More on PodCasts…
I had some questions about PodCasts and audio books both in the comments and in e-mail, so I thought I would answer them here seeing as I just have more Dimple socks in progress which you *just* saw take shape.
First, Ann, asked if I listen to them on iPod or what?
I do listen to the PodCasts on my iPod Nano often, but you do not need an iPod or even an MP3 player in order to listen to PodCasts. Most PodCasts are just in MP3 format so as long as you have software that plays MP3 files on your computer you can listen to PodCasts on your computer. Also, if you have an MP3 Player made by someone other than Apple you can still take the PodCasts with you on that MP3 player.
I highly recommend downloading iTunes just because of the ease. With iTunes you can both subscribe to a PodCast and listen to it on your computer, but you can also subscribe to PodCasts with many of the blog aggregator services or programs and just download the episodes as you wish. I know for sure that BlogLines and the FireFox plug in, Sage, can also track PodCasts for you. I suspect other services like NewsGator, Feedster, or similar RSS trackers should also work as most PodCasting sites offer RSS feeds. There are also some PodCasting specific programs out there that you might find suit you better. Some choices are iPodder (MAC or Windows) or Doppler (Windows only) to name two. These automate the downloading process and then you can listen to them using your preferred audio playing software or hardware.
Now, if you aren’t interested in the PodCasts I shared yesterday, how do you find PodCasts that might interest you? If you have iTunes they have a pretty extensive directory that you can access by clicking on “Music Store” and then “Podcasts.” Despite it being in the Music Store section most PodCasts are FREE. If you are not using iTunes, there are carious PodCast Directory web sites out there. You might try PodcastAlley which allows you to vote for you favorites so you can see which Podcasts others like or vote for your own favs. Podcast Bunker actually has “staff” that pulls out the best Podcasts so you can be positive of a certain production value with those Podcasts listed there. You might also try Podcast Directory or Podcast.net as well.
There is more basic information about PodCasts here…
- Get Started with Podcasts in 3 Steps
Now, audiobooks…
I’ve been an audiobook gal for a long time as my mother is blind and reads books on tape that are provided through a library service for the blind and physically handicapped. Even when I was quite little she would request books that we could “read” together. Now, because they have to record the book it can take a looong time to get your hands on “bestsellers” so, about two years ago my mom subscribed to a listening program at Audible.com. This helped her to take part in a local book club without having to spend a lot of money. Digital audiobooks (available through Audible and iTunes) can be quite expensive (usually pretty comparable to buying the book on CD or tape) and then you still have to have an MP3 player to put the files onto, listen to them only on your computer, or burn them to CDs. Now, my mom lives on a farm in rural MN and can’t get high speed Internet access, so I download the books for her and burn them to CD. With the Audible subscription program you pay a flat rate monthly and get to download a certain number of books each month which is generally a very significant savings, plus several times a year they also offer special sale prices for their subscribers only. They are getting more and more unabridged books each day and the selection is quite good, though if you do not have high speed access it might be a bit frustrating and time consuming.
There are also some web sites that offer free audiobooks for download. In most cases those books are books that are in the public domain (so prior to 1920 as a rough estimate). Librivox.org is in the process of recording the titles that are available at Project Gutenberg. Many of the titles use a different voice for each chapter which may take a bit of getting used to, but it is free! You might also check out audiobooksforfree.com or FreeClassicAudioBooks.com.
If you would rather listen to books on CD, you can browse only Books on CD at Amazon
as well. Or there is a NetFlix-like service for audio books called Simply Audio Books (they also sell downloadable books). Also, most public libraries have a fairly good selection of audiobooks as well which you can check out for free. Though my experience has been that most of them are abridged which I personally don’t care for. It seems often it feels like a poorly done, too long book report. Some libraries are acquiring more unabridged titles as they become more readily available and I have heard tell of some libraries have downloadable titles, though I’m unsure how that works as my own library does not offer that service.
I wish you much enjoyment listening to entertainment while enjoying your knitting, spinning, and other hand crafts!
