How To Podcast

Podcasting is like having your very own radio show on the internet. You create a show and people listen to it. It isn't hard to do and with a little free software you can get your very own podcast going in no time.

What is Podcasting? It is simply creating an audio program that other people can listen to. It can be music or spoken words like a talk show. It can be practically anything audio - I have done extensive podcasting by reading one of my books in chapters so people can listen to it.

What to do if you want to podcast - There are a couple of things you have to do if you want to podcast. You have to get the right software and convert your audio program into something that is recognizable by listeners. But it isn't that hard and everything is free. So with a little bit of persistence you can have your own podcast up and running for other people to enjoy.

The most difficult part of podcasting is learning a little bit about the technical requirements. Here is a quick overview of what happens when you create a podcast:

1. You open up and use an audio recorder/mixer program. This isn't hard - pretty much all you will have to do once you have downloaded and installed the program is press the record button and then speak into your microphone.

2. After you have finished with your podcast you will save it. Now the only thing about this is that this saved file is not an MP3 (which is the standard audio format) So you need some kind of a converter program to convert this audacity file into an MP3. This is easy to do and the program I recommend is called LAME - it's free.

3. The audio program has to be made available for others to listen to. You could just put a weblink to the MP3 files and people can click and listen, or, if you want people to be able to automaticallly get your podcasts as they are made available you will have to wrap them in a bit of code. This way the podcast player will automatically update and your listener doesn't have to check for updates.

4. Here is a sample podcast of my fantasy novel Lion's Last Kill:

a. This is the chapter in standard MP3 Format; A person can download and listen to this MP3 or they can just double click it and their browser will bring up either media player or RealPlayer and it will play.

Lion's Last Kill Podcast of Chapter One

b. But this doesn't show the real power of Podcasting. Let's say that next week I create a new chapter. How does my listener know that I have done this? They have to come to my website and look for any new chapters. This is where the real power of podcasting comes in. If I format this MP3 podcast correctly and my listener has a podcast player it will automatically check for updates and keep everything in order so the listener doesn't have to do anything. This is kind of neat, especially if you have a podcast that you do on a semi regular basis. There is no risk of your listener having trouble finding you again. The podcast player does it all and the listener just has to press play and enjoy.

Here is a free Podcast player that shows exactly what I mean: This is the pupu player. It keeps track of the podcast and lists them in the window with the most current podcast on top. All the listener has to do is press play, he or she can even select specific chapters.

Lions Last Kill Epic Fantasy Novel Podcast Player: Just press the button and listen to the podcast.

So, If you format your podcasts properly and your listeners have a podcast player they will automatically subscribe to your podcast and whenever you create a new podcast they will automatically get it. There is no need for them to come looking for you again. The podcast player does it automatically!

Now Let's Learn About what you need to get your podcast going

What hardware do you need?

A computer, One that is reasonable. It doesn't have to be state of the art but you will need to record quite a bit of information on it so it should be running at least Windows XP have at least 512 meg of ram and have a good sound card.
Here is a link to Amazon.com Computer section. Do some shopping if you need a computer Computers at Amazon.com

You should also have a sound card. Here is the one I recommend: Sound Blaster Audigy 4

If you don't have a microphone you should spend a few dollars and get a headset microphone. It will make a big difference in the quality of your podcast. It will eliminate a lot of background noise and give your voice a better sound.

<strong>What Software do you need?</strong>

Now for the free software

You will need two pieces of software: A recorder/editor program and an MP3 converter program.
First get and install the recorder/editor program. Audacity is perfect for the job and it's free. Download the audacity program here.
Now install it. It's as simple as double clicking on the audacity install icon
Now you need some software that will transform your audacity podcasts into an MP3 file that can be listened to by other people. Again you can get a free download. It's a program called LAME. Download it here: (select any of the lame3.96.1 programs)
Install it anywhere on your computer and when you run audacity for the first time you have to tell Audacity where the LAME program is so crank up Audacity and select Edit | Preferences | File Formats and click on the find library button. Now browse to where you put the LAME program. You only have to do this one time and you are all set and ready to record podcasts.
If you need more instructions or are having trouble here are some more resouces:
LAME Instructions for Audacity
Audacity explains how to install LAME
Audacity Instructions