My iPod year
(Just to mention that I'm really writing this for my own need to remember this stuff, so if it gets dry or your ability to give a damn can't get you through this post then I won't mind if you skip by)
Christmas 2005 saw me receiving an iPod nano (2GB). As it turned out, this would become the most heavily used gift I've ever received.
For the first few weeks I had it, I used it while walking around downtown and while in the apartment because I had no nice sound system to put on. Big deal, I was happy with it but not using it any more than the average person who gets something like that for fashion reasons. Well, that is until I left the Bank for the new job at the credit union. My first week there I mentioned that the call center next to my desk made it hard to concentrate, and asked if I could listen to music to drown it out.
And so began 6 months straight of listening to my iPod for 40 hours per week, as well as whenever I was walking or busing or working out or anything. And when I went back to school, I was still working about 20 hours a week, as well as listening to it all over the place. So lets do some math: 6months=about 150 workdays=about 1100 workhours, and lets add on about half that again for the 6 months of the year I was part-time. So I listened to my iPod for about 1600 hours in 2006. There are only 8760 hours in a year. That's a little shy of 20% of 2006 with my earbuds in. Jesus, I hadn't done the math before I started this post. That's actually quite scary.......especially since I rounded down.......several times.
So what the hell was I listening to? Well, at first I was going through my music collection, but even now I only have about 350 hours of mp3s. I did a bunch of audio books too, but that can wear you down considering that a book can take a week to listen to. Trust me, the greatest book ever can get pretty dull by the time Friday afternoon comes around. Thankfully I discovered the amazing human achievement that is the 'podcast'.
(From this point on in the post, I'm going to be explaining/hyping podcasts. Many of you know all this but I'm going to be overly detailed because so many surveys keep showing that ridiculously few people actually know anything about podcasts)
So a podcast is basically an audio file (usually an mp3) that you can download for free. That's it. It has nothing to do with iPod's, or even other portable mp3 players. All you need to listen to one is a computer and some speakers. Once its on your computer you are free to transfer it to your mp3 player of choice as well.
Podcasts:
So what's the big deal about downloading a bunch of audio files? Well in my opinion, the content available now is just as good as anything you'll get on traditional radio, if not better because it's largely advertisement free. But for me the biggest thing about it is that you have whatever content you want, up to date, whenever you want it. I think the idea of waiting for a specific time of day to listen to something is a little ridiculous, and I love the idea of just sitting down at my computer and having all the stuff I want to hear ready to go with no effort by me. Oh, and if you aren't into audio programming, might I point out that this is also happening with video as well?
So I'm embarking on a project to tell you all about all the great shows that are out there, for free, that I listen to and watch. At last count I had about 100 I subscribe to. I'm going to write about the best of those. So if you care, stay tuned. And if you don't care, please ignore any posts with "podcast" in the title. Also please write about any you listen to in the comments.
Video Podcasts
"Ask A Ninja" 5/5
subscription link="http://feeds.feedburner.com/AskANinja"
Website="http://askaninja.com/taxonomy/term/20/0"
This is a hilarious idea. Basically it's a ninja that answers people's emails, like Strongbad. Check it out, you can watch it right on the website. It may have jumped the shark, but we'll see.
"X-Play Daily Video Podcast" 3/5
subscription link="http://www.g4tv.com/xplay/podcasts/6/G4_TV__XPlay_Video_Podcast.xml"
Website="http://www.g4tv.com/xplay/index.html"
Every day they review a new video game.
"Goodnight Burbank" 3/5
subscription link="http://feeds.feedburner.com/GoodnightBurbank"
Website="http://goodnightburbank.blogspot.com/index.html"
A comedy show about a nightly news broadcast.
"DontBeThatGuyFilms" 4/5
subscription link="http://feeds.feedburner.com/dontbethatguyfilms"
Website="http://www.dontbethatguy.com"
Funny sketch comedy.
"Cinematech Video Podcast" 2/5
subscription link="http://www.g4tv.com/cinematech/podcasts/8/G4_TV__Cinematech_Video_Podcast.xml"
Website="http://www.g4tv.com/cinematech/index.html"
Basically commercials for new videogames. Some of them look pretty good.
"The 1UP Show" 5/5
subscription link="http://www.1up.com/flat/Podcasts/vodcasts.xml"
Website="http://the1upshow.1up.com/"
All about video games, about 45 minutes long per week. Really well put together and funny, a must for any player:)
"Wild Chronicles" 4/5
subscription link="http://podcast.nationalgeographic.com/wild-chronicles/"
Website="http://www.nationalgeographic.com/donate/wildchronicles/"
Free shorts from National Geographic. These are all about nature.
"National Geographic Video Shorts" 3/5
subscription link="http://podcast.nationalgeographic.com/ng-video-shorts/"
Website="http://www.nationalgeographic.com/"
Free shorts from National Geographic.
"GeekBrief.TV" 5/5
subscription link="http://geekbrief.podshow.com/feed.xml"
Website="http://www.podshow.com/shows/?show=geekbrief"
Great daily show, about 3-5 minutes long, about new technology and the web.
"commandN" 5/5
subscription link="http://feeds.feedburner.com/command-n/h264"
Website="http://www.commandn.tv"
Weekly 10-12 minute show from Amber MacArthur(she's from Toronto, now works for CityTV International) about the latest web developments.
