Visit http://www.podcastpickle.com/casts/4/ to hear Show #42, and bear witness.

[3:55:07 PM] OtherGuy says: hey scott whats your thoughts on the new downloadble media association ?

[4:29:02 PM] Scott Fletcher says: Well, I think that their web site graphics are ridiculously whimsical. Beyond that, it’s a group whose members carry significant weight, representing a good cross-section of ‘portable media landscape.’ It’s also good news for industry commentators [such as myself] given the eclectic-and-likely-dysfunctional make-up of the association.

[4:31:15 PM] Scott Fletcher says: Podshow + PodTrac + PodTech + PodBridge = PodTrainWreck

[4:32:19 PM] Scott Fletcher says: [Sure, there is a lot of hyperbole in that statement, but it’s funny.]

[4:34:35 PM] Scott Fletcher says: How about calling the new association: www.iPodShowTracLifeBridgeRadioOnline.com ?

[4:43:23 PM] Scott Fletcher says: In summary, I don’t have a strong opinion about it. The value of my shows to my sponsors will remain the same, regardless of what standardized Formats/Units/Sponsorship the association might come up with. I suppose that there is a slight risk to the disenfranchised independent producer that the association might declare a standard that doesn’t actually represent a global standard, but I suppose that it will help more than it hurts. De facto standards have been emerging for three years without the help of an association, so its probably time to document a few of them and stabilize them so that the rest of the world can rely upon them for business. So…

[4:43:30 PM] Scott Fletcher says: That’s all I have to say about that.

[4:46:50 PM] OtherGuy says: Thanks whats funny is that at least 3 of those companies use [standards developed by another company]… It looks to me like there will be a lot of agendas…[edit]

[4:50:31 PM] Scott Fletcher says: That’s the side-effect of being a true leader. If you show other people “the way,” you make it possible for them to draw a map and claim it as their own. There have been a lot of ‘good ideas’ in the podcast world, but the only ones that really matter are the ones that work.

Best wishes to all involved.  Given the size of the association, I’d bet that there is at least one member of the association who underestimates the challenge.

They won’t be able to please everyone, nor should they try.  The process will be littered with compromises and some least-worst choices.  I look forward to news of their progress, and hope to be entertained by the natural by-products of friction, standardization, and general “committee behavior.”

Speaking on behalf of all new-media commentators, news outlets, and pundits around the globe… “Thank you!  After a long dry spell, we finally have something to talk about!”

Well, you reap what you sow.  Check out this cellphone ringtone.  (Warning: no really work-safe.)

Listen live on the web, in several major radio markets, or on XM Satellite radio Open Road 171.

If you haven’t yet subscribed to David’s Personal Netcast podcast, you don’t know what you’re missing.  It’s almost always interesting, and if it’s not, it always only 10 minutes long. 

———————-

ALSO, I’ll be doing a wordpress upgrade in the next few days, so please pardon any dust.  Usually, when I do an upgrade, your podcatchers want to download all of my old shows.  Given that I haven’t done a new show in a long time, you might become annoyed.  Apologies in advance.

It’s a great article with comments from several podcaster old-timers like Mark Yoshimoto Nemcoff, Grant Baciocco from The Radio Adventures of Dr. Floyd, and, er, me.  Special thanks to Shelly for using me in the stinger.  Usually, my quotes sound loosely-threaded and ill-conceived, but Shelly managed to find a good one to end the story with.  THANKS!

Blogger and Podcaster Magazine has a free on-line edition, or you can pony up the cash to have an actual magazine delivered to your door.  Stop by and take a look!

• The ever-dominant, high-quality iPod with its gazillion inexpensive accessories
  —  or  —
• The much maligned, near-beta-quality Zune with its vaporware promises of features and technogasms.

The answer was simple:  The Zune.  I’m a sucker for hope.

I am the senior software architect (whatever that is) at an all-Microsoft shop, my entire house is wired to my Microsoft Media Center PC.  Most importantly, Apple’s iTunes’ silo of exclusion is strong enough to withstand a nuclear blast.  For all of the anti-Microsoft talk that goes on in the “haters’ forums,” few people admit that Apple’s customers voluntarily participate in benevolent dictatorship called ”the iPod experience.”  Compared to Apple’s iPod business model, Microsoft Zune stragtegy looks like open-source.  I expect to see a Zune developer support from MSDN within the next 12 months.

