Thoughts on Podcasting

Although I love new technologies, there are still some that are widely discussed and media darlings which never take off for me. Podcasting is one of them...and now that I've gone through the process of posting my first, I'm not sure it ever will.

Keep in mind that I've always associated "podcast" to spoken content. I just listened to a classmate's music via podcast and was reminded that podcasting can also cover music. When applied in the context of direct distribution, it's game changing. With it, music is so much easier to get the content portable until web-based streaming is more reliable.

In the context of professional micro broadcasting, it's opportunistic though still requires significant changes in consumer behavior to be large.

However, in the context of personal audio micro broadcasting, it's well...micro. Small. And the subscription process is just hard enough to be a barrier to the potential audience. So in that vein, is still a tinkerer's novelty. But maybe you've had your life transformed with podcasting and if so, I'd like to know how.

My First Podcast!

For my Advanced Web Technologies class, our latest assignment was to create a 30 second or shorter podcast. This was fun though I went about it in the most convoluted way only to eventually come around to the simplest solution. Funny how things work out that way, no?

Take a listen to my short clip promoting Dook It Out, the Facebook application that I've been working on.

NOTE: I have taken down the link to the podcast because the content was pulled down from the student server.

Check out a very early release of Dook It Out at http://apps.facebook.com/dookitout.
There's not much there yet but I would love to get your feedback!

Way Cool Technologies or Sources Used in the Creation of this Podcast:
Sound Editor: Audacity
Sound Clip: FreeSound.org
Podcast Icon: Feed For All

Lessons from Tonight's VC Event

Tonight I went to an event that was sponsored by a Silicon Valley VC. Some of my take-away lessons below.

Before the session, they offered all the attendees a free meal from a Korean Taco Truck. Lesson 1? Go with the Kalbi Beef Taco. Skip the Unagi Eel Taco -- some "fusion" just ain't meant to fuse.

Lesson 2 was that it's good to get know to venture capitalists even if you don't plan to go that route because they have connections! To talent in particular. This should be pretty obvious but after I determined that the VC route was unlikely for me, I went heads down on product development. (And, by the way, I'm still searching for a full-time technical co-founder so recommendations are much appreciated!!)

And my final add for this post is Lesson 3. Informal settings are a great way to get feedback on your concept without putting the VC on the spot. They don't have to give you an up or (more likely) a down and odds are high that you'll learn something - how the market looks, leads on the competition, etc. Share your idea as often as you can because it's another opportunity to get market validation.

Newb lessons but lessons all the same!