Week 10: Podcasts

This week we look at podcasts and audio files.A 'podcast' is a non-music audio or video recording that is distributed over the internet. The distribution is what makes a podcast unique. It's also what makes a podcast powerful - interested listeners or watchers can receive updates through RSS when new content is posted.

Variety
Podcasts come in many shapes and sizes. They can be brief (just a few minutes) or considerably longer (interviews, panel discussions, radio shows, etc). They can be slickly produced radio broadcasts or home-grown recordings. They can be audio only or they can be video. You can listen to them on your computer (don’t forget to use headphones in your work area) or play them on an MP3 player. Despite the name, you don't need an iPod or a MP3 player to listen or watch - all you need is a computer with headphones or speakers.

Discover: Listen to a podcast from the British Library and one from the ABC. [Hint use the subject option to see what is available].

Explore: Listen to some of the podcasts linked on the Library Success wiki. Blog about how the State Library could use podcasts for our clients and staff.



Adventure: Contact the team leaders to collect an mp3 player to further explore podcasts and recording audio files.

Listen to one of the podcasts on the Online Education Database.

To search for other podcasts use ‘podcast’ as a keyword in your search engine or you can use Yahoo podcasts search.