Showing posts with label podcast. Show all posts
Showing posts with label podcast. Show all posts

Thing 21: Podcasting 101

What? You want to learn how to be a podcaster too? In this Thing we will be looking at the "how" of podcasting… trying to keep it as simple as this web 2.0 primer allows. There are myriad resources available for people "serious" about podcasting.

If you want to go about it the "real" way, you'll need to equip yourself with some things. Mostly, you'll need a microphone and the freeware program Audacity (for sound recording). You will ultimately need those things, but peruse the aforementioned resources to learn more first.

We are just trying things out with these 23 things… getting that "taste" for the web 2.0 tools, so we'll keep it easy. (Although podcasting itself isn't difficult either.) So, here are some resources for recording sound online (or through your cell phone). Click through them to see which one calls out to you, and then prepare for some sound-magic!

Discovery Resources

Earfl

Gabcast

Gcast

Cinch

VoiceThread

Discovery Exercise

  1. Create an account (if needed) at the site that called your name.
  2. Add an audio post about your experience to your blog.
    • You did it! You created a sound file that could be the beginning of a podcasting paradigm for you! What did you think? Was it easy? Was it hard? Could your students do it? For what purpose? Where do you want to go from here?
    • Did you notice that you could have used your Jott account to create saved audio as well? I'm glad that you tried new things, though!

Challenge (optional)

  1. Check out the poducateme guide; reading specifically the second paragraph about the studies done at Duke University about the use of podcasts in classrooms.
  2. Keep up with your audio goodness. Make it a "real" podcast by continuing it on a regular basis. Maybe add it as a permanent guest on your blog!
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Thing 20: Podcasting

Podcasts, Smodcasts!

The word podcast is used to refer to a non-musical audio or video broadcast that is distributed over the Internet. What differentiates a podcast from regular streaming audio or video is that the delivery method for podcasts is often done automatically through RSS.

In 2005, "podcast" was named the "word of the year" by New Oxford American Dictionary and with the growth of podcasting over the last 24 months, it's easy to see why.

Podcasts take many forms, from short 1-10 minutes commentaries to much longer in person interviews or panel group discussions. There’s a podcast out there for just about every interest area and the best part about this technology is that you don’t have to have an iPod or a MP3 player to access them. Since podcasts use the MP3 file format, a popular compressed format for audio files, you really just need a PC (or portal device) with headphones or a speaker.

iTunes, the free downloadable application created by Apple is the directory finding service most associated with podcasts, but if you don’t have iTunes installed there are still plenty of options.

For this discovery exercise participants are asked to take a look at some popular podcast directory tools. Do some exploring on your own and locate a podcast that is of interest to you. Once found, you can easily pull the RSS feed into your Google Reader account as well, so that when new casts become available you’ll be automatically notified of their existence.

Discovery Resources:

  • To find out more about podcasts start with Yahoo: What is a podcast tutorial?
  • There are many, many podcast directories and finding tools out there. Here are a few of the more popular ones that, unlike iTunes, don't require a software download:
  1. Podcast.com
  2. Podcastalley.com
  3. Podcast Directory
  4. Educational Podcast Directory
Discovery Exercise

  1. Take a look at one or two of the podcast directories listed (or iTunes, if you have it) and see if you can find a podcast that interests you. See if you can find some interesting education related podcasts here.
  2. Add the RSS feed for a podcast to your Google Reader
  3. Create a blog post about your discovery process. Did you find anything useful?
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Discovery is so much fun!

Have you ever thought, ”Gosh, I wish I had time to learn more about blogs, wikis, or (enter your Web 2.0 tool here)?” Well, this is your chance to take the time to focus on your personal and professional development around Web 2.0 tools. It’s fun to explore these tools and figure out ways to use them in school, with your personal Web sites, or in other ways.

SWC's 23 Things is a twist on the Library Learning 2.0 program developed by Helene Blowers at the Public Library of Charlotte & Mecklenberg County and adopted or adapted by many other libraries (including Minnesota Libraries with 23 Things on a Stick) and organizations since then.Learning 2.0 is online learning program that encourages staff to learn more about emerging technologies on the web that are changing the way people, society and schools access information and communicate with each other.

Over the course of the next nine weeks, this website will highlight “23 Things” and discovery exercises to help staff become familiar with blogging, RSS news feeds, tagging, wikis, podcasting, online applications, and video and image hosting sites.To familiarize yourself with this project, be sure to read the About page. The FAQs should answer most of your questions about this program. If not, then please add your question to the FAQ page as a comment.So fasten your seat belts, grab your mouse and get ready for a discovery adventure… and remember, it's OK to play with technology and have fun!