightly News (the complete show), and highlights from topical shows like Hardball and Scarborough Country. I’m curious to see whether these have been developed specifically as audio shows or they’re simply the audio feed from the shows repackaged in a way that gives them the appearance of being “hip” and up-to-date. I would imagine listening to the audio for a show that was produced to be accompanied by video would lose something in the translation. I’ll have to give some of the shows a listen and find out.
This is just too funny. People are so fed up with traditional radio that podcasting has really taken off over the past year or so. New podcasts are springing up at an enormous rate, and with them a demand for music that can be legally included. Adam Curry coined the term “podsafe music” to describe music unencumbered by the choke-hold placed on artists who have signed with any of the big record companies. He’s made several bands famous by featuring their music on his Daily Source Code with the complete blessing of the artists.
Garageband.com has been around for a while and is one source of music that allows the artists to determine how and when their music may be used. The latest source is the Podsafe Music Network. Artists can sign on to upload their music and decide how others may use it. Podcasters can similarly sign on to find music that they can legally use on their shows. It’s a win-win for artists, podcasters, and listeners alike. Artists get free promotion of their material and can sell CDs or individual tracks to people who want more. Podcasters get free material to use on their shows. And listeners get to hear fresh new music from artists who otherwise would be heard only by their friends and neighbors.
What’s funny is to watch the hand wringing currently going on at the record companies as they try to decide how to handle this new phenomenon. USA Today has a story all about one radio station that is trying to make a go at podcasting some of their content, and the hassles they face trying to program music into their shows.
Just as cell phone subscribers now outnumber traditional land-line telephone subscribers, I await the day when podcast and satellite listeners outnumber those listening to big-company-controlled over-the-air radio.
The latest version of iTunes (v4.9) is out, and includes the much talked about podcasting support. For anyone with an iPod, it's certainly worth taking a look at. I spent a few minutes with it, but since I use a SanDisk MP3 player, it doesn't do me much good (iTunes only syncs with iPods).
Apple's response to a phenomenon that didn't even exist a year ago speaks volumes toward the company's focus on the customer. Given some of their recent lawsuits, though, I half expected them to start suing everybody over the "podcasting" name since it includes "pod" in it. By embracing it, though, they have thankfully closed that door.
My choice of podcatching client these days is RSSRadio, and I use Windows Media Player 10 to manage playlists and sync with my SanDisk. RSSRadio was the only client out there that would do everything I needed it to do in order to automate the process of checking for new podcasts and creating WMP playlists that would load nicely into my player. With WMP10, all I have to do is plug in my player, and a sync starts automatically, putting all the latest podcasts into separate folders on the device. Very slick.
I've been using a Northgate pocket MP3 player that I got off eBay for $10 to listen to podcasts during my lunchtime walks or while driving. It only has 64 MB of memory, but that's enough to hold several hours of voice, and it mounts like any other removeable storage device when plugged into a USB port. For the price, it can't be beat.
I came across a blog entry entry written by someone in almost exactly the same situation, but he's taken it one step further. By storing not just the podcasts on the unit, but also the podcatching software, he's created a self-contained device that will automatically check feeds and download podcasts by just plugging it in to a USB port. Very cool integration of several key components to make an all-in-one solution. I even use the same software as him (Doppler).
Here's a guy after my own heart. I'd probably build one of these if I had a bit more spare time (try any spare time!). He has a few other neat projects posted as well.
Excellent. Another big-media outlet sits up and takes notice of podcasting. And they even got the facts straight. Check it out.
And another story in a large newspaper.
Podcasting is recognized by one of the big boys. Check out this article for a great overview.
I find it very cool to be an "early adopter" of technology. I remember the first time I used Internet e-mail to communicate with an author in Japan. We used e-mail for the entire article authoring process, including proposal, drafts, feedback, and final revision. Now, that may not sound like much today, but this was back before the Web was even invented, and if you asked the man on the street what the Internet was, he'd probably have guessed it was some novel fishing technique. Normally the process would have involved lots of letters, phone calls, and faxes. It was such a rush to do it all electronically using a timeframe that was convenient to all parties involved.
While the latest hot movement on the net isn't as revolutionary as e-mail, it can be just as cool. Podcasting has burst on the scene, and is to radio what blogging is to print. Using a computer, microphone, and free software, anyone can produce their own radio show and make it easy for others to download and listen to it whenever is convenient.
On-line audio content has been around for years. You can stream your favorite NPR show, but you're still teathered to your PC to listen to it. What makes podcasting cool is you subscribe to RSS feeds as you would with blogs, and a podcast aggregator will download new content as soon as it's ready. You can then load it onto your portable player and listen to it on the go.
Living out in Tolland, NPR radio reception is spotty at best, and I'm always switching between stations as I drive, trying to bring in the best signal. I started looking for audio feeds that I could load onto an MP3 player and pipe through the car's audio system so I wouldn't be at the mercy of radio signals. Just by coincidence, I happened across podcasting, and it's exactly what I was looking for.
What's even cooler is it got its start just two months ago. Things are evolving and maturing right in front of our eyes, and it's a hoot to watch. As I said, it's fun to be an early adopter.