"MobuzzTV - Daily Buzz" 5/5
subscription link="http://www.mobuzztv.com/rss/uk_index.xml"
Website="http://www.mobuzztv.com/uk/"
Great sarcastic daily news show. Really recommended for everyone. You can look at it on the web too.
"Alive in Baghdad" 5/5
subscription link="http://aliveinbaghdad.blip.tv/?1=1&&skin=rss"
Website="http://www.aliveinbaghdad.org"
Video journalism direct from Iraq, filmed by Iraqi journalists.
"InDigital" 4/5
subscription link="http://revision3.com/indigital/feed/quicktime-large"
Website="http://revision3.com/indigital"
Wil Wheaton!!! Now that I have your attention, it's a 30-45 minute long Techy show, comes out infrequently. They discuss online stuff, sound systems, TVs etc. And yes, it features Wesley Crusher :)
"Diggnation" 5/5
subscription link="http://revision3.com/diggnation/feed/quicktime-large"
Website="http://revision3.com/diggnation"
The boring description would be “two Digg employees discuss the week's popular stories”. A better one would be “two guys get drunk and say things they really shouldn't for our amusement”. I love this show.
"Martin Sargent: Web Drifter" 4/5
subscription link="http://revision3.com/webdrifter/feed/quicktime-large"
Website="http://revision3.com/webdrifter"
This guy finds the real people behind the weirdest stuff on the internet.
"GALACTICAST" 4/5
subscription link="http://feeds.feedburner.com/galacticast-itunes"
Website="http://www.galacticast.com"
A comedy show based around sci-fi and fantasy. If you like comics, StarWars, Star Trek, or LotR you should check them out. The people who make it are from MTL!
"muzikDEN" 3/5
subscription link="http://feeds.feedburner.com/muzikDEN-h264-small"
Website="http://www.muzikden.com"
Monthly show that reviews music, sound equipment, and gives tips to music makers and listeners.
"dl.tv" 4/5
subscription link="http://rssnewsapps.ziffdavis.com/audioblogs/DLTV.H.264.xml"
Website="http://www.dl.tv"
Technology show that discusses the web and a lot of A/V stuff. About 40 minutes long and comes out 2 or 3 times/week. Sometimes has some really good tips.
Technology/Science
"CBC Radio: Quirks & Quarks" 3/5
subscription link="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/includes/quirks.xml"
Website="http://www.cbc.ca/quirks/"
It's that show, from CBC. Science and stuff, you know.
"Digital Planet" 5/5
subscription link="http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/rmhttp/downloadtrial/worldservice/godigital/rss.xml"
Website="http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/1478157.stm"
This is a really good BBC show about technology today. Tends to come at things from the point of view of how things affect people as opposed to “check out this cool new thing”. I think anyone could benefit from listening. Comes out weekly, about 20 minutes long.
"NOVA | PBS" 3/5
subscription link="http://broadband.wgbh.org/nova/rss/nova-podcast-it.xml"
Website="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/rss/podcast-it/redir/wgbh/nova/index.html"
Short summaries and promos for PBS shows. Can be educational.
"FLOSS Weekly" 3/5
subscription link="http://leo.am/podcasts/floss"
Website="http://twit.tv"
It's a nerdlicious show where developers of OpenSource software get internviewed. If you don't know what that means, don't worry.
“Net @ Night (formerly 'Inside the Net')" 2/5
subscription link="http://leo.am/podcasts/itn"
Website="http://twit.tv"
A must for people who love the twit.tv network, a complete waste of time for those that don't. Discussions of what's happening on the Net. Hosted by Leo Laporte and Amber MacArthur.
"MacBreak Weekly" 4/5
subscription link="http://leoville.tv/podcasts/mbw.xml"
Website="http://twit.tv/mbw"
I don't have a Mac, but I get a lot out of this twit.tv podcast. It's highly entertaining and you learn tons of neat nerdy stuff.
"National Geographic Minutes" 4/5
subscription link="http://podcast.nationalgeographic.com/ng-minutes/"
Website="http://www.nationalgeographic.com/"
Little one minute bits of National Geographic type tidbits.
"National Geographic News" 3/5
subscription link="http://podcast.nationalgeographic.com/ng-news/"
Website="http://news.nationalgeographic.com/"
Really useful weekly news from NG, but they do it like a conventional show that has tons of filler in it so I end up skipping most of it.
"Security Now!" 5/5
subscription link="http://leo.am/podcasts/sn"
Website="http://grc.com/securitynow.htm"
twit.tv's internet security roundup. Always listen to at least the first 10 minutes to see if there are any large scale viruses or other security vulnerabilities that have just surfaced. The rest can be a bit heavy on the technical side, but I likes it.
"The Savvy Technologist" 3/5
subscription link="http://feeds.feedburner.com/technosavvy/podcast"
Website="http://technosavvy.org"
Not really interesting to me, because it's an educator that likes using technology to educate his students. It's on here because I've found out about some new stuff from him before anyone else was talking about it.
"this WEEK in MEDIA" 5/5
subscription link="http://twimenhanced.libsyn.com/rss"
Website="http://twimenhanced.libsyn.com"
A weekly roundup of what's going on in the world of media production and distribution etc. Things like moviemaking technology, cameras, online publishing/distribution. It's from twit.tv as well. I honestly just like the interplay between the hosts, as they tend to digress a lot and drop some really neat info.
