Is the top 50 enough?

[travishoffman]

Ferf, as I'm sure YOU are aware the number of podcasts is growing and growing and growing. I'm not too much for the whole "vote for me on podcast alley" We do things a bit more grassroots. But, as the number of podcasts continue to grow and there inevitably will be great new podcasts that shine through the not so greats...I'm starting to wonder if sometime down the road the top fifty should expand to say the top 100 podcasts. I'm not trying to do this in a feeble attempt to be in the "top" club, cause I think we're somewhere around 128 or so on the "list" and wouldn't really benefit, but with the growth in the numbers of podcasts those who fall short of the top 50 and are still in their right really good shows, may benefit from an expansion from top 50 to 100. Either way, just a thought. Keep up the great work. Who knows maybe the idea sucks, but i think with such a concentration on the voting system, the overall exposure aspect of podcasts on podcast alley may be able to get better and grow as well.

[Craig]

Chris has indicated previously that he will be implementing a way to access podcasts on the list beyond just the top 50.

Craig

[PaulCasting]

But, you can go into each catagory and see who is ranked in that matter. I actually like that better.

As I write this, the top 10 has The Catholic Insider (Religious) followed by Slice of SciFi (Geek) and then Dawn and Drew (Vulgar). You'll also find a music show (Coverville), Political (FTL) and even a show about Podcasting (DSC).

What would be cool is to have the top vote getter of each catagory listed on the front. Comedy, Religious, Techie, etc. Maybe even do both!

Either way, Podcast Alley is a destination of mine numberous times a day. Keep it up.

Paul

[Craig]

What would be cool is to have the top vote getter of each catagory listed on the front. Comedy, Religious, Techie, etc. Maybe even do both!
I like that idea. (And no, I'm not at the top of the religious category!)

Craig

[evo]

As I write this, the top 10 has The Catholic Insider (Religious) followed by Slice of SciFi (Geek)... You say "geek" like that's a bad thing. ;)

E.

[yaz]

people, this discussion will never go away, all the podcasts are listed, are we so lazy that clicking on a button is too much or are we so impatient that we need to have the whole list in front of us, there are like 1900 podcasts, there has to be a way to condense that, another place i think you're doing well ferf...

[theFerf]

i love all of your ideas!

the #1 for each genre on the front page, brililant!

also, im beta testing bett methods for sorting genres now. working on pagination and a lot more than just a top 50. hold your horses, new features take time to get just right so every one loves them :D

[ebrage]

This is related and not directly tied to the convo, but...

I run a magazine-style show that talks about a bunch of different topics, has some comedy bits, plays some music, and includes the occasional interview (okay, the only one I've had on-air thus far was Tim Wheeler from Ash, but I'm working on a bunch...).

So the "General" category should fit me perfectly, right?

I suppose it does, but General just sounds so ****ed boring! Just once I'd love to see Magazine, or something like that. Even "Entertainment" is a notch or so better -- makes me feel as though I'm not doing a show that sound-tours the growing of the lawn!

Does this bother anyone else? Just curious...

[pacopv]

i love all of your ideas!

the #1 for each genre on the front page, brililant!

also, im beta testing bett methods for sorting genres now. working on pagination and a lot more than just a top 50. hold your horses, new features take time to get just right so every one loves them :D

I would get excited about that if you had a Travel category...

(hint, hint...)

Paco Ojeda

[jeffoest]

Actually I suppose I'm alone in this one but I don't think this is a very good idea. But I guess it depends on the goal here.

Listing the overall top 10 and listing the top 1 in each category will just lead to a lot of replication (double listing of podcasts). Seems a waste of valuable real-estate to me.

If the goal is to give exposure to as many great podcasts as possible while keeping the page clean and clutter-free (which would be the goal I would choose) - this does not accomplish it.

So, do I have a better idea? Nah, not off the top of my head - but I'll think about it.... lol

i love all of your ideas!

the #1 for each genre on the front page, brililant!

also, im beta testing bett methods for sorting genres now. working on pagination and a lot more than just a top 50. hold your horses, new features take time to get just right so every one loves them :D

[seek3r]

I have updated the site with the ability to show more than just the top 50 shows. On the left is the link to the Top Podcasts. This allows you to filter by genre and date, and will show all that match the critiera. Look for the Previous/Next links to cycle thru more than what limit you set.

[owyn]

Nice.

[shepdave]

Ooh! Okay! I like that! (Since now my podcast is #3 on a list: cultural/political.)

I also share a bit of the frustration with the categories, however. I'm not complaining about the way Chris has it set up at all, but it's hard for me to remember which categories I'm in in these various directories.

My show is about words and language--a rather narrow topic, just perfect for the podcast world. But it's rare that I find, for example, a Language/Linguistics category.

And even then, I'm not sure that would be the best thing. I also play music in each podcast.

Anyway, though, I do like the filtered top 50 (or top 75, or however one sets the filter).

I may be opening a can of worms now, but I wonder, in light of this new development, if the "top list" on the home page might need to be expanded now, since the top 50 is no longer directly linked from the home page. i say this as somebody who has absolutely no anticipation of cracking the top 20.

Dave

[shepdave]

Oops! Sorry. I just looked closer and saw that, indeed, the top 50 is what comes up when you choose the top podcasts, and then it will take you to the next 50 and so on.

