Traditional radio is slowly becoming obsolete as technology in modern times grows in leaps and bounds. We last discussed internet radio, which is basically audio files streamed over the internet to whomever chooses to listen to it. And in this article we’ll be discussing podcasting. Which is very similar to internet radio, yet has its differences. Basically it is an updated version of streaming internet radio, and then some.

What is podcasting?
A podcast is a multimedia file that is distributed by subscription over the Internet using different syndication feeds. Podcasting is an automatic mechanism whereby multimedia computer files are transferred from a server to a client, which pulls down XML files containing the Internet addresses of the media files. In general, these files contain audio or video, but also could be images, text, PDF, or any file type. You can playback these files on mobile devices such as iPods, and personal computers. These podcast subscriptions can be both paid and unpaid, allowing the podcasters (author of the podcast) to be compensated. One of the big differences between podcasting and internet radio, is that with podcasting you have the ability to download the podcast automatically using software capable of reading feed formats such as RSS or Atom. The feed is a list of the URLs by which episodes of the show may be accessed. This list is usually published in RSS format, which provides other information, such as publish date, titles, and accompanying text descriptions of the series and each of its episodes. Standard podcasts consist of a feed from one author. More recently multiple authors have been able to contribute episodes to a single podcast feed using concepts such as public podcasting and social podcasting.

How do I create a podcast?
The process of creating your podcast is almost identical to the process of creating content for an internet radio station. If you haven’t read my article titled “Setting Up Your Own Internet Radio Station", I suggest that you go back and read that for a primer on what gear you’ll need to create your final podcast (most likely) MP3 file. When you do have your final content in hand, you’ll need to submit it to different podcast listing sites. One very visible podcast site you should look into is Yahoo podcasts, and also check out this massive list of podcasting site links. http://www.podcasting-tools.com/submit-podcasts.htm

This is a simple description of what a podcast is, and very basic directions on how to record and distribute your own cast. With the popularity of iPods and other portable media players, podcasting seems to be the next step in the evolution of standard radio. With the large amount of people utilizing this media outlet, it stands to be something that has yet to display its full potential of use and useability. If you have something to say, say it via podcast.