What Are Podcasts?

Podcasting is a way of publishing audio broadcasts via the Internet. Specifically, podcasts are feeds that contain digital audio files, such as MP3 files. Listeners can subscribe to feeds using software that periodically checks for and downloads new content automatically. This software is available on the Web and is generally free; here is a sampling of available programs (please note, MBC does not endorse or guarantee any particular software program):

For Windows/PC:

• iTunes
• iPodder
• Doppler
• Blog Matrix Sparks!

For Mac

• iTunes
• iPodderX
• Playpod

Once you subscribe to a podcast, you can either listen to it on your computer or transfer it to a portable MP3 player, such as an iPod.