Now. the obligatory Pro/Con list:

Pros: 

• Great user interface and logical controls.
• Great sound.
• Great sync speed with the PC
• Cool wireless sharing (but it’s not “super cool”)
• Good price ($200 at WalMart, OfficeDept)

Cons:

• Many accessories have not yet hit the market
• The Zune is a bit thicker than the iPod counterpart,
• Zune’s battery life is suspect due to the “ver 2.0″ hardware’s use of descrete components.  Expect better battery life with the next generation of hardware.
• Zune software is a clunky version of Windows Media Player.
• Zune software doesn’t yet do RSS/podcast feeds.
• No direct integration with Windows Media Center’s dvr-ms format?  Whaaaat?

…and yet, Steven Colbert and I are still very happy with our purchases.  I will probably buy one for my wife.  Why?  Because I know that Griffin Technologies and Belkin are bringing accessories to market, and that the Microsoft developers hate the current version as much as I do (though they would say that “we see enormous potential in the future of Zune.”)

Besides, check out this mean-ass case!  Reminds me of something that Halo’s Master Chief would carry.  Beotch.

Come listen to us talk about He-Man, Saturday morning cartoons, and Xanadu!  It’s the most important thing you’ll ever do.  Ever.

http://www.myextralife.com/?p=5060
(Check the graphic on the post at his site, yo.  Priceless.)

In any event, I have self-allocated a company American Express card and have booked my trip to MIX ‘07, a developer conference in Las Vegas April 30 through May 2, 2007.  If you’re gong to be there, drop me an e-mail at show -at — podcheck.com, and we can connect.  I’ll be at the PURE party thing for a while, but will probably prefer to spend much of the 72-hour conversation time actually having conversations. 

As promised, I recorded the session and will post the audio and PowerPoint presentation in this feed.  Look for it here in a few days.  For the technically-curious, I clipped my iRiver H10 portable media player to my lapel and used the built-in mic to record my speach.

Special thanks to Pete from the Illinoise! podcast for stopping by to listen!

I guess Skynet has taken over.  Head for the hills!

Podcasting: Who, What, and Why bother?

There is nothing magical about the technology of podcasting.  In fact, the “podcasting process” can be tedious and complicated for both the listeners and the producers.  If finding and listening to podcasts is so much more complicated than tuning into broadcast radio or TV, what is it about podcasting that drives people to go through all of that trouble? 

Scott Fletcher will examine the key differences between traditional media and podcasting, and what gives podcasts the power to create emotional ties with global audiences.  In the process, Scott will reveal some obvious truths and important perspectives about producing shows that foster passion in audiences and promote conversations with customers.  (As you might have guessed, this presentation will be recorded live for a podcast.)

 I will probably take the time to compose some sort of audio/video cast from the presentation and stick it in this [withering] feed. 

By now, you have guessed that I am really talking about Podcheck.  Podcheck’s subject matter has lost it’s sizzle, and the news items that Podcheck has covered for the last 2 years have become mundane and uninteresting to me.  In the early days, we all had to figure out RSS, mp3 encoding rates, ID3 tags, and blog software.  Now, there are standard methods and tools, and numerous how-to books.  In the early days, the news from the podcatastophere was ever changing and very interesting to me as new players came and went, new mini-battles developed between personalities, ideologies, and technologies.  In the early days, there were a handful of players, and most of them were outspoken, novel, and/or interesting.  Now, there are a zillion players and, while some may still be outspoken, and while many are still quite interesting, few of them are truly novel in the sea of novelty.

I’m bored with the meta.  I’m no longer interested in the “inside baseball” of podcasting.

I had two options:  1) Change the focus and direction of the show, or 2) discontinue this show and move on to something else of greater interest.  I have chosen the latter and have decided to move on.

Over the last 9 years, I have become a subject matter expert in several other fields.  You will hear from me sometime this year, either in a new panel show from my company or in someone else’s show.  Most importantly, I will use podcasting to do what it does well; communicate highly specialized information to markets underserved by broadcast channels, fostering conversations within communities that cross geographic/physical boundaries.