I think I like this new scheme quite a bit better than the old one. Thanks, Alley!

Dave

[seek3r]

Oops! Sorry. I just looked closer and saw that, indeed, the top 50 is what comes up when you choose the top podcasts, and then it will take you to the next 50 and so on.

I think I like this new scheme quite a bit better than the old one. Thanks, Alley!

Dave

You'd think we would forget a single detail ? :wink:
Glad you like the new feature. We had a really good time with this round of changes... and its only the beginning of the cool stuff to come!

[sydbarrett]

dudes, worry about podcast content not votes.

Podcast alley voting does not reflect actual "listeners".

3,500 podcast -- nothing to listen too

Keep the dream alive that podcasting will some day become a little better than radio

Later.

[Lifespring!]

dudes, worry about podcast content not votes.

Podcast alley voting does not reflect actual "listeners".

Good point. I do think some podcasters do have a tendency to worry more about votes than content. That's human nature. Everybody wants to be liked and appreciated, and the voting system here at PA is one way of measuring that..

But you're right...I doubt the voting numbers actually reflect actual "listeners". It certainly doesn't reflect my listeners, based on emails I receive from them and download numbers!

I agree with you on content, too. Content should always be considered before "opening the mic". If you've got nothing to say, wait until you do!

3,500 podcast -- nothing to listen too

Keep the dream alive that podcasting will some day become a little better than radio

That's surprising! What is it you'd like to hear? With so many topics, I'm honestly surprised you haven't found anything to your liking.

I'd really be interested in knowing what it is you're looking for. :D

[jeffoest]

In a previous thread, I did an analysis over the top ranked 100 shows for which I could get subscriber numbers. I did an analysis with the rankings for May and found a correlation of about .50.

What that means is that about 50% of how a podcast ranks can be explained by the number of subscribers that the podcast has. A statistican would conclude that that is a statistically significant amount of correlation and useful but would also conclude that there are significantly other factors that go into a ranking here.

And yes, I know - I'm a nerd... ;-)

[Lifespring!]

Those are some interesting numbers, Jeff. But I'm beginning to think that perhaps subscription numbers are not as important as we all thought.

Yes, I know, we are talking about podcasting, and by definition, that includes the subscription feature. But there is a significant number of listeners who don't subscribe, they're still just doing direct downloads.

I see the point you're trying to make, though, about the rankings/listener correlation. I'd like to see the numbers. Do you have a link to your previous post?

And, finally, yes...you are nerd. But, aren't most of us around here? Maybe some more than others.

Hey, there you go! Another analysis you could do! :D

[Hittman]

Catagorizing is always tough, and sometimes the best podcasts don't fit into a particuarl category very well. You're right, "General" sound dull. But too many categories can be confusing too.

Still, I'd like to suggest two that would greatly improve the value of the front page.

Podcasts Dave Likes. This would list my favorites, which, of course, should be everyone else's favorites. And I would never abuse it, even if large sums of money were offered for me to put someone on the list. Really. Just try offering me large sums of money as a test, and see how well I do.

And an even better category: Podcasts by Dave Hitt. This would contain only one item, so would require vary little maintenance.

[sydbarrett]

dudes, worry about podcast content not votes.

Podcast alley voting does not reflect actual "listeners".

Good point. I do think some podcasters do have a tendency to worry more about votes than content. That's human nature. Everybody wants to be liked and appreciated, and the voting system here at PA is one way of measuring that..

But you're right...I doubt the voting numbers actually reflect actual "listeners". It certainly doesn't reflect my listeners, based on emails I receive from them and download numbers!

I agree with you on content, too. Content should always be considered before "opening the mic". If you've got nothing to say, wait until you do!

3,500 podcast -- nothing to listen too

Keep the dream alive that podcasting will some day become a little better than radio

That's surprising! What is it you'd like to hear? With so many topics, I'm honestly surprised you haven't found anything to your liking.

I'd really be interested in knowing what it is you're looking for. :D


cool response

If I like what I hear...you have me

I like holdem poker so Lord Admiral is ok, Phil Gordon's World Series of Poker is awesome.
For something very light...Jimmy Jett

I've sampled I believe over 200 podcasts and read descriptions to many more.
On a weekly basis I will also investigate others.

I guess I would like some kind of Podcast, for example, that is similar to The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. Yes there are other politcal shows out there, but after a few minutes I'm just not interested.

Hey I don't know what else to tell you.

Either its happenin or not.

But I still keep the faith, I'm still here

Later dudes

[sydbarrett]

In a previous thread, I did an analysis over the top ranked 100 shows for which I could get subscriber numbers. I did an analysis with the rankings for May and found a correlation of about .50.

What that means is that about 50% of how a podcast ranks can be explained by the number of subscribers that the podcast has. A statistican would conclude that that is a statistically significant amount of correlation and useful but would also conclude that there are significantly other factors that go into a ranking here.

And yes, I know - I'm a nerd... ;-)

thanks nerd dude

you confirmed it

voting is garbage

thats cool

so podcasters worry about whats in those little mp3's of love and enough crying about Podcast alley's voting fiction or how corporations will wipe out
the "purity" of your audio bloggs. Its all good

And I will keep the faith that some day podcasting will become just a little better than radio...

take care all

Later.

[slimfire66]

I agree the content is priority. If it's good they will come.