Thing “18″ Podcast
Posted by arlieosborne on March 10, 2009
K12 learning 2.0: Tools for 21st Century Teaching & Learning
THING “Eighteen” (Session Eight)
Discovery Exercise & Task: Create a “Bare Bones” Podcast . . .
Create a podcast using BooMp3, Zamzar and Gcast.
Well, first, I believe BooMp3 is closed. I did look for an alternative website where you could record mp3 files but, alas, I found none worth mentioning. I did find several free programs to download which can be used to record mp3 files. It seems to me that this is a good option and it worked best for me. I downloaded a free software program called audacity for recording and editing sounds. I also learned that if I wanted to save my recording directly to a mp3 using audacity then I could download a file called lame_enc.dll and place it in the audacity folder which would enable this feature.
I love using Audacity better than most of the other apps I previewed because it is free and easy to use. By adding the lame_enc.dll file, it really makes it easy to save my recordings directly to MP3. I also like the editing feature. If I decide to modify my recording in some way, then I can do this nicely within the program. If you have ever used a portable application, you will love the fact that Audacity comes in a portable version. You can carry it with you on your flash stick along with your headphones. Now, you can be ready to create files for your podcasts anywhere! Audacity Portable Version.
Zamzar is an interesting site. Videos, documents, images and audio files can be converted here in a few easy steps. Well, I did encounter several “internal processing errors” when trying to process my file conversion request. Even though the 4 step process looked very easy, I personally found it unreliable at times. Well, in fact, after about 4 tries one did eventually process to my email and I was able to retrieve it after a little persistence. I would still recommend it.
GCAST is a great place to send your MP3 to make it available for podcast.
I also previewed mp3mymp3 and Direct MP3 Recorder. Download and try these software applications.
The “dipping my toes” experience into the podcasting was a bit confusing at first, but, finding an easy way of recording and editing is essential. By using audacity, I was able to combine steps and make the experience more pleasant and more efficient.
I can see using “podcasts” to share tips and helps regarding software used by students and teachers. For example, each podcast could focus on a special feature of our email program to help introduce different components and their benefits. As a result, teachers could more effectively use their email application. In the classroom, teachers could create podcasts to help summarize material in the form of review before quizzes and tests.