As for Podcheck, I will likely record two more shows; a “last call” show announcing the end and requesting suggestions for a Best Of Podcheck episode, and then the “Best of Podcheck” finale.

Do you have a favorite bit or segment from any of the last 30-some shows?  Leave a comment, or e-mail me at show -at - podcheck.com.�

Hear our thoughts on:

• Whether or not podcasting will play a significant role in politics in 2007.
• How “the podcasting topic” is being integrated into other tradeshows and marketplaces.
• Why podcast networks exist, and the difference between general networks and boutique networks.  Do they really influence how advertisers spend their money?
• How has the technology of “new media” evolved in 2006?  Has anything really changed in the way that people create (podcast) media, or consume (podcast) media?
• Was 2006 supposed to be “The Year of Video?”  Why does video have so much success building communities and sharing clips?  Why isn’t there a similar system for audio.
• “New media” and its impact on education.

…and in the second hour (at http://worldbridges.net/node/3264)

• Our predictions for 2007
• Some ranting about “Web 2.0″ and how that label sucks.

(WordPress might very well include this first hour’s file in the feed, but that’s not a bad thing.)  Here’s the link to the file:

• download first hour’s audio file from WorldBridges.net

Visit the WorldBridges website for more information about their worthwhile endeavors in education, and facilitating the use of web technologies to communicate across borders. 

In fact, visit their site to hear LAST YEAR’s show, too!  Hear a great discussion between Rob, myself, and some very intelligent folks from the WorldBridges community and the state of podcasting at the end of 2005.  (Discover how 2006 was supposed to be the year of “HIWIWIWI”)

http://worldbridges.com/livewire/2006/01/03/discussion-with-scott-fletcher-of-podcheckreviewcom/

http://worldbridges.com/livewire/2006/01/03/discussion-with-scott-fletcher-of-podcheckreviewcom/

Bless you, and best wishes for peace and health for you in 2007.
–Scott Fletcher

So far, here is their schedule of topics for today:

1300GMT - Webheads Skypecast Talkshoe
1400GMT - Drupal   Skypecast Talkshoe
1600GMT - Second Life
1900GMT - Podcasting / New Media Skypecast Talkshoe
2100GMT - Global News & Issues
2200GMT - Second Life
2300GMT - K12Online Conference Reunion Skypecast
midnight GMT - EdTechYearly

Join us, won’t you?

UPDATE: Rob Walch and Shelly Brisbin will be on the show with me!  They are such heavyweights, and I am honored to be a part of the conversation.

“YOU are the hottest thing in podcasting.”  I first said that last year in 2005 when Rush Limbaugh released his podcast and declared that he was the biggest thing since sliced bread.  While his audience is massive, your audience has more potential to influence your world than Rush Limbaugh’s audience.  New spheres of influence are emerging, and new media consumption patterns, interrelationships, and affinities are coming to light.  You are fueling change.

Time Magazine seems to agree.  Time Magazine just named you “Person of the Year” for 2006.

http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1569514,00.html

Enjoy your new-found recognition, and never give up your passion.

Wizzard Software (OTCBB: WIZD) announced today that it has agreed to acquire Libsyn, the world’s largest podcasting network. Following the acquisition, Libsyn will maintain its independence and continue to grow its successful brand and loyal podcasting community, empowering podcasting everywhere.

Libsyn is the home of some of the biggest shows in podcasting, like The Mac Cast, Sex is Fun, Schlaflos in Muenchen (hi Anik!), and Keith and The Girl.  Congratulations to the Libsyn guys, and please join me in welcoming Wizzard Software to the podcasting family. 

Wizzard might become our new favorite uncle.  That other uncle kinda makes me feel… I dunno… dirty, I guess.  Quit ASKING ME ABOUT IT! (*Scott storms off to his room*)

�

I am the voice of a futuristic coffee maker in a podcast drama: “DarkSpeed” produced by Dave from Chub Creek.  It’s an amazingly well-produced (and funny) little drama that he puts together using mp3 audio files that his friends send him.  The miracle of the production is that no one records their parts at the same time, and there is no script.  How does that work?  Very well.

