Absolute Beginner’s Guide to Computer Basics, Fourth Edition

Blogs on the Radio: Listening to Podcasts

A text-based blog isn’t the only way to express yourself online. If you have an iPod

or other portable MP3 player, you can listen to audio blogs called podcasts. A pod-

cast is essentially a homegrown radio program, distributed over the Internet, that

you can download and play on any portable audio player—iPods included.

How Podcasts Work

Anyone with a microphone and a computer can create her own podcasts. That’s

because a podcast is nothing more than an MP3 file posted to the Internet. Most

podcasters deliver their content via an RSS feed, which enables users to easily find

future podcasts by subscribing to the podcaster’s feed. The podcasts are then down-

loaded to the listener’s portable audio player and listened to at the listener’s conven-

ience.

What kinds of podcasts are out there? It’s an interesting world, full of all sorts of

basement and garage productions. Probably the most common form of podcast is

the amateur radio show, where the podcaster assembles a mixture of personally

selected music and commentary. But there are also professional podcasts by real

radio stations and broadcasters, interviews and exposés, and true audio blogs that

consist of running commentary and ravings. The variety is staggering, and the qual-

ity level ranges from embarrassingly amateurish to surprisingly professional.

Finding Podcasts

Want to jump into the wild, wonderful world of podcasts? Then you need to browse

through a podcast directory and see what’s there for the listening. Some of the most

popular podcast directories include

■ Digital Podcast (www.digitalpodcast.com)

■ Podcast Alley (www.podcastalley.com)

■ Podcast Bunker (www.podcastbunker.com)

■ Podcast Directory (www.podcastdirectory.com)

■ Podcast.net (www.podcast.net)

■ Podcasting News Directory (www.podcastingnews.com/forum/links.php)

■ Podcasting Station (www.podcasting-station.com)

■ PodcastPickle.com (www.podcastpickle.com)

■ PodCastZoom (www.podcastzoom.com)

■ Podfeed.net (www.podfeed.net)

■ Syndic8 Podcast Directory (www.syndic8.com/podcasts/)

■ Yahoo! Podcasts (podcasts.yahoo.com)

CHAPTER 25 EXPLORING BLOGS AND PODCASTS

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Podcasts on the iPod

If you’re an iPod owner, you’ve probably noticed the Podcasts item on your iPod’s

menu. This lets you dial up all your stored podcasts and then play them back in any

order.

You download podcasts to your iPod via the iTunes Podcast Directory. Just click

iTunes Store in the Source pane of the iTunes software and then click the Podcasts

link. As you can see in Figure 25.4, you can browse or search through the available

podcasts, download the ones you like, and subscribe to the ones you want to hear

again. Most of the podcasts here are relatively professional, including programs

from ABC News, ESPN, and podcast guru Adam Curry. Best of all, all the podcasts

from iTunes are free.

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ABSOLUTE BEGINNER’S GUIDE TO COMPUTER BASICS

FIGURE 25.4

Browsing for pod-

casts in the

iTunes Podcast

Directory.

When you subscribe to a podcast, iTunes automatically checks for updates and

downloads new episodes to your computer. Your downloaded podcasts are accessible

by clicking the Podcasts link in the iTunes Source pane. Naturally, the new podcasts

are transferred to your iPod when it’s next connected and synced. It’s a quick and

easy way to check out the whole podcast phenomenon—as long as you’re an iPod

owner, that is.

Creating Your Own Podcasts

If you think podcasts are cool, why not create your own? It’s surprisingly easy to do.

Here’s what you need:

■ A microphone (any type will do)

■ A PC (no special technical requirements)