"this WEEK in TECH" 5/5
subscription link="http://leoville.tv/podcasts/twit-aac.xml"
Website="http://thisWEEKinTECH.com"
The original twit.tv podcast, and one of the most popular podcasts. Hosted by Leo Laporte(the Godfather of podcasts) and a slew of other webtech celebs.
"Windows Weekly with Paul Thurrott" 5/5
subscription link="http://leoville.tv/podcasts/ww.xml"
Website="http://twit.tv/ww"
A really useful roundup of what's going on in the world of Windows.
"Futures in Biotech" 3/5
subscription link="http://leoville.tv/podcasts/fib.xml"
Website="http://futuresinbiotech.blogspot.com/"
I don't really listen to it, but sometimes they have some crazy stuff on here. There's a lot of trying to dumb down really complex things so that anyone can understand Metagenomics or whatever.
"43 Folders" 4/5
subscription link="http://feeds.feedburner.com/43FPodcast"
Website="http://odeo.com/channel/34348/view"
The host, Merlin Mann, is a genuinely funny person who gives tips to better organize your life with.
"this WEEK in LAW" 3/5
subscription link="http://leo.am/podcasts/twil"
Website="http://twit.tv/twil"
A bunch of lawyers talk about the Law as it relates to technology and the web.
Comedy
"Downloadable Content, The Penny Arcade Podcast" 5/5
subscription link="http://www.penny-arcade.com/padlc.xml"
Website="http://www.penny-arcade.com"
If you like Penny Arcade you'll like this.
"The Onion Radio News" 5/5
subscription link="http://www.theonion.com/content/feeds/radionews"
Website="http://www.theonion.com/content/radionews"
Every day it's a 1 minute long story from the Onion. Just gold!
"The President's Weekly Radio Address" 5/5
subscription link="http://weeklyradioaddress.com/WRA_RSS.xml"
Website="http://weeklyradioaddress.com"
Really funny parody of Dubiah.
"Savage Love Podcast" 5/5
subscription link="http://www.thestranger.com/podcasts/savagelove/index.xml"
Website="http://www.thestranger.com/podcasts/savagelove/"
It's Dan Savage dispensing sex advice in audio form!
"Mark Kermode's film reviews" 4/5
subscription link="http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/rmhttp/downloadtrial/fivelive/markkermodesfilmreviews/rss.xml"
Website="http://www.bbc.co.uk/fivelive/entertainment/kermode.shtml"
A snobby brit that reviews movies. Can be tedious at times, but no one is better when it comes to ripping crappy movies a new one.
News/Current Events
"alt.muslim review" 4/5
subscription link="http://www.altmuslim.com/podcast.xml"
Website="http://www.altmuslim.com/am_podcasts.php"
Two moderate Muslims discuss current events.
"CBC's Sounds Like Canada: The Digital Extra" 3/5
subscription link="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/includes/slc.xml"
Website="http://www.cbc.ca/soundslikecanada/"
CBC's Sheila Rogers does her thing. Can be great or not, depends on the guest.
"CBC's The Best of The Current" 4/5
subscription link="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/includes/current.xml"
Website="http://www.cbc.ca/thecurrent/"
In depth news from the CBC.
"CBC Radio: Editor's Choice" 4/5
subscription link="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/includes/editorschoice.xml"
Website="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting"
Every day CBC picks one story to play, it's all over the place.
"CBC Radio's Nfld. and Labrador This Week" 3/5
subscription link="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/includes/newfoundland.xml"
Website="http://www.cbc.ca/nl/"
"CBC Radio's The Maritimes This Week" 3/5
subscription link="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/includes/maritimes.xml"
Website="http://www.cbc.ca/ns/"
"CBC Radio's Quebec This Week" 3/5
subscription link="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/includes/quebec.xml"
Website="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting"
"CBC Radio's Ontario This Week" 3/5
subscription link="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/includes/ontario.xml"
Website="http://www.cbc.ca"
"CBC Radio's Toronto This Week" 3/5
subscription link="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/includes/toronto.xml"
Website="http://www.cbc.ca/toronto/"
"CBC Radio's Manitoba This Week" 3/5
subscription link="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/includes/manitoba.xml"
Website="http://www.cbc.ca/manitoba/"
"CBC Radio's Saskatchewan This Week" 3/5
subscription link="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/includes/saskatchewan.xml"
Website="http://www.cbc.ca"
"CBC Radio's Alberta This Week" 3/5
subscription link="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/includes/alberta.xml"
Website="http://www.cbc.ca"
"CBC Radio's B.C. This Week" 3/5
subscription link="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/includes/bc.xml"
Website="http://www.cbc.ca/bc/"
"CBC Radio: The North This Week" 3/5
subscription link="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/includes/north.xml"
Website="http://www.cbc.ca/north/"
Weekly 20-30 minute roundups of the best news stories from every region of Canada.
"CBC Radio's Dispatches" 4/5
subscription link="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/includes/dispatches.xml"
Website="http://www.cbc.ca/dispatches/"
World events from the CBC.
"CBC Radio: The Best of As It Happens" 3/5
subscription link="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/includes/asithappens.xml"
Website="http://www.cbc.ca/asithappens/"
Current events from the CBC.