Check out Episode 75 - October 22nd, 2006 at http://www.chubcreek.com/ The whole show runs 34:32, and my bit runs from 19:44 to 24:30.  You’ll hear the ‘old’ coffee machine, and then you’ll hear my “new coffee machine.”  There is some profanity (a few sh**s, and a F*** or two) that make it “not safe for work,” but the language is only used for punctuation. �

Having just now performed that bit of perception filtering on myself, I am still left with a sense of antagonism towards Podshow.  I know that Podshow is making failed attempts to separate themselves from the core community, and I also know that podcasters are growing weary of the manufactured and unilateral animosity.  Podshow is creating an environment in which the emotional attachments between them and their podcast producers fade quickly, leaving only legal contractual obligations.  It’s been my experience that “legal contractual obligations” do not inspire the passion required to produce quality content.

*I pause a moment to refresh my objectivity filter.*  While I was at the 2006 Podcast Expo, I had an all-too-brief-before-the-plane-leaves conversation with the new owner of a new podcast network, and I think I startled him with my views on what it takes to really succeed in this market.  He is a smart man, and he is just now beginning to understand the nuances of the podcasting marketplace and its many (sometimes subtle) differences between podcasts and radio. 

I know that he (and everyone else) will fail if he tries to apply existing/traditional media models to podcasting.  His only hope is to re-imagine his business using non-media models (I suggested a mix of “the creativity of niche comic books/graphic novels, the passion and willingness to spend money of model rocketry clubs, the streamlining of production of CafePress, and the narrow-cast monetization strategy of Google AdSense”)

Regarding ad networks, content valuations, and content ownership: If you listen to Podcheck, you know that I have some well-expressed views on the subject of Podcasters’ power to control their own destinies, and no one seems to be helping the podcasters achieve the PODCASTERS’ monetary and social goals. Where is the niche advertising, narrowly-targeted audience messages pertinent to the subject material, and monetary rewards reflective of the audience participation?

So far, every company in the podcast-marketing-network space has failed to live up to my expectations, yet Podshow stands out as being the least-likeable.  Considering their anti-involvement in the grass-roots community, and their big “F*** You” to the Podcast Expo attendees (in the form of a giant black Hummer Limo to shuttle the chosen few between the actual event and their anti-event), this aire of disdain is Podshow’s own fault.  At least Podtrac had a “member meeting” and parties on site, and Kiptronic had a party or two.  The muckety-mucks of both Podtrac and Kiptronic made themselves available for ANYONE to discuss ANYTHING.

I also suspect that more podcasts will leave Podshow in the next 18-24 months.  (Eric Rice has a similar take on it.) More importantly, I suspect that new podcasters will avoid a Podshow deal.  Podshow needs to consider some changes, including an initiative to do some outreach to counter this increasingly well-formed argument pervasive antagonism against them.

In any event, best wishes to Paige and Gretchen of The MommyCast!

UPDATE 10/29/2006: According to P.W. Fenton, Podshow was not allowed to rent space at the Marriott Hotel, which “forced” them to hold their activities elsewhere.  I still believe that this was the result of a choice that was made by Podshow to not pay for the necessary booth, sponsorship, whatever at the Expo.  How is it that companies like Podango, Kiptronic, Blubrry, and others can manage to navigate the supposedly treacherous political waters of the Expo, and Podshow is an outcast?   

I have re-read this post, and I see that it does not reflect my best efforts.  It is bitter, scatological, and weakly-threaded.  Still, I was so moved by something that I spent more than a few minutes that night to type the post.  I have run out of time to analyze my motivations, so I’ll be a giant p*ssy and say that I do not have all of the answers, and some/all of my assumptions may be proven incorrect.  I hope that you ENJOY the post, in all of its glorious warmongering.

from Marc on a post at http://www.macmerc.com/news/archives/3531
It is with deep sorrow that I inform you of the passing of one of our own. MacMerc writer and friend, Digital Bill Douthett was found dead in his apartment earlier today (Wednesday, September 4th, 2006).

The world is diminished by his passing, though we are all greater for having known him.  If you were a fan of his show, I encourage you to visit his web site and donate a few dollars to his family.

It’s a blast so far!

I’m eager to see all of my old podcasting buddies and meet some new ones.  Don from www.screencastsonline.com told me that he’s flying all the way from the UK!

