Tag Archive for 'podcasting'

The Killer Feature of iTunes 8

Published on September 10, 2008 in Apple and Tech. 2 Comments Tags: , , , , , .

My tweets for the night tell the story:

  • I can’t believe everyone missed the biggest feature of iTunes 8.
  • Podcast controls have been moved out of iTunes Preferences (cmd+,) and into their own window from the Podcast view.
  • In that podcast view, one can see the how often iTunes checks for new episodes and how many to keep.
  • The killer feature is that these settings are now able to be applied to podcasts individually, not all-or-nothing. This is amazing.

  • Personally, I’ve been asking for this feature for a very long time. It’s handy.
  • Moving the prefs out of iTunes Preferences signals that podcasting isn’t a focus of Apple’s anymore, though. It’s separated from novices.

What do you think?

iTunes Review of the Mac Observer’s Mac Geek Gab

Published on May 24, 2008 in Apple, Links, Social Media and Tech. 2 Comments Tags: , , .

If you’re a mac person and like fixing stuff, check out this quick review I wrote up on the iTunes Store earlier. It’s really a wonderful podcast.

Time is scarce, knowledge isn’t. Today, in an ever-decreasing timeframe, we need to know more about our computers. Although the Macintosh is worlds ahead of the PC, it has its problems. The Mac Observer’s Mac Geek Gab tackles these problems and explores new uses for our macs in an entertaining and informative way.

Its greatest asset? The podcast is divided into chapters so that listeners can quickly scan for questions that they’re interested in. Sick of hearing about networking? Skip it and move onto hard disk problems! A very well-done show, worthy of subscription.

Thoughts on Podcasting

Published on January 2, 2008 in Media and Tech. 0 Comments Tags: .

Reposting a comment I made in the comments on the East Meets West blog:

Congratulations on the 100!

I’ve been listening to both of you guys independently for a few years now, but only just started listening to East Meets West a few episodes back. I like it because you guys are obviously two intellectuals who get along who talk about interesting things. For me, a weird high school student, that’s appealing.

I’ve got a few words about podcasting. I listen to 21 podcasts right now. Yeah, it’s a lot, but I actually feel like they supplement my (sometimes crappy, public) education. I listen to a slew of technology shows, which are usually for my entertainment, but I *do* get something out of them. Different than the TWiTs and Diggnations, there are educational shows like Security Now! and MacBreak Tech, which teach me things that no person in my small town could.

Besides the techie aspect, I receive a lot from the podcasts I listen to. I listen to the Financial Aid Podcast, which gives me information about saving money, economic news, and finding scholarships for when I get into a college next year. I listen to Grammar Girl’s podcast, something that I’m convinced helped my writing SAT score, and other shows about GTD (Getting Things Done) and other useful life practices. I also listen to shows about marketing, even though I hate advertising (I’m Ricky the ad-hater on BOL, by the way). I just think the information is very important.

The shows are entertaining. Take, let’s say, This American Life, for instance. It’s a repurposed radio show from Chicago Public Radio, for those who don’t know, and it’s one of the most thought provoking pieces of audio I’ve ever heard. Quickly, it’s become my favorite things to listen to.

Sure, this has deteriorated into me plugging shows I like, but I think my point is still valid. The independent media in podcasting is, in my experience, widely entertaining, educational, and inspiring. And yes, the corporate shows are sometimes great too – Buzz Out Loud is an example of this. For me, a student trying to get ahead, it’s a great alternative to television. So, to spite any advertising troubles, I hope the medium keeps flourishing.

East Meets West

Published on December 17, 2007 in His Dark Materials and Press Appearances. 3 Comments Tags: , , .

I was mentioned on East Meets West! I submitted a comment about The Golden Compass. I’m still hoping for a sequel.

Direct MP3 link. My comment is 23:36 in.

The Apology Podcast?

Published on December 16, 2007 in Ideas and Social Media. 4 Comments Tags: .

On This American Life episode #48, Ira investigates The Apology Line, a phone line that anyone could call up and anonymously apologize for just about anything.

Quoting from Jason Kottke:

“The way it worked was that you could call and confess to anything that you wanted, and you’d be recorded, or you could call and listen to other people’s confessions.” Sounds sort of like a phone-based message board.

Now quoting the apology project:

Over the course of the project, the Apology line received more than ten thousand confessions, for misdeeds ranging from pulling pigtails in grade school to a series of sadistic ritual murders. Click here to read a small selection of some of the messages recorded on the Apology Line. In a period prior to the emergence of the Web and online communities, Allan pioneered the use of telephone technology to permit confessions to be recorded, played back and commented on by an ever-expanding virtual community.

I think we need The Apology Podcast. If it doesn’t exist already (I’ve looked, didn’t find it, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t out there), I’d love to see someone create it, or create it myself.

Podcast Appearance on Buzz Out Loud

Published on July 20, 2007 in Media and Press Appearances. 3 Comments Tags: , .

I made a brief appearance on CNET’s amazing podcast, Buzz Out Loud. It’s a ‘podcast of indeterminate length’ where the three hosts, Tom Merritt, Molly Wood, and Veronica Belmont give the audience their take on the daily technology news. Unfortunately, Veronica Belmont has decided to leave CNET to work for a startup called Mahalo. Fortunately, she’ll get to do video podcast daily.

Because I’m going to miss her dearly, I called in to the show to say goodbye. I’m the last call-in played, at 37:30, here (mp3). It’s within the last ten seconds of the mp3. And no, I don’t regret singing to thousands of podcast listeners all over the Internet.