"From Our Own Correspondent" 4/5
subscription link="http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/rmhttp/downloadtrial/radio4/fromourowncorrespondent/rss.xml"
Website="http://www.bbc.co.uk/fromourowncorrespondent"
Personal views on World events from BBC reporters
"Prime Minister of Canada's Podcast" 1/5
subscription link="http://www.pm.gc.ca/RSSFeeds/media/Podcasts_e.xml"
Website="http://pm.gc.ca/"
Speeches made by our fearless leader.
"War News Radio" 4/5
subscription link="http://www.warnewsradio.org/show/index.xml"
Website="http://warnewsradio.org"
An independent look at the War in Iraq and Afghanistan, made by Journalism students.
"World News Bulletin" 5/5
subscription link="http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/rmhttp/downloadtrial/worldservice/summary/rss.xml"
Website="http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/programmes/newssummary.shtml"
Five minute world news roundups, every hour.
"World Today Select" 4/5
subscription link="http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/rmhttp/downloadtrial/worldservice/worldtodayselect/rss.xml"
Website="http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/programmes/worldtoday/"
Top stories of the day from the BBC
"The Economist" 3/5
subscription link="http://www.economist.com/media/rss/economist.xml"
Website="http://www.economist.com"
What's going on from the point of view of the Economist magazine
Academic
"12 Byzantine Rulers: The History of The Byzantine Empire" 4/5
subscription link="http://www.anders.com/lectures/lars_brownworth/12_byzantine_rulers/rss.xml"
Website="http://www.anders.com/lectures/lars_brownworth/12_byzantine_rulers/"
A history of several Byzantine emperors.
"Big Ideas" 4/5
subscription link="http://www.tvo.org/TVOspecial3/WebObjects/TVOMedia.woa?bigideasfeed"
Website="http://www.tvo.org/bigideas/"
Lectures from a wide variety of people
"CBC Radio: The Best of Ideas" 4/5
subscription link="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/includes/ideas.xml"
Website="http://www.cbc.ca/ideas/"
In depth documentaries on a variety of subjects from the CBC
"In Our Time" 3/5
subscription link="http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/rmhttp/downloadtrial/radio4/inourtime/rss.xml"
Website="http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/history/inourtime/inourtime.shtml"
Over the top british radio discussions of academics
Culture
"CBC's Words at Large" 3/5
subscription link="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/includes/wordsatlarge.xml"
Website="http://www.cbc.ca/wordsatlarge/"
Books!
"CBC Radio: The Best of Outfront" 4/5
subscription link="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/includes/outfront.xml"
Website="http://www.cbc.ca/outfront/"
Intimate 15 minute personal stories from amateurs
"Documentary Archive" 4/5
subscription link="http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/rmhttp/downloadtrial/worldservice/documentaryarchive/rss.xml"
Website="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/documentary_archive"
Various BBC documentaries.
"Front Row Interview" 3/5
subscription link="http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/rmhttp/downloadtrial/radio4/frontrowinterview/rss.xml"
Website="http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/arts/frontrow/"
Interviews of a totally random bunch of people
"Lonely Planet Travelcasts" 3/5
subscription link="http://www.lonelyplanet.com/podcasts/travelcast.xml"
Website="http://www.lonelyplanet.com"
Travel tips and stories, also has the absolute worst intro theme that makes me angry
"podictionary" 4/5
subscription link="http://podictionary.libsyn.com/rss"
Website="http://www.podictionary.com"
Every day, a new word is explored
"Radio 4 Choice" 3/5
subscription link="http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/rmhttp/downloadtrial/radio4/radio4choice/rss.xml"
Website="http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/"
Unique documentaries again from the BBC
"The Best of National Geographic Magazine" 3/5
subscription link="http://podcast.nationalgeographic.com/best-of-ngm/"
Website="http://www.nationalgeographic.com/ngm"
Weekly roundup of stories from National Geographic
"Salon.com: Conversations" 4/5
subscription link="http://salon.com/podcast/conversations_itunes.rss"
Website="http://dir.salon.com/topics/salon_conversations/?source=podcast"
Good interviews with entertainment celebrities
"APM: Garrison Keillor's The Writer's Almanac" 4/5
subscription link="http://americanpublicmedia.publicradio.org/podcasts/xml/writers_almanac/writers_almanac.xml"
Website="http://writersalmanac.publicradio.org"
Daily facts and fun stuff
"Barnes & Noble's Meet the Writers Podcast" 3/5
subscription link="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/rss/mtw.xml"
Website="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/writers"
Interviews with authors
Music
"CBC Radio 3 Podcast" 5/5
subscription link="http://www.cbcradio3.com/podcast/"
Website="http://www.cbcradio3.com/"
Best Podcast Ever. Great Canadian Music!
"Radio 1's Best of Unsigned" 3/5
subscription link="http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/rmhttp/downloadtrial/radio1/radio1sbestofunsigned/rss.xml"
Website="http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/onemusic/"
Independent British bands
"The CMG Podcast" 4/5
subscription link="http://feeds.feedburner.com/cokemachineglowpodcast"
Website="http://cokemachineglowpodcast.blogspot.com"
All kinds of good music
"----=NYUB=----" 3/5
subscription link="http://marenco.libsyn.org/rss">http://marenco.libsyn.org/rss"
Website="http://www.nyub.net"
Random music
Christmas 2005 saw me receiving an iPod nano (2GB). As it turned out, this would become the most heavily used gift I've ever received.
