Okay, I know I'm a rep from the Dark Side. The reason I use Windows machines isn't because Bill Gates has done anything more for me than has Steve Job--it's just what I'm used to. I whip out a Dell Axim x50v to record my interviews and I do all my post-production on my trusty Dell Inspiron 600m laptop using Adobe Audition. That said, I'm posting this entry on a yummy-tasty PowerBook G4 at a table in the Faye and Ed Wyatt Education Center at Peabody College at Vanderbilt University. This week's S4theB!, an intentional departure from the weekly interviews with scientists that I so love doing, will feature audio from the workshop I'm attending today, March 2, 2006. My intention is to fuel, perhaps, the imaginations of some of my educator/listeners toward investigating the use of podcasting in their own settings. Check the links at the end of the post for relevant resources, including some not mentioned at the workshop! Photo by moi, Dr. James Kelly, Apple I'm eternally indebted to Apple for my iPod and iTunes and, one could effortlessly argue, the very phenomenon of podcasting. And at this conference I ran into a number of like minded educators and friends--Ralph Knapp, Brian Smokler, Julene Reed, Brandon Herrenbruck, Amy Dortch, and Diane Bennett, to name a few. We were all aboard for the "Podcasting in Education: iTunes, GarageBand, iWeb & iPod" professional development workshop. 'K. Nice stuff, I must say. The iLife interfaces appear to work reallyreally nicely, and I do like (make that love!) the Garage Band podcasting interface. That said, I'm soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo tired, so very tired, of the constant battle-to-dominate-market-share which keeps good programs from, as an elementary teacher might say, "playing well with others." Why can't Garage Band marry Adobe Audition and offer end users one really good program everyone can use to create easily accessible and readily listenable audio editing programs for students (as well as for the rest of us)? Why? Why? Because our economic system favors competition over collaboration. I don't think that's the way we will hope to survive and thrive in the long run, ya'll, but I've been wrong before. Hmmmmmm...This post is rapidly disintegrating into the realm of political economics, now, isn't it? That's not my job, now, is it? At any rate, there's a lot going on with educational podcasting, and I only serve up a few examples here. They're fun ones, though! Listen up to S4theB! 28, right here! Music for today's podcast is courtesy of the Podsafe Music Network, a groovy little techno-ditty called "New Millenium" from a group called "Xenotoxin." Enjoy. One other note: NASA has turned some already existing digital video into "podcasts," using these Apple tools--not strictly true to the original intentions of the media, but with very interesting results. See their "Ask an Astronomer" video podcast for that, and ask yourself, pilgrim, "do I have any good digital video laying around that would serve educational purposes?" Hmmmm...... And a final, final note: I recently found the very best video for introducing potential podcasters to how it all is done. This is really much more for those of us on the PC side of the fence. Amy Dortch just opined in the hallway that "with Garage Band anyone can do it," which is true. For the PC user, at least so far, it's not at all that difficult if you approach it with a learn-by-doing attitude, and the video to watch is from the good folks at system. A 40 minute watch, you'll want to save it for future viewings and also bookmark it to share it with your friends. Really. It's located here. More Links: mabryonline.org student and faculty podcasts University of Nebraska admissions podcasts Stanford iTunes U Radio WillowWeb David Warlick's Education Podcast Network RECAP student-safe education podcasts