What is podcasting?

Podcasting makes an audio or video file, typically an MP3 or WMF file, available online for downloading. You can then hear the podcast whenever you want from your computer or a portable media/MP3 player like an iPod or a Zune.

What do I need to hear podcasts?

The first thing you need is podcast subscription software. Your options include the latest version of Apple's iTunes, or other services such as Google Reader or My AOL to manage your podcast subscriptions. Mozilla’s Thunderbird combines your email inbox with podcasts and newsfeeds.

Once you have downloaded the podcast, you will be able to listen to it from your computer (provided your computer has a sound card and can play MP3 audio files). You can make the podcast portable by transferring the episode from your computer to a portable media device (like the iPod or the Zune).

How do I subscribe to a podcast?

You may subscribe to a podcast series by clicking the buttons for popular tools like iTunes and Google in the QuickFeed box.

If you don't see a button for your preferred tool, simply highlight the URL in the box under the "Subscribe" bullet. Right-click this link (or Control-click on Mac) and select "Copy" or "Copy Shortcut." You can then paste the link into your preferred podcasting software. In iTunes you can find this under the "Advanced" menu as "Subscribe to podcast."

You may also download the latest episode of the podcast by clicking the button "Download to portable player" next to the podcast description, which allows you to download the zipped episode to your computer.