For the first few weeks I had it, I used it while walking around downtown and while in the apartment because I had no nice sound system to put on. Big deal, I was happy with it but not using it any more than the average person who gets something like that for fashion reasons. Well, that is until I left the Bank for the new job at the credit union. My first week there I mentioned that the call center next to my desk made it hard to concentrate, and asked if I could listen to music to drown it out.
And so began 6 months straight of listening to my iPod for 40 hours per week, as well as whenever I was walking or busing or working out or anything. And when I went back to school, I was still working about 20 hours a week, as well as listening to it all over the place. So lets do some math: 6months=about 150 workdays=about 1100 workhours, and lets add on about half that again for the 6 months of the year I was part-time. So I listened to my iPod for about 1600 hours in 2006. There are only 8760 hours in a year. That's a little shy of 20% of 2006 with my earbuds in. Jesus, I hadn't done the math before I started this post. That's actually quite scary.......especially since I rounded down.......several times.
So what the hell was I listening to? Well, at first I was going through my music collection, but even now I only have about 350 hours of mp3s. I did a bunch of audio books too, but that can wear you down considering that a book can take a week to listen to. Trust me, the greatest book ever can get pretty dull by the time Friday afternoon comes around. Thankfully I discovered the amazing human achievement that is the 'podcast'.
(From this point on in the post, I'm going to be explaining/hyping podcasts. Many of you know all this but I'm going to be overly detailed because so many surveys keep showing that ridiculously few people actually know anything about podcasts)
So a podcast is basically an audio file (usually an mp3) that you can download for free. That's it. It has nothing to do with iPod's, or even other portable mp3 players. All you need to listen to one is a computer and some speakers. Once its on your computer you are free to transfer it to your mp3 player of choice as well.
Podcasts:
- can be any length
- contain audio, including but not limited to music and talk
- are generally free
- are created by anyone who has a microphone and an internet connection, from 'some guy' all the way up to your NBC's and whatnot
- are episodic, and tend to be released on a regular schedule
So what's the big deal about downloading a bunch of audio files? Well in my opinion, the content available now is just as good as anything you'll get on traditional radio, if not better because it's largely advertisement free. But for me the biggest thing about it is that you have whatever content you want, up to date, whenever you want it. I think the idea of waiting for a specific time of day to listen to something is a little ridiculous, and I love the idea of just sitting down at my computer and having all the stuff I want to hear ready to go with no effort by me. Oh, and if you aren't into audio programming, might I point out that this is also happening with video as well?
So I'm embarking on a project to tell you all about all the great shows that are out there, for free, that I listen to and watch. At last count I had about 100 I subscribe to. I'm going to write about the best of those. So if you care, stay tuned. And if you don't care, please ignore any posts with "podcast" in the title. Also please write about any you listen to in the comments.
Video Podcasts
"Ask A Ninja" 5/5
subscription link="http://feeds.feedburner.com/AskANinja"
Website="http://askaninja.com/taxonomy/term/20/0"
This is a hilarious idea. Basically it's a ninja that answers people's emails, like Strongbad. Check it out, you can watch it right on the website. It may have jumped the shark, but we'll see.
"X-Play Daily Video Podcast" 3/5
subscription link="http://www.g4tv.com/xplay/podcasts/6/G4_TV__XPlay_Video_Podcast.xml"
Website="http://www.g4tv.com/xplay/index.html"
Every day they review a new video game.
"Goodnight Burbank" 3/5
subscription link="http://feeds.feedburner.com/GoodnightBurbank"
Website="http://goodnightburbank.blogspot.com/index.html"
A comedy show about a nightly news broadcast.
"DontBeThatGuyFilms" 4/5
subscription link="http://feeds.feedburner.com/dontbethatguyfilms"
Website="http://www.dontbethatguy.com"
Funny sketch comedy.
"Cinematech Video Podcast" 2/5
subscription link="http://www.g4tv.com/cinematech/podcasts/8/G4_TV__Cinematech_Video_Podcast.xml"
Website="http://www.g4tv.com/cinematech/index.html"
Basically commercials for new videogames. Some of them look pretty good.
"The 1UP Show" 5/5
subscription link="http://www.1up.com/flat/Podcasts/vodcasts.xml"
Website="http://the1upshow.1up.com/"
All about video games, about 45 minutes long per week. Really well put together and funny, a must for any player:)
"Wild Chronicles" 4/5
subscription link="http://podcast.nationalgeographic.com/wild-chronicles/"
Website="http://www.nationalgeographic.com/donate/wildchronicles/"
Free shorts from National Geographic. These are all about nature.
"National Geographic Video Shorts" 3/5
subscription link="http://podcast.nationalgeographic.com/ng-video-shorts/"
Website="http://www.nationalgeographic.com/"
Free shorts from National Geographic.
"GeekBrief.TV" 5/5
subscription link="http://geekbrief.podshow.com/feed.xml"
Website="http://www.podshow.com/shows/?show=geekbrief"
Great daily show, about 3-5 minutes long, about new technology and the web.
"commandN" 5/5
subscription link="http://feeds.feedburner.com/command-n/h264"
Website="http://www.commandn.tv"
Weekly 10-12 minute show from Amber MacArthur(she's from Toronto, now works for CityTV International) about the latest web developments.
