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Hooked on ITConversations
In recent months I have become a heavy ITConversations podcast consumer. The site offers an extraordinary selection of recorded interviews and conference presentations for free download or streaming. These podcasts have pretty much replaced most of my NPR radio consumption. With an iPod Shuffle, podcasting software and a TuneCast II Mobile FM Transmitter I essentially now schedule my own radio program. It somehow reminds me of my first experiences with Tivo back in 2000 which completely changed the way I how consumed television.
Many topics on ITConversations are closely related to my interests. Often, I have read books or articles by the people featured in the postcasts. I find it very insightful to hear an author speak about his or her area of interest and expertise. There are many things you don't learn about an author or topic without hearing him speak.
Until ITConversations, I had to be lucky that an author or technical presenter would either come to town (e.g. book signing event, user group meeting) or speak at a conference I would attend. This obviously limits the number of presentations I could listen to.
What fascinates me about ITConversations is not only the outstanding content, but also the open culture and adherence to quality standards by the site's creator Doug Kaye. The audio production quality of the podcasts is excellent, with the minor exception for some of the phone interviews (for obvious reasons). Doug has recently listed his preferred audio processing tools. Other interesting stuff can be found on the ITConversations wiki as well.
Doug's attention to detail is impressive. For example, the site offers not only MP3 but also AAC downloads. AAC audio files are bookmarkable on iPods. This is an important feature when you are a heavy podcast consumer. Another example is his response to the rise of portable music players without a display, like the iPod Shuffle. Now, new ITConversations podcasts feature Audio IDs that allow listeners to quickly skip through a number of podcasts on ultra-portable players.
Here are some of my favorite ITConversations podcasts. Go ahead and listen to these or others on the site. Be careful, you might get hooked:
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