The word podcast is used to refer to an audio or video broadcast that is distributed over the Internet. Podcasts could be audio of almost anything: radio shows that were previously broadcasted on live radio, a recording of a speaker, how-to topics such as learning a foreign language, or radio stations might podcast a "song of the day."
What differentiates a podcast from regular streaming audio or video is that the delivery method for podcasts is often done automatically through RSS technology, so once you subscribe to a particular podcast with a service, it can be continually updated when new podcasts from that same provider are available.
Here is an example of each from NPR's website: streaming audio that you can listen to using Real Player or Windows Media Player on your computer, and NPR's RSS podcasts that you can subscribe to through a service such as iTunes, where you will get new podcasts each week automatically.
In 2005, "podcast" was named the "word of the year" by New Oxford American Dictionary and with the growth of podcasting over the last 24 months, it's easy to see why.
Podcasts take many forms, from short 1-10 minute commentaries to much longer in-person interviews or panel group discussions. There’s a podcast out there for just about every interest area, and the best part about this technology is that you don’t have to have an iPod or other MP3 player to access them. Since podcasts use the MP3 file format, a popular compressed format for audio files, you really just need a computer with headphones or speakers.
iTunes, the free downloadable application created by Apple, is the directory finding service most associated with podcasts, but if you don’t have iTunes installed on your computer there are still plenty of options.
For this discovery exercise participants are asked to take a look at some popular podcast directory tools. Do some exploring on your own and locate a podcast that is of interest to you. If you like you can easily pull the RSS feed into your Bloglines account as well, so that when new casts become available you’ll be automatically notified of their existence.
Discovery Resources:
Podcast.netWhat differentiates a podcast from regular streaming audio or video is that the delivery method for podcasts is often done automatically through RSS technology, so once you subscribe to a particular podcast with a service, it can be continually updated when new podcasts from that same provider are available.
Here is an example of each from NPR's website: streaming audio that you can listen to using Real Player or Windows Media Player on your computer, and NPR's RSS podcasts that you can subscribe to through a service such as iTunes, where you will get new podcasts each week automatically.
In 2005, "podcast" was named the "word of the year" by New Oxford American Dictionary and with the growth of podcasting over the last 24 months, it's easy to see why.
Podcasts take many forms, from short 1-10 minute commentaries to much longer in-person interviews or panel group discussions. There’s a podcast out there for just about every interest area, and the best part about this technology is that you don’t have to have an iPod or other MP3 player to access them. Since podcasts use the MP3 file format, a popular compressed format for audio files, you really just need a computer with headphones or speakers.
iTunes, the free downloadable application created by Apple, is the directory finding service most associated with podcasts, but if you don’t have iTunes installed on your computer there are still plenty of options.
For this discovery exercise participants are asked to take a look at some popular podcast directory tools. Do some exploring on your own and locate a podcast that is of interest to you. If you like you can easily pull the RSS feed into your Bloglines account as well, so that when new casts become available you’ll be automatically notified of their existence.
Discovery Resources:
- To find out more about podcasts, start with the Yahoo: What is a podcast tutorial
- There are many, many podcast directories and finding tools out there. Here are just three of the more popular ones that, unlike iTunes, don't require a software download:
Podcastalley.com
Yahoo Podcasts
- What? You want to learn how to be a podcaster too? (Optional Resources for those who want to learn create podcasts)
Odeo’s Studio – online recording studio.
How to podcast tutorial
Discovery Exercise:
1. Take a look at one or two of the podcast directories listed and see if you can find a podcast that interests you. See if you can find some interesting library related podcasts here, like book review podcasts or library news.2. Create a blog post about your discovery process. Did you find anything useful here?
Optional: Add the RSS feed for the podcast you have chosen to your Bloglines account
Optional: If you're ambitious, why not try out Gabcast.com or Gcast.com and add an audio post about your experience to your blog.
2 comments:
Just FYI -- When you go to the "23 things" link, and scroll down to this week, 20 and 21 are still in red and cannot be clicked on. ???
OK, we'll fix it - Thanks
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