"MobuzzTV - Daily Buzz" 5/5
subscription link="http://www.mobuzztv.com/rss/uk_index.xml"
Website="http://www.mobuzztv.com/uk/"
Great sarcastic daily news show. Really recommended for everyone. You can look at it on the web too.
"Alive in Baghdad" 5/5
subscription link="http://aliveinbaghdad.blip.tv/?1=1&&skin=rss"
Website="http://www.aliveinbaghdad.org"
Video journalism direct from Iraq, filmed by Iraqi journalists.
"InDigital" 4/5
subscription link="http://revision3.com/indigital/feed/quicktime-large"
Website="http://revision3.com/indigital"
Wil Wheaton!!! Now that I have your attention, it's a 30-45 minute long Techy show, comes out infrequently. They discuss online stuff, sound systems, TVs etc. And yes, it features Wesley Crusher :)
"Diggnation" 5/5
subscription link="http://revision3.com/diggnation/feed/quicktime-large"
Website="http://revision3.com/diggnation"
The boring description would be “two Digg employees discuss the week's popular stories”. A better one would be “two guys get drunk and say things they really shouldn't for our amusement”. I love this show.
"Martin Sargent: Web Drifter" 4/5
subscription link="http://revision3.com/webdrifter/feed/quicktime-large"
Website="http://revision3.com/webdrifter"
This guy finds the real people behind the weirdest stuff on the internet.
"GALACTICAST" 4/5
subscription link="http://feeds.feedburner.com/galacticast-itunes"
Website="http://www.galacticast.com"
A comedy show based around sci-fi and fantasy. If you like comics, StarWars, Star Trek, or LotR you should check them out. The people who make it are from MTL!
"muzikDEN" 3/5
subscription link="http://feeds.feedburner.com/muzikDEN-h264-small"
Website="http://www.muzikden.com"
Monthly show that reviews music, sound equipment, and gives tips to music makers and listeners.
"dl.tv" 4/5
subscription link="http://rssnewsapps.ziffdavis.com/audioblogs/DLTV.H.264.xml"
Website="http://www.dl.tv"
Technology show that discusses the web and a lot of A/V stuff. About 40 minutes long and comes out 2 or 3 times/week. Sometimes has some really good tips.
Technology/Science
"CBC Radio: Quirks & Quarks" 3/5
subscription link="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/includes/quirks.xml"
Website="http://www.cbc.ca/quirks/"
It's that show, from CBC. Science and stuff, you know.
"Digital Planet" 5/5
subscription link="http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/rmhttp/downloadtrial/worldservice/godigital/rss.xml"
Website="http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/1478157.stm"
This is a really good BBC show about technology today. Tends to come at things from the point of view of how things affect people as opposed to “check out this cool new thing”. I think anyone could benefit from listening. Comes out weekly, about 20 minutes long.
"NOVA | PBS" 3/5
subscription link="http://broadband.wgbh.org/nova/rss/nova-podcast-it.xml"
Website="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/rss/podcast-it/redir/wgbh/nova/index.html"
Short summaries and promos for PBS shows. Can be educational.
"FLOSS Weekly" 3/5
subscription link="http://leo.am/podcasts/floss"
Website="http://twit.tv"
It's a nerdlicious show where developers of OpenSource software get internviewed. If you don't know what that means, don't worry.
“Net @ Night (formerly 'Inside the Net')" 2/5
subscription link="http://leo.am/podcasts/itn"
Website="http://twit.tv"
A must for people who love the twit.tv network, a complete waste of time for those that don't. Discussions of what's happening on the Net. Hosted by Leo Laporte and Amber MacArthur.
"MacBreak Weekly" 4/5
subscription link="http://leoville.tv/podcasts/mbw.xml"
Website="http://twit.tv/mbw"
I don't have a Mac, but I get a lot out of this twit.tv podcast. It's highly entertaining and you learn tons of neat nerdy stuff.
"National Geographic Minutes" 4/5
subscription link="http://podcast.nationalgeographic.com/ng-minutes/"
Website="http://www.nationalgeographic.com/"
Little one minute bits of National Geographic type tidbits.
"National Geographic News" 3/5
subscription link="http://podcast.nationalgeographic.com/ng-news/"
Website="http://news.nationalgeographic.com/"
Really useful weekly news from NG, but they do it like a conventional show that has tons of filler in it so I end up skipping most of it.
"Security Now!" 5/5
subscription link="http://leo.am/podcasts/sn"
Website="http://grc.com/securitynow.htm"
twit.tv's internet security roundup. Always listen to at least the first 10 minutes to see if there are any large scale viruses or other security vulnerabilities that have just surfaced. The rest can be a bit heavy on the technical side, but I likes it.
"The Savvy Technologist" 3/5
subscription link="http://feeds.feedburner.com/technosavvy/podcast"
Website="http://technosavvy.org"
Not really interesting to me, because it's an educator that likes using technology to educate his students. It's on here because I've found out about some new stuff from him before anyone else was talking about it.
"this WEEK in MEDIA" 5/5
subscription link="http://twimenhanced.libsyn.com/rss"
Website="http://twimenhanced.libsyn.com"
A weekly roundup of what's going on in the world of media production and distribution etc. Things like moviemaking technology, cameras, online publishing/distribution. It's from twit.tv as well. I honestly just like the interplay between the hosts, as they tend to digress a lot and drop some really neat info.
