Where do you find information about
podcasts? Here's part 4 of Paul Colligan's 6 part series
on podcasting. In this short video, he reviews a few
options, focusing on directories. This video is a good
starting point. We present a more comprehensive set of
resources below.
Podcasting refers to a way of delivering content - if you can
find interesting media to listen to or watch, podcasting will be
a rewarding experience. One way to find enjoyable podcasts
is to talk to people you know about what they are watching and
listening to online.
The main advantage that makes podcasting unique is the
ability to identify media and easily have it download to a PC or
portable media player. The two ways of doing this are via
directories
and
podcatchers/aggregators.
Looking to find some podcasts or share the feed to your podcast? There are many directories on the Web and more are being added.
Here are some popular podcasting directories, presented in
alphabetical order, that will definitely give you a feel for the
different "flavors" and styles of podcasts. Its a
HUGE set of links - if it looks overwhelming, remember, you won't
have to search (or add your feed) to all fo them!
This is also a
great listing to use to add your podcast feeds to. All are organized a little differently, but provide the same
functions - access to existing podcasts and ability to upload new
podcasts for listing. All are free, some may require an
email address or free registration to use.
OpenCourseWare (Not really
podcast directory, but free access to course materials used at
MIT, including: lecture notes, problem sets, labs, and
more - watch lecture videos and demonstrations.
A podcatcher or aggregator is an application you can use to subscribe to
podcasts. This software automatically downloads podcasts from a
series as they are posted to a site. Podcatchers can also transfer
downloaded podcast files to a portable media player (MP3 Players, iPod,
etc.).
Remember, the difference between a Webcast and a podcast is not the
content or format of the media - they are both Web compatible.
Podcasts use RSS feeds to automate the process of identifying content
that a user wants, downloading files automatically so that the user can enjoy
that media at their convenience on a PC, portable player, or even
conventional CD or DVD players.
There are a number of good podcatcher programs available. If you
want to see the major ones out, comparing them side by side, check out
PodcatcherMatrix. Here are
links to Web sites with some of the most popular podcatching software.
