Podcasting
What exactly are podcasts?
As explained by How To Geek...
A podcast is a radio show on the Internet. It’s that simple.
Okay, there are a few differences. Podcast aren’t generally broadcast live—they’re recorded, meaning you can listen whenever you want. Most podcasts release new episodes once a week, but some offer episodes daily—it varies wildly.
Many podcasts are episodes of shows you could also hear on the radio, with all the production values you’d expect. Others are just a group of friends sitting around a microphone, or using Skype, talking about a subject they’re passionate about. A lot of popular podcasts are somewhere in the middle: conversational at times, structured at others.
How can I listen to podcasts?
Most podcasts may be listened to streamed directly from the Web. For instance, you may simply click on links and locate play buttons to listen to episodes linked on the Podcast Episode Sampler page. The benefit to this access is that it is instantaneous. The downfall is that you need to listen in one spot and time.
In order to make listening more portable, it is common that people listen to podcasts on their phones or mobile devices. If you want more information about how to use apps to subscribe and listen to podcasts, see Wired's Beginner's Guide to Podcasts. By subscribing to specific podcasts, you may be notified when new episodes are released and optionally have them automatically downloaded to your device.
