Podcasting Introduction

Overview

Time: 15 min

Objectives

• Introduction to the concept of Podcasting

• Learn about podcast hosting and benefits of online hosting services

Introduction

“Pod ” – a mobile playback device such as an iPod or any other MP3 player (a laptop or desktop computer any other MP3 also works).

“Casting” – derived from broadcasting. derived from broadcasting.

Podcasting is the distribution of multimedia files, such as audio and video, over the Internet for playback on as audio and video, over the Internet for playback on mobile devices and/or personal computers.

A podcast is a good way to get your ideas across and build an audience. Whether you want to host one to help increase the brand awareness for your business or for yourself, a podcast is one of the best ways to share your expertise with the world.

How is a Audio podcast different from a plain old audio file?

The key difference is the distribution model. Through RSS, anyone can subscribe to and “catch” podcasts, which will be automatically downloaded and managed by a “podcatching” program like iTunes. Simple audio files must be found and Simple audio files must be found and downloaded manually by users.

Podcasting in University Context

• Lectures for students to listen to at their leisure
• Guest speakers and special events.
• Student study guides.
• Supplemental materials for students.
• Help online students feel more connected.
• Ideal for Speech, ESL, Foreign Ideal for Speech, ESL, Foreign Language, Physical Education and Language, Physical Education and many more types many more types of classes.

Few podcasts from UIC community:

• Preparing for more extreme weather in Illinois
• Most U.S. Presidents Live Beyond Average Life Expectancy
• Higher Speed Limits Cost Lives
• Teaching Doctors to Treat the Individual
• Farm Bill Makes ‘Significant’ Cuts to Food Stamp Program

Podcast Hosting

Irrespective of the reason for starting a podcast, creating a podcast needs a fair amount of thought and planning. One of the most important decisions that will surely have a bearing on the success of your podcast is choosing a podcast hosting provider. It provides you a means to upload your podcasts such that they are all available in the same central location. More importantly, the podcast hosting service automates the generation of RSS feeds, and then automatically submits these to podcast directories, such as Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and others so that you can reach a wider audience.

Few Hosting platforms:

• BuzzSprout
• Podbean
• Libsyn
• Captivate
• Transistor

Benefits of podcast hosting

• Storage Cost: Podcasts can weigh quite a lot depending on the length of the show and the choice of the audio encoder. Podcast hosting services price their plans to make sure you have ample storage for your podcast, with a range of appropriate bandwidth plans.

• Faster Streaming: Podcast hosting services go to great lengths to make sure your listeners can stream your shows without any buffering delays. Many such services also offer ample (if not unlimited) bandwidth to ensure you don’t have to turn away listeners because you’ve exhausted all of the available bandwidth.

• Built-in Analytics: the right analytics will give you the feedback you need to help identify the weak and the blind spots in your content coverage. All the good podcast hosting services give you analytics that are tuned to help you extract the most useful information about your podcasts

• Security :Different kinds of files require different kinds of protections and self hosting a podcast adds an additional level of complexity and an unnecessary overhead to the podcasting experience.

Key Points

• Understood the concepts of Hosting

• Learnt how podcasting can be used in University

• Dived into the concepts of podcast hosting service