cygweb

Welcome back! While you were gone, Apple embraced podcasting and now everyone's doing it. :)

FYI, I set up an iTunes-compliant feed for your recent podcasts at http://home.adelphi.edu/~don/cygweb/cygweb.xml

So I've read! I'll have to check out iTunes 4.9. Ross sent me an email saying that Cygweb is listed in the podcast directory. I should set up a dedicated podcast feed for the standalone MP3's that outputs similarly to the one you made; I've got those for the MP3 torrent enclosures. Is the one you made iTunes-compliant simply because it contains simple RSS and only has entries which contain enclosures?

I still have a few things to figure out with regards to the upcoming BDFL podcasts. If Scott can continue to host the actual MP3 files, I think we just need to get recording! I need to determine if we'll continue to use Skype or look to something different. I'd love to have guests join us - how about you?

Yeah - I used FeedForAll to generate the feed, which worked pretty well.

As for the one Ross mentioned, it links to the torrents, I think, and iTunes can't handle it. The one I made iTunes can handle if I add it manually.

I'm not 100% impressed with the integration and might give another podcasting program a shot - any recommendations?

As for the BDFL guest appearance, I might be able to do something. I was actually going to ask if you wanted to do a podcast once the NHL settles its CBA...

Thanks for the info about the feeds. I'll get this all cleaned up soon.

I've used Doppler as my podcatcher with much satisfaction for months now and I think it's a great program. It can update iTunes as it grabs new stuff and can handle calling an external BT client to grab torrents.

I would dig engineering and participating in an NHL-related podcast, but you'd have to host!

I can host MP3 files without a problem. I kind of wish iTunes would have supported a general feed with enclosures. I would rather as few RSS feeds as possible. This latest craze about splitting everything into an RSS feed is lame and in my opinion defeats the purpose of what RSS was intended to do.

Is not the idea being that you track one file to know when a site is updated? That was the pull for me. Every site having 5 feeds for posts, comments, podcasts, site updates, the coming of Christ and general Armageddon is not what I am looking for.

The reason for the rant btw is that I attempted to put the Brutal Deluxe RSS feed, which contains podcast enclosures, into the sports category of the iTunes directory and it would not accept the feed. Then I read that the feed had to be one like Don created. Maybe I am missing the point of feeds, but I know what I like to see and additional feeds is not necessarily what I wanted to see.

Two reasons for the separate podcast feeds:

• My podcasts are currently infrequent enough that they won't be present in my primary RSS 2.0 feed


• Multiple enclosure tags for a single RSS item aren't a part of the spec and I wanted to have separate formats available

Perhaps things will even out here when we start pimping our weekly podcast. ;)

I am not complaining about your separate RSS feeds, you are only doing what is starting to be needed. I am complaining about programs like iTunes not supporting enclosures in a general RSS feed. Programs like Doppler have supported this fine, if they can do it, iTunes can do it. It is frustrating that separate programs are basically changing what had become a standard and are pushing additional feeds. This adds confusion to those that are still not understanding feeds in general. The tech community might understand these things, but general computer users do not. I know because I constantly get asked about the plethora of feeds all over the Internet. It is all becoming a jumbled mess.

Oh, OK. I still haven't fully read/digested all the iTunes podcasting stuff. Too busy with meatworld stuff. :)

I stand corrected, well slightly. I am able to subscribe to a standard RSS feed with iTunes. It is the submission of a feed to the iTunes directory that I am disappointed with. The service says there is an XML error but does not bother telling you what the problem is. Not very robust.

Four days cycling? Sounds like heaven to me. Shine on!