What's the deal with podshow?

[texafornia]

Anybody here familiar with trying to put their podcasts on podshow.com? I created an account and then created a new episode by uploading an mp3 using their tools... How in the world do all my listeners that have been subscribing by iTunes and whatnot get to hear the new episode? Podshow is supposed to offer free hosting and unlimited bandwidth, but once I upload a show using their tools, where do I find a url for my show feed? wtf?

And on that note, how do people subscribe to shows in podshow and then have them download to their mp3 player?

[PodShowJoe]

Hey there Tex - Sorry I didn't see this post, prolly would be better suited in tech discussion. Anyway, all feeds on PodShow have the generic structure of http://www.podshow.com/feeds/SHOW.xml, where SHOW is your show's URL.

So, if your show URL is http://TEX.podshow.com, then your feed would be http://podshow.com/feeds/TEX.xml.

As to where you can find this, try your archive page on the PDN.

Lastly, people who find your show on the PDN can subscribe in iTunes in a few different places, your archive page, and most notably, in your 'Channels'.

Cheers!

[texafornia]

Ok, still totally lost. How do I find the "archive page"? Also, are you saying that people can go to iTunes, search for Zen and the Art of Triathlon, and there will be another listing besides my old one? And this new one will be all the shows I've put on PDN? Please walk me through step by step on how somebody can subscribe to my show on PDN and download episodes to their iPod on a regular basis. And is the PDN an aggregator? If I add shows to my "channel", do they get downloaded to my pc? I admit I'm totally lost, but the site doesn't seem that self-explanitory to me.

I'm trying hard to follow Adam's advice and add my shows to your site and I'm not seeing the light. I'm not a myspace user and maybe that's the issue. Podshow's scheme seems really difficult to grasp to me, but I'm a pretty seasoned podcaster.

If I start hosting my shows here, am I going to have to give iTunes a totally different feed to use? Am I going to have to tell my listeners to drop their old subscription and resubscribe to a different feed?

[Pilot Pat]

Podshow seems like its got a lot to offer - but what I really need is an idiots giude on how to upload my podcast and how listeners can then get it onto their i-pod using i-tunes.

Seems like an obvious question but the answer doesn't seem that clear to me...

[AaronfromQC]

You don't need Podshow to make a podcast. I'd encourage you to check out Libsyn. They offer very easy to use features and with a little bit of learning, you'll know how to make your shows available to itunes, zencast and just about any other program.

I host a show that might be pefect for you, it's called Podcast Morons (the morons part is refering to the hosts, not the listeners), our show is a news/tips show for podcasters. If you listen to every show, starting with show 1, you'll learn a lot about how to effectively produce, edit and promote a podcast. We love audience questions so feel free to listen and chime in with a question. You can check it out at www.podcastmorons.com

[PodShowJoe]

Ok, still totally lost. How do I find the "archive page"?
You can find the archive link on any page by simply navigating to the page, and just below the legend area, to the right, you will see a tab entitled latest episode. Just to the right of the is an 'archive' link.

Also, are you saying that people can go to iTunes, search for Zen and the Art of Triathlon, and there will be another listing besides my old one?
No, you shouldn't see duplicate entries, unless you resubmitted to iTunes/Zen, etc, with your new information.

And this new one will be all the shows I've put on PDN? Please walk me through step by step on how somebody can subscribe to my show on PDN and download episodes to their iPod on a regular basis.
After signing up with PodShow, scroll to the bottom of you user page and you will see a link entitled 'Podcasters Click Here' . From there, you will have two options, either import your existing podcast or create a new one. If you choose to import an existing podcast, then you will be given a validation code to place in your existing feed (to prove that it is in fact yours). The feed vacuum will then make a COPY or your existing feed, show descriptions and enclosures. Once completed, you will have a complete copy of your show on the PodShow network! You can continue to use your own blog/webpage if you would like, but you will probably want to change the mp3 links in each entry to point to your new files on PodShow. Once you are happy with your new setup, you can then remove your mp3 files from wherever you had them before, and enjoy the free hosting and bandwidth that PodShow provides. Keep in mind that if maintain a show site outside of the PodShow Delivery Network, you will have to double post to keep eveything in sync. (once to your PodShow site, and once to your personal page)

And is the PDN an aggregator? If I add shows to my "channel", do they get downloaded to my pc? I admit I'm totally lost, but the site doesn't seem that self-explanitory to me.
If someone wants to listen to your show, they can either simply click on 'Play It', or if they want to bring it into iTunes or other similar program, they can do that as well. In addition, listeners can create custom channels and subscribe to those custom feeds. For example, I have created a channel called Motorcycle Racing (a weakness of mine) and in that channel I have placed 5 or 6 shows that cover the sport. I can now subscribe to this channel, which is a mashup of all 6 shows, effective subscribing to all 6 in a single pass. Even better, I can share this playlist with friends, family, and the public at large - http://www.podshow.com/collection/5169.xml
(I can of course make this feed private as well, should I want to) Cool - No?

I'm trying hard to follow Adam's advice and add my shows to your site and I'm not seeing the light. I'm not a myspace user and maybe that's the issue. Podshow's scheme seems really difficult to grasp to me, but I'm a pretty seasoned podcaster.
Jump in and try it. It's not going to cost you anything, it's easier than you might imagine, and if you don't like it, delete your show from the network. It's that easy.

If I start hosting my shows here, am I going to have to give iTunes a totally different feed to use? Am I going to have to tell my listeners to drop their old subscription and resubscribe to a different feed?
You can change your feed in iTunes if you want, or as I mentioned above, you can continnue to use your old feed, so long as it contains the enclosures links to the files hosted on the PodShow Network. It is really up to you.

[texafornia]

Thanks, Joe! I'm going to try out what you suggested. Like I said, I've got a really successful show (top 5 in sports category for 2006 Podcast Awards) and I'm trying out Podshow to see if it can solve my bandwidth issues. I'll give it another try and let you know how it goes. Thanks again!

[WyethDigital]

If you want the iTunes directory and your iTunes listeners to migrate to your new feed automatically (no matter where it's hosted), there's a handy bit of code you can paste into the top of your RSS.xml file.

This goes right after the <channel> tag at the top of your rss.xml file:
<channel>
<itunes:new-feed-url>http://YourNewFeedAddressHere.com</itunes:new-feed-url>

Keep in mind, this is an iTunes specific tag, and while some other aggregators and directories might also utilize it, a majority probably do not.

Eric

[texafornia]

thanks, eric. that's exactly the kind of stuff I'm looking for. so if somebody subscribes to your show on podshow, how does it get to their portable mp3 player? all I'm seeing is how it'll play right from the website.

[WyethDigital]

That I don't know.

Eric