Podcasts

Listening to the different Podcasts was very interesting. There are a couple of different ways that these Podcasts began. Some began with music, one with a very strange sound, and a few with people talking. Just listening to the intros made it apparent that you can begin your own podcast with any of these things or a combination of things.As I listened to the Podcasts, I noticed other differences. Some were done with only one person talking about a certain subject or subjects, others were a mix of men and women, some were all in one place while others had guests or speakers from other locations.

The topics were varied. I listened to one podcast that was all about the Apple Mac. This wasn't as interesting to me as I do not have a Mac. What I did find interesting was that during this particular Podcast, the speakers did mention the health of Steve Jobs, Apple's founder. It served to make the Podcast a little more personal for me. I enjoyed the beginning of the KidCast Podcast. The guy speaking, Dan, was telling us that he was sitting in front of his Christmas tree and about his vacation in Mexico. For me, it makes him more of a real person, not just a voice coming from my PC. One of the ones I wasn't the most impressed with was one where it seemed as if the two people talking were just talking on the phone. It seemed less professional to me. I know that Podcasts are not really professional, but I think they took informal too far with all the stories and jokes they told.

Having a website in connection with a Podcast is a good idea. I noticed that at the beginning of some of the Podcasts, a website was given. For people who are more visual, this might help them to focus more on what is being said. The one time I can think of that I would be able to concentrate on a Podcast without a website to help, being a visual learner myself, is in the car. This would be an excellent way to keep up on topics that interest you and help manage time wisely. Another Podcast had what sounded like might be a live chat that went with the podcast. I think this is a great idea. It would allow the listeners to ask questions in real time, much like a call in radio show. I think that this would also enable me to concentrate on the topic with few distractions.

I think that when you create a Podcast that involves people from other places, you have to be sure that the sound quality is good. I listened to one Podcast where the female sounded like she was in a tunnel. This was one thing that made it hard for me to listen to that podcast. The sound was very distracting for me. I think it is a really neat thing to be able to come together from different areas of the country or even different countries, but I believe it is important to the listeners that the sound be such that is doesn't cause distractions.