I have a full conference schedule, having chosen all of my sessions for the two days.  There are five tracks at the conference:

Track 1: Podcasting 101 - A to Z for Beginners - Getting Up To Speed Fast
Track 2: Podcasting As A Business - Turning Content Into Profits
Track 3: Corporate Podcasting - Communications, PR and Marketing Best Practices
Track 4: Podcasting As A Hobby - For Those Who Create Purely for Enjoyment
Track 5: Podcasting for Specific Interests - Education, Music, etc.

I chose a mix of the different tracks (though NONE from the #5 Specific Interests track).  Some of the choices were very difficult, considering that some of my friends are leading many of the sessions.  In the end, I chose sessions that both interested me AND broaden my perception of the medium. 

Poker? I didn’t even go near her!

I full evening schedule, too.  I even bought a poker program for my laptop just so that I wouldn’t look like a complete idiot at the Rob Walsh /Podcast Pickle Poker Tournament.  $20 is my loss-limit, so it shouldn’t take long.  I’ll spend the rest of the evenings at the organized parties and chatting/schmoozing in the bars.

Signal-to-Noise Ratio High

As a member of the “podcasting press,” I’ve been preparing for this year’s Expo by reading the countless ‘press invitational’ e-mails from iProng, Click n’ Buy, Wizzard Software, Blip.TV (who?), Magnetictime, The Trypod Network, Podshow, Podcast Ready (the makers of myPodder), etc.  I must say that none of the press releases or invitations have been “hype-y,” but there have been so many product announcements surrounding the Expo that the trends are getting drowned out by the individual news items.  I’m eager to report on the trends and general vibe during/after the expo.

Oh, and check out this little bit about “the Podcast Expo Experience.”  VERY funny by anyone’s standards! http://www.digitalslobpod.com (look for the episode from 2006-09-25).  Unfortunately I can’t link directly to the mp3 file or WordPress will include it in my RSS feed as an attachement!)

On-Site Reporting - via Skype:

If you want an on-site report from the Expo, please contact me via Skype : username: caraworks.  I’ll have my laptop and headset with me most of the time at the Expo and at the hotel.   If you can’t seem to get me via Skype, call my cell phone (309) 453-3415 and we’ll set up a time to do an interview.

Talk to you soon!

David Lawrence caught me on a ‘bad night’ on Friday, and almost got me to say on national radio that I was quitting podcasting.  I’d better get a show out before the Expo, or I might become a member of the Podfader Club of 2006.

See you all next Thursday in Ontario, California.

..

I love doing his show.  David is a genuine host, and not just a blabber-mouth windbag talk show host that always needs to have the last word.  He’s one of the good guys.

Sometimes, however, I allow myself to be immersed in the creative brilliance of daring new (or renewed) shows like “Battlestar Galactica,” “Dead Like Me,” and the cute and fuzzy brain candy that is “Eureka.”  I trust these shows to be true to themselves and to ignore convention.

Today was different.  While watching the September 5th, 2006 episode of Sci-Fi’s “Eureka” entitled “Right and Raynes” I noticed a couple of product placements.  While this practice is not new, they struck me in the face during this episode.

“The Power of the (TV) Network”

First was a rather blatant and jarring product placement for Cisco Systems.  At the end of an international teleconference in a top-top-secret government installation, the computer screen displayed an obviously-superimposed Cisco Systems logo.  The logo lingered three-quarters of a second longer than it should have, and I thought “Oh, there’s a blatant product placement.”

My mind registered the fact that TV productions require cash to keep the cameras rolling, and I was OK with it.  (Later in the show, I saw that they had also placed a Cisco sticker on the back of the display panel.)

Bad Apple

Then, in another scene in which the characters were discussing a computer virus that was plaguing the town, the main character said “Should have got a Mac.“  My suspension of disbelief was… suspended permanently.  Was that a paid endorsement, or just a writer that felt the need to prostheletize.  There I sat.  Me, a devout fan of a promising new television show, burning brain cycles wondering about the fidelity of a line in a script.

No longer immersed in the scene, I was now 50,000 feet above the show, looking down on the little TV show thinking about an irrelevant bit of misinformation.  “Was that a paid comment?  I know that Mac’s are not immune to viruses, and that there are not many Mac computers in countries that generate the majority of the viruses.”  Blah blah blah in my head.

