Podcast Workflow Tools

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Wanted: Podcasting Survival Guide

12/29/2008

I joke, but it’s very serious for the companies and people affected by the economic slow down and, more specifically, the waning interesting in “podcasting” as it becomes more integrated into “media.” The latest victim is Podango, podcasting web host, network and, well, I don’t know. Of course, it’s not like this wasn’t predicted two years … Continue reading »

8 step guide to podcast marketing

6/28/2008

Podcasting leader Christopher Penn has published a short PDF guide, 8 step guide to podcast marketing, that seeks to help you jump start how you’re marketing your own podcast. This is a very short PDF and covers topics that include whether your podcast is worthy of buzz, is easily found and how you’re measuring your success. The … Continue reading »

Publishing a Podcast with ExpressionEngine

6/24/2008

If you’re a user of the wonderful ExpressionEngine CMS (this site has been running on it for more than 2 years) and want to easily and efficiently publish a podcast with it, I just released a new screencast you might be interested in.

The latest episode of the ExpressionEngine Screencasts covers … Continue reading »

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Ryan Irelan, Editor - listen@podcastfreeamerica.com

The tools you need to assemble your podcast workflow.

by Ryan Irelan

The first article on podcast workflows was purposefully basic and broad. I wanted to clear up any misconceptions and reset expectations for what a podcast workflow is and how you can analyze, create and refine your own. This second article is intended to give you a raw list of tools that you can use to enhance, automate or plan your podcast workflow.

Audio Recording & Editing Tools

There are dozens of recording software options out there for both Mac and PC computers. Some are better than others and the prices vary. When seeking out the best software tool to use in your podcast workflow you should keep in mind that the software should be something that you can understand and comfortably use in a moderate amount of time. You should also find the software easy to use and navigate. There is no worse podcast workflow than the one you hate using.

Here are some tools that I've either used and like or know people who recommend them for their reliability as part of podcast workflow.

Marantz PMD 670 Hardware Recorder: This isn't software, but instead a hardware digital recorder. The great thing about this device and others like it is that it doesn't require a computer. This allows you to focus on recording your podcast, not messing with software or computer settings. Quality hardware digital recorders are not inexpensive, but for the serious podcaster, probably well worth the investment.
SoundStudio: A software recording and editing tool that seems simple on the surface, but is actually a very powerful tool for not only recording and editing, but also automating your podcast worfklow. SoundStudio is only available for Macs and in conjunction with Applescript and Apple Automator, you can seamlessly export and upload podcasts to your server.
Adobe Audition: Adobe Audition is a popular Windows recording and editing tool. It does not take long to learn how to use the software and you can export to a variety of file types. There is no direct way to export a file from Audition directly to your server for distribution. You can ready more about Audition and podcasting on Adobe's own podcasting support PDF.
BIAS Peak Pro: A very popular and well-regarded audio editing tool, BIAS Peak Pro allows you to do batch processing of audio files and version 6 of Peak will let you publish your podcast from within the software. No FTP software needed.

There are plenty of other tools, including some free software like Audacity. I cannot recommend it here because of it's user interface issues and lack of MP3 support out-of-the-box (you can download and install the LAME library separately), but it is a good alternative for podcasters who are looking for a free tool that will get the job done.

Complete Production Tools

Übercaster: Simply put Übercaster is a all-in-one podcasting software tool. It handles everything from recording to editing to publishing the podcast file out to your server or webhost. The only thing Übercaster doesn't do is create a podcast feed.

Post-processing/File Preparation Tools

The Levelator: Oh, The Levelator. It's a deceptively simple application that processes and "masters" your podcast file. Using an algorithm, The Levelator adjusts the levels in your audio file and outputs a file that sounds better than the one you put in. It's a bit magical, but it really does work. My only wish is that there was way to use it in a automated workflow or batch process files. As of now that's not possible. The Levelator is a free download from GigaVox Media.
Visual Hub: Let's not leave out the video podcasters. One new application in my arsenal is Visual Hub, a video conversion tool for the Mac. It is a one-window application that coverts any video format to almost any other video format. You can batch process files and easily covert your video podcast to multiple formats. Read my blog post about it.

File Utilities

AudioFinder: A true media management tool. It is designed to be a "music production hub" but will work like a dream for the podcaster who is working with multiple audio files during production. It will even do simple editing tasks and everything it does can also be done in batch mode. Paul Figgiani at Podcast Academy recommends it and says it is worth every penny of the $69 price tag.
FTP Programs: Unless you're using a tool that uploads the podcast audio files for you, you'll need an FTP client. There are more than a handful of good ones to choose from. Choose one that you find easy to use and meets your needs for file tranfer. I prefer applications on the Mac OS that allow me to automate them using Applescript.

Automating Your Workflow

Applescript: Applescript is the official scripting language of Mac OS X (and previous systems). Using an English-like syntax you can manipulate, interact with software applications and automate tasks you do over and over again.
Apple Automator: If you're not into writing your own Applescripts from scratch, Automator will let you automate tasks on your Mac by just dragging and dropping different "actions" thus creating a workflow. Some software applications come with Automator actions which let you easily automate and interact with those applications. I use Automator with SoundStudio and PodcastMaker.
Shell scripting: Shell scripting lets you automate tasks that you would normally do manually at the command line. This is a more advanced (and not always the best) way of automating podcast tasks like compressing audio files to MP3 using the LAME library or knitting together files using a tool like the MPEG Toolbox.

Workflow Software

PodcastMaker: PodcastMaker doesn't let you record or edit audio. But that's OK. It is a tool that prepares your podcast file and feed for distribution. It also uploads the podcast file to your server and updates the feed for you. With a beautiful user interface, PodcastMaker (Mac only) is my personal favorite podcast workflow tool. I use it in conjuction with other applications to create a simple and smooth automated podcast workflow.
GigaVox Audio Lite: GigaVox Audio Lite is an online podcast publishing platform that is so powerful, you'll want to read more about their technology to get the whole list of features. Essentially, the platform allows you to assemble your podcast from different parts and have it published to your own server or host. It also does dynamic ad insertion, so you can change the ads on any podcast you've published - even if it's a year old! That's a very simple description of all of GigaVox Audio Lite's functionality, so I urge you to go sign up for a free account and try it for yourself. Be sure to watch the screencasts. They walk through every step of publishing a podcast using the platform.

Creating Podcast Feeds

Feeder: Feeder is a Mac OS X application that creates RSS and podcast feeds for you. You can just drag a audio file into the application and it will add the file as an enclosure to your feed. It uses the standard Mac interface, so it's just as easy to use as any other application.
FeedForAll: This is a Windows application that also creates feeds for your podcast (or other content). It supports iTunes tags and automatically validates your feed, so you can be sur eit works in all feedreaders and podcast receiving software.

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