What is a Podcast?
Podcasts and Podcasting became big buzzwords in 2005, and you still might be wondering what they’re all about. Like blogs, podcasts are a very simple concept with a fancy name. The simplest way to think of them is as online radio shows.
Oh cool…just like the 1930’s, right? Well, the real magic of podcasting is in the variety of topics covered. Since they’re not constrained by the scarcity of space on the radio dial, people have created podcasts on just about any topic that interests you. I listen to some podcasts on video editing, advertising, and technology. You might find one that teaches you Chinese, or kibbitzes on your favorite sports team.
Podcasts are typically free, and run the gamut from amateur dreck produced in some kid’s bedroom to audio from commercial TV and radio (for example, you can download the complete audio of NBC’s Meet The Press as a podcast. NPR podcasts all of its shows as well).
The name podcast implies that you need an iPod to listen to them. While you can listen to them on an iPod, that’s not the only way to enjoy them. A recent study found that 80% of podcast listeners listen on their computers. Think of it as a talk radio show dedicated to just the stuff that matters to you.
I download my podcasts and burn them to a CD to listen to in my car. The downside of this approach is that I go through alot of CDs, but hey, blank CDs are cheap.
Another neat thing about podcasts is that you can subscribe to podcasts, so you’re notified when new episodes are posted. More on how to do that in a future posting. Stay tuned, sportsfans!
So, what did we learn today? Podcasts are free audio programs you can download from the web. They cover a variety of topics and can be listened to on your computer, an iPod, or burned to a CD.