Product placements have been around for a VERY long time, and I remember the first time I saw the AT&T logo on the bottom of a telephone handset while the actor spoke into it.  I remember the big hoopla over the appearance of Reese’s Pieces in the movie “E.T.”  — This is the first time I have ever suspected that a company might have paid for a verbal product endorsement embedded in a script. 

No Money Bag, No Foul?

Apple might not have paid them any money.  The “Mac” comment might have been a well-intentioned attempt to capture the zeitgeist.  I could contact the show’s producers and ask them, but that is beside the point.  I now realize first-hand what effect all product placements have had on my entertainment experience.

• I can no longer discern the entertainment from the advertising,
• The advertising can corrupt the content and message because I cannot determine the source or the motive of the message.

This is not about an evil advertising empire, or subversive practices - this is all about me.  Entertainment is always about me… the audience member.  Regardless of the motives of the producers and writers, Eureka has lost some magic for me today.

Still images from the “Eureka” television program are copyrighted by the SciFi Network and it’s parent company NBC-Universal.

“A must-read for anyone serious about promoting his/her podcast.” - Scott Fletcher

I also hint about my new hobby website: www.BarNapkinWarfareDesigns.com, and mention some other stuff about the next episode of Podcheck Review.

I hope that the latest ‘fix’ that I applied will solve the problem, but I suspect that the cause is a bit more venemous sly evil persistent than that.  Time will tell…

Meanwhile, coming up on future episodes of Podcheck Review:

• An interview with Jason Van Orden to talk about his new book “Promoting Your Podcast.” 
• Also, a return to the rapid-fire news format of yesteryear in order to catch up with the goings’-on in the podcatastophere. 
• Also, a word about some upcoming appearances of my voice on Chub Creek’s hilarious DarkSpeed sci-fi radio show, an upcoming guest spot on “Today in Podcasting,” and my new website for releasing pent-up frustrations - www.BarnapkinWarfareDesigns.com

Thank you for your feedback, and for staying subscribed!
—-Scott

I have been looking for a good free off-line editor that I could use with WordPress, and I’ve been impressed with this Microsoft Writer app.  I just doodled a stick figure image, clipped it, and pasted it into the Writer document.  We’ll see if Writer is able to upload and imbed the image for me!

UPDATE:  Holy mother of pearl - It uploaded the copy-pasted image to the blog server automatically!  MMMmmm!  Now that’s good app!  Nice work!

Use “POD” in your trademark, get sued. Has Apple gone too far? by ZDNet’s David Berlind — Has Apple gone too far? Even if the product you make doesn’t look, smell, feel, or do anything remotely close to what an iPod does, and even if consumers can’t buy it on the shelves in a store, that apparently doesn’t mean Apple won’t release its legal dogs on you if […]

When Apple’s legal team moves on from ‘devices’ to ‘concepts,’ will names like Podcheck, Podshow, and PodSquad be next? There are lots of other Trademarks that include the word Podcast, so how about Paul Fowlie, the guy that claims the trademark on the word “PODCAST.” I couldn’t find anything on Mr. Fowlie, so I hope he doesn’t turn out to be an ass-clown.

It’s clear that the USPTO is overworked, overwhelmed, with a profound lack of understanding of how spontaneously-generated markets that create their own common terminology.

I’m having a hard time with what my new business cards for my real-life job should say. Here are some of my ideas so far:

Scott Fletcher
Chief Bottle Washer

Scott Fletcher
Not smarter than you

Scott Fletcher
Wizard’s Workshop - Mop Technician

Scott Fletcher
Light-Seconds ahead of his time

Scott Fletcher
Admires simplicity

Scott Fletcher
Gadget and Gizmo Freak

Scott Fletcher
Makes software softer

..and potentially my favorite:

Scott Fletcher
Insert self-important non-descript job title here

I like them all, so it’s difficult to choose. I am injecting some “startup whimsy” into our new, smaller company while being sensitive to the need for a sense of propriety and professionalism demanded by our target customers. I’m not the CEO, and I only hand out business cards to customers during tech and engineering meetings, so I’m usually handing the cards to people who appreciate/envy a relaxing of the rules.
I had some Podcheck cards printed for last year’s Expo. How could I resist for only $65? It seemed like everyone else had cards, too. As podcasters, do we really need business cards? It’s not like I have an opportunity to hand out business cards for my HOBBY very often.