Who is into Podcasting then?

Cloysterpeteuk · 03-10-2005, 10:25 AM

Just wondering how many of you Sony users are into podcasting?, a lot of people seem to think that because it's got pod in the title that you need an ipod but it works with any mp3 player. Only disadvantage of using another player is that without itunes you can't browse the largest directory for them. http://www.podcastalley.com/ is decent though.

There are podcasts about absolutely anything these days and they certainly make a nice change for just hearing the same old songs every day.

I have 9 podcasts subscribed at the mo, four of these are novels (action/adventure/sci fi usually) where the author records a chapter or two each week then your podcatcher picks it up automatically and dumps in on your player for you. With these I tend to wait until the whole novel has been released, then use mp3merge to stitch the files together and listen to it all in one lump.The 5th one is Escape Pod, this podcasts pays authors to record a short story of around 30mins which they release every thursday. Next I subscribe to Claybourne which is a bizarre serialized scifi/supernatural/horror soap opera, it was produced for New Zealand radio in the seventies and now gets podcast. Last two are short crank call casts which come from the American radio station Z100, the first is Romeo's Celebrity crank calls - no they don't make crank calls to celebs they get the celebs to make the crank calls, check out the Missy Elliott one. Second one is Z100 phone taps, irate American's certainly make the walk to work more interesting.

Anyway that's what I like listening to but there really is something for anyone, the latest one I noticed was the Lostcast, a podcast devoted to Lost and recorded from Hawai.

IanPM · 03-10-2005, 10:50 AM

I've never really found this new craze particularly interesting. Firstly, it comes across as a bit like blogging. Second, the pro ones like the Chris Moyles show are all terrible, both in quality and content. They have to strip out all the commercail music for copyright reasons.

And finally, I refer to them as MP3casts.

Chris_J_0907 · 03-10-2005, 11:06 AM

I just subscribe to TWiT at the moment.

Cloysterpeteuk · 03-10-2005, 12:27 PM

What's twit?

shadowritten · 03-10-2005, 9:18 PM

I'm with IanPM on this one.

Podcasts (which I was aware aren't limited to iPods - and Ian's right that the name should be MP3casts), just don't interest me. Rather like blogs - which the wife loves, but I have no time for. Not for any elitist reasons or issues with content/quality, you understand? Simply because I listen to my HD5H mainly at the office (I have this luxury; helps blot out the sound of others while I work); and as I'm a writer, you can imagine how distracting it would be for me to hear words rather than music while typing!!

I dare say that someday, should I switch careers, I might get into MP3casts ... and maybe even blogs, who knows?

Uridium · 03-10-2005, 9:20 PM

Not sure about podcasts but I've found a fantastic new invention for when I fancy a story, Sony/Apple et al haven't discovered them yet though..............there called books!

Am I crazy or what!!! I listen to music on my MP3 player and read a book when I want a story

Cloysterpeteuk · 03-10-2005, 9:32 PM

Uridium - The main reason I listen to audiobooks/podiobooks so much is that I read damn slow, I got like fifty books still to read, I figure the only way I can get through all the stories I want before I die (i'm thinking way ahead here, hopefully!) so I had to start listening to them, although my fav one's will be read aswell because I don't take as much in when i'm just listening to them.

I've never read anyone's blogs though, that wouldn't interest me, all I seem to find is American's ranting about their employer?!!?, or previous employer, i've never actually come across a podcasts that is similar to a blog. The only blogs I visit are my own (java games) and those for the podcasts I subscribe to.

Uridium · 03-10-2005, 9:37 PM

Stil not sure about audio books, just reminds me of those spoken word tapes that you get in libraries for pensioners!

Anyway know what you mean about blogs though, always some dull american going on about Iraq!

Cloysterpeteuk · 03-10-2005, 9:44 PM

Hahah that a good one

It depends on the narrater of course, some make you fall asleep and some annoy you with dodgy accents. Others though are superb, like the guy who did the stephen king dark tower recordings, and Richard Fry Harry Potter recordings. Multicasts productions are good aswell, where they actually get a women to do the female voices!, and there are others that make superb use of sound. It's devasting when a crap narrater ruins a superb book, ok so maybe it's not devastating but it's damn annoying. Usually the best one's are those read by the author, they have more care for the passion for the project and therefore go to pains to make sure the recording is upto scratch.