enhanced itunes feed. Help me out, please.

[kinkysex]

Forgive me if this has been covered elsewhere. I don't even know what the proper name is for this type of file.

I was listening to the Ricky Gervais podcast (brilliant, by the way) and I notice that he has chapters, and the photos associated with the file change from time to time.

WHAT THE *&#!*&*!!! That's awesome!

What's it called and how do I learn it? Any tutorials online? Anyone here ever done it and want to talk me through it?

Thanks for any help here. I'm totally lost.

[Seth]

I noticed this too! I'd like to apply it to audiobook files... anyone know what's going on? Sorry I couldn't help here, I just wanted to make sure this thread was kept up cause I'm curious as all hell...

[FrankJKimeJR]

Check out the enhanced podcast chapter tool:
http://podcast411.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=182

[womengrow]

This solution is Mac only: I use Podcast Maker (http://www.potionfactory.com) to create my enhanced podcast. It is a great tool. Without it, I would not even be podcasting. I could not figure out how to code the RSS feed for the life of me. Adding chapters to my show to it is point-and-click easy.
I think you can download a trial version of Podcast Maker and use it for a short while before the shareware fee is due.
If you have a Mac and want to give enhanced podcasting a try, I highly, highly recommend this app.

[ElNacho]

im gonna b all over this when its available for windows...maybe

[defiradio]

One solution if you do not own a Mac is to see if one of your buddies will do it for you. Or at least let you borrow their mac for a bit. :)

I wonder if anyone is working on a Linux or Window tool to do the same? I doubt it since its an Apple thing (only works as an AAC) but it would be cool to see.

[kinkysex]

I'm waiting to see if the intel mini goes to market in Jan. If not, then I'm getting a mini just for this kind of thing... Can't wait!

[tabulator32]

I just got caught up with this topic and I'm enthused. I think the whole chapter idea is super-freakin' awesome and I can't wqit to complete a new episode with chapters.

I downloaded all the good stuff mentioned (Apple Chapter Tool. ChapterToolMe) in the links and installed it. I am just trying to figure out how to convert my basic show into an AAC file so I can edit it and add chapters using the GUI interface.

I followed the instructions listed in the link but Itunes 6.0 doesn't have the same set up in the pull down windows and I am mystified as to how to convert my audio file into an AAC file so it can be edited.

Also, once I add chapters and everything, doe sit have to stay an AAC file or can it be converted to an mp3 again and retain chapters?

[ElNacho]

i doubt it could go back to mp3, which is a downside

[tabulator32]

That's kinda what i was thinking, too.

Is the other format compatible with all the players and aggregators?

Can a regular (non-pod) mp3 player handle a chaptered show?

[kinkysex]

podcast 411 just covered this in their tech tip. Check out the show notes for a step by step.

[tabulator32]

I watched the training video (fantastic, by the way) and my Itunes (different version?) is different than what the tips said. I have, however, figured out how to convert it in just the last five minutes so it is no longer an issue.

Where the tech tip says:
-In iTunes choose the "Edit" menu, then preferences, and then click on the "Importing" tab.
-Choose to import using "AAC Encoder" and choose the setting to be "Podcast" if your doing a mostly talk podcast, or choose high quality or custom if you have music or would like an even lower bitrate then "Podcast." Leave all the other options as default and click "OK."

...this stuff does not show up for me when I click the Edit Menu. Preferences is actually under "Itunes"

Either way, I think I have figured out a way to convert it successfully.

Thanks for the advice, though!

[womengrow]

Also, once I add chapters and everything, doe sit have to stay an AAC file or can it be converted to an mp3 again and retain chapters?Once you add chapters, the show gets converted to a different file format. I used a software tool to add chapters to my shows. You can "undo" chapters and the feed will revert to MP3 again, but the enhanced features will be lost.

I just removed the enhancements from my feed, because of three distinct problems:
- Directories will list your feed, but when visitors click on the "Listen Now" link, the converted file will not play in their browser
- The tool I used converted and compressed the MP3 file once more, resulting in a significant loss in quality
- Other aggregators besides iTunes cannot play back your shows. Granted, there are a lot of iTunes listeners out there, but do you really want to pass up on 20% or more of potential listeners?

Luckily, stripping the enhancement out was easy. I do think it is a nice feature, but you need to be aware of the potential downsides..

[Canis Lupus]

You definitely want 2 feeds - at least for now. One for .mp3, one for .m4a Enhanced.
That's what we do at BandTrax, and people can choose which one they'd like to subscribe to.

[ElNacho]

aye, and submit the m4a one to itunes

[FrankJKimeJR]

This multiple feed thing is getting out of hand. What we really need is for the pod catcher software to report its capabilities to the server when it reads the feed. When a web browser makes a request to the websites it announces its capabilities to the host:

text/wma, text/plain, text/http.

Podcasts need the same with, uh, I dunno

mp3/audio-lowbw (dial-up users)
mp3/audio-broadband
mp3/video
mp3/etc

Also we need a bitfield for those feeds with alot of seperate shows like radio4all.net.

categories/0x000000 ( a bitfield with standard definitions for prefered categories)

shows/0x0000 ( a bitfield for particular shows within a feed )

And also would be nice is some sort of ID (beyond the browser id) for the feeds which can be parsed

rssfeedtype/plain
rssfeedtype/ipodderx
rssfeedtype/itunes
rssfeedtype/etc

[Achilles]

for people like me, who could never bring myself to use a mac. cause well... i like function over fashion. then again, my case is awfully pretty....

anyway for those of us who use graphics cards (thus using a PC) and power apps, we are probably on a windows based pc. and if you want to make an enhanced podcast but just cant bring yourslef to spend way too much on a lil white box, then just use x86

basically its OSX that will run on a pc (make sure you know the legal ramifications of doing such a thing) and its a bit technical. but if you actually print out and read the steps any n00b can do it. there are a ton of tutorials on thier wiki (just google x86 wiki) and you can have a dual booting system

hahaha sorry if i was bashing macs, no offense to anyone! each system has its good and its bad. i just prefer what i prefer.

[tabulator32]

hahaha sorry if i was bashing macs, no offense to anyone! each system has its good and its bad. i just prefer what i prefer.

Understandable. I am a Mac user (as well as a PC user) and I have considered bashing my Mac quite a few times.

8)