"this WEEK in TECH" 5/5
subscription link="http://leoville.tv/podcasts/twit-aac.xml"
Website="http://thisWEEKinTECH.com"
The original twit.tv podcast, and one of the most popular podcasts. Hosted by Leo Laporte(the Godfather of podcasts) and a slew of other webtech celebs.
"Windows Weekly with Paul Thurrott" 5/5
subscription link="http://leoville.tv/podcasts/ww.xml"
Website="http://twit.tv/ww"
A really useful roundup of what's going on in the world of Windows.
"Futures in Biotech" 3/5
subscription link="http://leoville.tv/podcasts/fib.xml"
Website="http://futuresinbiotech.blogspot.com/"
I don't really listen to it, but sometimes they have some crazy stuff on here. There's a lot of trying to dumb down really complex things so that anyone can understand Metagenomics or whatever.
"43 Folders" 4/5
subscription link="http://feeds.feedburner.com/43FPodcast"
Website="http://odeo.com/channel/34348/view"
The host, Merlin Mann, is a genuinely funny person who gives tips to better organize your life with.
"this WEEK in LAW" 3/5
subscription link="http://leo.am/podcasts/twil"
Website="http://twit.tv/twil"
A bunch of lawyers talk about the Law as it relates to technology and the web.
Comedy
"Downloadable Content, The Penny Arcade Podcast" 5/5
subscription link="http://www.penny-arcade.com/padlc.xml"
Website="http://www.penny-arcade.com"
If you like Penny Arcade you'll like this.
"The Onion Radio News" 5/5
subscription link="http://www.theonion.com/content/feeds/radionews"
Website="http://www.theonion.com/content/radionews"
Every day it's a 1 minute long story from the Onion. Just gold!
"The President's Weekly Radio Address" 5/5
subscription link="http://weeklyradioaddress.com/WRA_RSS.xml"
Website="http://weeklyradioaddress.com"
Really funny parody of Dubiah.
"Savage Love Podcast" 5/5
subscription link="http://www.thestranger.com/podcasts/savagelove/index.xml"
Website="http://www.thestranger.com/podcasts/savagelove/"
It's Dan Savage dispensing sex advice in audio form!
"Mark Kermode's film reviews" 4/5
subscription link="http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/rmhttp/downloadtrial/fivelive/markkermodesfilmreviews/rss.xml"
Website="http://www.bbc.co.uk/fivelive/entertainment/kermode.shtml"
A snobby brit that reviews movies. Can be tedious at times, but no one is better when it comes to ripping crappy movies a new one.
News/Current Events
"alt.muslim review" 4/5
subscription link="http://www.altmuslim.com/podcast.xml"
Website="http://www.altmuslim.com/am_podcasts.php"
Two moderate Muslims discuss current events.
"CBC's Sounds Like Canada: The Digital Extra" 3/5
subscription link="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/includes/slc.xml"
Website="http://www.cbc.ca/soundslikecanada/"
CBC's Sheila Rogers does her thing. Can be great or not, depends on the guest.
"CBC's The Best of The Current" 4/5
subscription link="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/includes/current.xml"
Website="http://www.cbc.ca/thecurrent/"
In depth news from the CBC.
"CBC Radio: Editor's Choice" 4/5
subscription link="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/includes/editorschoice.xml"
Website="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting"
Every day CBC picks one story to play, it's all over the place.
"CBC Radio's Nfld. and Labrador This Week" 3/5
subscription link="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/includes/newfoundland.xml"
Website="http://www.cbc.ca/nl/"
"CBC Radio's The Maritimes This Week" 3/5
subscription link="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/includes/maritimes.xml"
Website="http://www.cbc.ca/ns/"
"CBC Radio's Quebec This Week" 3/5
subscription link="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/includes/quebec.xml"
Website="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting"
"CBC Radio's Ontario This Week" 3/5
subscription link="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/includes/ontario.xml"
Website="http://www.cbc.ca"
"CBC Radio's Toronto This Week" 3/5
subscription link="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/includes/toronto.xml"
Website="http://www.cbc.ca/toronto/"
"CBC Radio's Manitoba This Week" 3/5
subscription link="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/includes/manitoba.xml"
Website="http://www.cbc.ca/manitoba/"
"CBC Radio's Saskatchewan This Week" 3/5
subscription link="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/includes/saskatchewan.xml"
Website="http://www.cbc.ca"
"CBC Radio's Alberta This Week" 3/5
subscription link="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/includes/alberta.xml"
Website="http://www.cbc.ca"
"CBC Radio's B.C. This Week" 3/5
subscription link="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/includes/bc.xml"
Website="http://www.cbc.ca/bc/"
"CBC Radio: The North This Week" 3/5
subscription link="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/includes/north.xml"
Website="http://www.cbc.ca/north/"
Weekly 20-30 minute roundups of the best news stories from every region of Canada.
"CBC Radio's Dispatches" 4/5
subscription link="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/includes/dispatches.xml"
Website="http://www.cbc.ca/dispatches/"
World events from the CBC.
"CBC Radio: The Best of As It Happens" 3/5
subscription link="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/includes/asithappens.xml"
Website="http://www.cbc.ca/asithappens/"
Current events from the CBC.
