About the Podcast December 30, 2005
Posted by Andy Roberts in : tools , trackbackMy reasons for including a podcast in the online pilot exhibition were explained in the Research Proposal as:
In order to keep within the idea of exhibition however, I think a linear medium might be required. Something which forces the audience to take some time, sit back, start at the beginning and watch all the way through until the end. This could be done with either video, animation (Flash) or audio and I have chosen audio (podcast) in order to broaden my experience and I hope, keep things simple.
For something which had been added in to the presentation as an experiment, the podcast was well received and clearly needs to be explored further. Strangely to me, the last thing I expected would have been comments about the sound of my voice, but there was quite a lot of that. I thought quite a lot about the advantages and disadvantages of writing a script before podcasting, and in my report concluded:
I learned that an audio supplement is much appreciated by many online visitors but that unscripted ramblings may not be suitable for an exhibition.
Now reviewing the feedback (appendix 1, further down) after some time has passed, I realise that the idea of a podcast having to be either totally scripted or totally unscripted is a false one for two reasons. Firstly, podcasting is a new enough medium not to have any fixed style, and so either of those mentioned can be perfectly valid according to the purpose and audience. And secondly, there is a valuable in-between state, that of speaking from notes which is probably the best way to go for academic podcasting, building as it does on the tradition of public speaking.
So I would not be so categorical as Vix commenting on Stephen’s blog
“Did you read your podcast? It sounded read, which is totally unpodcast style.”
One thing I need to consider is the suggestion to provide smaller sized chunks of audio. “it may be good to use short clips to introduce the text area of the site.” and “but possibly could be available as both the whole and a choice of bite sized chunks”. If audio is to be embraced as an important supplement then perhaps links to audio clips can indeed be included as introductions to some of the pages on the main resource, while more informal podcasts might be embedded in blog entries if the occasion presents itself.
In order to pursue this further, I’ve obtained a little gadget which will allow me to record directly onto the Mac Mini (or a PC) called “The Griffin iMic” which is basically an external soundcard with some sockets and software, so I’ll be having a go with that soon and posting the results here.
Appendix 1 feedback about the podcast:
Marcus: Also liked very much your audio introduction and would urge you to do more of that. You have an excellent voice and should make use of it!
Denise: I found the 10 minute audio interesting, but wondered if you could use your creative talent further and produce one of your movies?
Sally: Have not been able to listen to podcast though? Do I need something I haven’t got?
Rosanna: As somebody else told you, your voice is simply terific, so you could invest more about it. I also liked your concepts but I found you to be too verbose and I couldn’t finish listening to the whole thing
So, my suggestion is: map your concepts on a sheet of paper and follow a structured discourse while you are recording.
Lydia: I agree with Rosanna about mapping your ideas for audio, not necessarily a script but some points. In principle though the audio is really helpful as an introduction and it may be good to use short clips to introduce the text area of the site. Especially this may be a way of introducing new concepts on each page (technical or methodological).
Salena:I LOVED the podcast! Your voice was perfect for it, if someone is going to sit and listen to a recording with no visual stimulation about a relativley complex topic, an interesting and enthusiastic voice would seem to me to be essential and the tone of your voice and the way in which you covered the various aspects of the topic was just about right.
Eve:I like the podcast - easier to understand than reams of text - very good method of presentation for this - but possibly could be available as both the whole and a choice of bite sized chunks
Sarah: What I would like to have done is listen to your podcast whilst being able to click through links. . . . . I agree with others that your speaking voice is one of your greatest assets. You sound relaxed and managed to maintain my interest - so perhaps use more of it next time.
Unpublished: The podcast is a good way for explaining things, but not much good for asking questions. I listened to the outro about 4 times so far and am about to do so again. The text on the page seems wildly different. Please give a list of the podcast questions as text too. If the podcast is divided up, as someone suggests, please give a good pre-announce on the start of each one. For some reason, my player sometimes “shuffles” them. Not a big problem, but I’m sometimes slow to realise I need to hit the skip controls.
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