Subscribe to a KBCS podcast feed

So how do I do it?

First, you need to install a podcast program on your computer, then, tell it about a podcast feed you want to subscribe to. It will then check to see when new content is available. When a new show is uploaded to the web site, the podcasting software will start downloading the MP3 file in the background to the directory you specify. Let's break it down...

Step 1: Get a podcasting program

To get started, you will need to install a podcasting program, a number of which are freely available for Mac, Windows, and Linux. Here are two of the most popular.

• iTunes (Windows, Mac). This is Apple's flagship music-playing program, which, starting with version 4.9, has support for receiving podcasts. Note that even though you go through the "music store" to find podcast feeds, there is, as always, no charge for receiving KBCS podcasts. Recommended.
• iPodder (Windows, Mac and Linux). At the moment, this is one of the most popular solutions for receiving Podcast feeds.

Step 2: Subscribe to a KBCS podcast feed

Once you have downloaded and installed a podcast program, you will need to add the KBCS podcast feed of your choice. In most podcasting programs, you do this by selecting the "Add Feed" option.  You'll then be prompted to enter the URL (web address) of the feed.

The easiest way to get these addresses into your podcasting software is to select the feed's URL (beginning with "http" and ending with ".xml"), right-click, then select "copy". Then, paste the URL into your podcasting software.

Step 3: Start downloading

Once you have subscribed to the KBCS podcast feed of your choice, you just need to tell the podcast software to start downloading. From then on, the program will occasionally check for new shows, and when they are available, it will download them.

If you have a portable MP3 player, you may need to tell your podcast program which one you use, or configure it to save the files in the correct directory.

Check the documentation or web site for your podcast software for details.

Problems?

Contact Eric Kong, KBCS Production Director, at ekong@bcc.ctc.edu or by phone at (425) 564-2427.

Frequently asked questions:

What exactly is a podcast?

Podcasting is a way to get audio content automatically downloaded to your computer or portable audio player. In this case, that content happens to be selected KBCS programs. This is a nice convenience if you have a portable MP3 player or if you have a slow connection. Once you have things set up, you will always have access to the most recent shows, as MP3 files on your computer or portable device, ready for listening!

You may have heard of the term "RSS" -- it stands for "Really Simple Syndication", and many recent web browsers like Mozilla FireFox have built-in support for RSS "Feeds". An RSS feed makes it easy for your computer to check a web site and find out when new content has been published, and when it has, automatically download it. A podcast is really an RSS feed that contains information about an audio file that can be downloaded.

For more detailed history and discussion of pocasting, check out the following resources:

• Podcasting Page at Wikipedia
• Engadget.com (How to get podcasts and also make your own)
• iPodder.org - Information and links

Do I need an iPod to receive a podcast?

No. All you need is a computer that can play audio. Subscribing to a podcast feed is a way of enabling your computer to automatically download the feed's associated audio as soon as it's available. You can then listen to it from your computer. If you have a personal mp3 player, you can then load those downloaded files onto it. If you have an iPod and use iTunes as your podcasting software, iTunes can automatically place the audio files onto the iPod once they've been downloaded.

Why podcast?

If you like KBCS programming, but don't have time to listen live or download, then this solution is for you. It grabs your selected show for you, automatically, as soon as it's made available. And, if you have a portable MP3-playing device and you're about to walk out the door, it's ready to go.

Can I get any KBCS show as a podcast?

Unfortunately, no. We're prohibited from offering copyrighted material for download (for more legal details, check out the 1998 Digital Millenium Copyright Act). For this reason, we can't offer most KBCS music programs as a podcast. But, we can offer various live performances and public affairs programming that's produced here at KBCS.