"From Our Own Correspondent" 4/5
subscription link="http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/rmhttp/downloadtrial/radio4/fromourowncorrespondent/rss.xml"
Website="http://www.bbc.co.uk/fromourowncorrespondent"
Personal views on World events from BBC reporters
"Prime Minister of Canada's Podcast" 1/5
subscription link="http://www.pm.gc.ca/RSSFeeds/media/Podcasts_e.xml"
Website="http://pm.gc.ca/"
Speeches made by our fearless leader.
"War News Radio" 4/5
subscription link="http://www.warnewsradio.org/show/index.xml"
Website="http://warnewsradio.org"
An independent look at the War in Iraq and Afghanistan, made by Journalism students.
"World News Bulletin" 5/5
subscription link="http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/rmhttp/downloadtrial/worldservice/summary/rss.xml"
Website="http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/programmes/newssummary.shtml"
Five minute world news roundups, every hour.
"World Today Select" 4/5
subscription link="http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/rmhttp/downloadtrial/worldservice/worldtodayselect/rss.xml"
Website="http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/programmes/worldtoday/"
Top stories of the day from the BBC
"The Economist" 3/5
subscription link="http://www.economist.com/media/rss/economist.xml"
Website="http://www.economist.com"
What's going on from the point of view of the Economist magazine
Academic
"12 Byzantine Rulers: The History of The Byzantine Empire" 4/5
subscription link="http://www.anders.com/lectures/lars_brownworth/12_byzantine_rulers/rss.xml"
Website="http://www.anders.com/lectures/lars_brownworth/12_byzantine_rulers/"
A history of several Byzantine emperors.
"Big Ideas" 4/5
subscription link="http://www.tvo.org/TVOspecial3/WebObjects/TVOMedia.woa?bigideasfeed"
Website="http://www.tvo.org/bigideas/"
Lectures from a wide variety of people
"CBC Radio: The Best of Ideas" 4/5
subscription link="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/includes/ideas.xml"
Website="http://www.cbc.ca/ideas/"
In depth documentaries on a variety of subjects from the CBC
"In Our Time" 3/5
subscription link="http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/rmhttp/downloadtrial/radio4/inourtime/rss.xml"
Website="http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/history/inourtime/inourtime.shtml"
Over the top british radio discussions of academics
Culture
"CBC's Words at Large" 3/5
subscription link="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/includes/wordsatlarge.xml"
Website="http://www.cbc.ca/wordsatlarge/"
Books!
"CBC Radio: The Best of Outfront" 4/5
subscription link="http://www.cbc.ca/podcasting/includes/outfront.xml"
Website="http://www.cbc.ca/outfront/"
Intimate 15 minute personal stories from amateurs
"Documentary Archive" 4/5
subscription link="http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/rmhttp/downloadtrial/worldservice/documentaryarchive/rss.xml"
Website="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/documentary_archive"
Various BBC documentaries.
"Front Row Interview" 3/5
subscription link="http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/rmhttp/downloadtrial/radio4/frontrowinterview/rss.xml"
Website="http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/arts/frontrow/"
Interviews of a totally random bunch of people
"Lonely Planet Travelcasts" 3/5
subscription link="http://www.lonelyplanet.com/podcasts/travelcast.xml"
Website="http://www.lonelyplanet.com"
Travel tips and stories, also has the absolute worst intro theme that makes me angry
"podictionary" 4/5
subscription link="http://podictionary.libsyn.com/rss"
Website="http://www.podictionary.com"
Every day, a new word is explored
"Radio 4 Choice" 3/5
subscription link="http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/rmhttp/downloadtrial/radio4/radio4choice/rss.xml"
Website="http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/"
Unique documentaries again from the BBC
"The Best of National Geographic Magazine" 3/5
subscription link="http://podcast.nationalgeographic.com/best-of-ngm/"
Website="http://www.nationalgeographic.com/ngm"
Weekly roundup of stories from National Geographic
"Salon.com: Conversations" 4/5
subscription link="http://salon.com/podcast/conversations_itunes.rss"
Website="http://dir.salon.com/topics/salon_conversations/?source=podcast"
Good interviews with entertainment celebrities
"APM: Garrison Keillor's The Writer's Almanac" 4/5
subscription link="http://americanpublicmedia.publicradio.org/podcasts/xml/writers_almanac/writers_almanac.xml"
Website="http://writersalmanac.publicradio.org"
Daily facts and fun stuff
"Barnes & Noble's Meet the Writers Podcast" 3/5
subscription link="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/rss/mtw.xml"
Website="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/writers"
Interviews with authors
Music
"CBC Radio 3 Podcast" 5/5
subscription link="http://www.cbcradio3.com/podcast/"
Website="http://www.cbcradio3.com/"
Best Podcast Ever. Great Canadian Music!
"Radio 1's Best of Unsigned" 3/5
subscription link="http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/rmhttp/downloadtrial/radio1/radio1sbestofunsigned/rss.xml"
Website="http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/onemusic/"
Independent British bands
"The CMG Podcast" 4/5
subscription link="http://feeds.feedburner.com/cokemachineglowpodcast"
Website="http://cokemachineglowpodcast.blogspot.com"
All kinds of good music
"----=NYUB=----" 3/5
subscription link="http://marenco.libsyn.org/rss">http://marenco.libsyn.org/rss"
Website="http://www.nyub.net"
Random music