Description 02 - Canadian Tire

Okay, I think we're up to beta now, but only just. The mike setup seems to be okay (though with no soundproofing and with the classic whine of the iMac CRT) and I have access to another computer that's much bigger and speedier, while there's still a little inconvenience involved - though when is there not? Maybe the only thing left that really needs fixing is me.

And so here's the description for this description...

So what is it about this podcasting thing? And what could it possibly have to do with Canadian Tire? Also, music from National Anthem, the laughter of children, and an encounter with a blow-up goalie.

Here's what you use to subscribe.
Here's where you download direct, like, right now.

Links related to Description 02:
CBC Unplugged
National Anthem
Wikipedia's Canadian Tire article
Le Golie!
A wonderful poem about Toronto which mentions Jean Sibelius Park (see stanza 5)

Description 01, and this time I mean it.

Because I've shed audioblog, had a dalliance with podbus, and now have settled happily with libsyn. (Thank you Mitch at lockergnome!) To make up for the cafe computer not burning and not accepting my flash drive, I uploaded to my xdrive account (which I hadn't visited in a long while) with their new snazzy accelerator feature, which was quite impressive. Downloaded again this morning, burned proper to keep, and fired it up to libsyn. And there it sits in all its newbie full-sized glory for you to enjoy or at least tolerate.

So, the "description" for the episode?
Yikes, it's the alpha version of this podcast. What's the deal with calling this thing "description"? I try to explain while mikes go goofy and neighbours play classical music loudly. Also, music from Moe Berg, getting everything but Greek at Taste of the Danforth, and Canada's National Band of the Naval Reserve gets funky.

Here's what you use to subscribe.
Here's where you download if you're so danged impatient. (Winning you over, ain't I?)

And as if this wasn't enough, it turns out my voice was on the BBC today! I did know the regional tv show Midlands Today would have a report on podcasting featuring Dubber and Spoons Take the Bus, a very entertaining podcast out of Birmingham I guested on Canada Day (buscast 030) while in England and voiced a promo for when I got back home. What I didn't know was that part of the revised promo would be played on the report! WTF?! At any moment, my head could still implode.
Click here to get it on Real Player.
And here's the associated website article that makes me sound kind of psychotic, since, well, I may have been. But tv's Dr. David Gregory got it wrong that I paid for my bus ticket - the guys did both times. Maybe more on the whole lovely day another time.

well, that explains it...

Aha! Audioblog can only take files up to 10MB at a time. Took a bit of doing to run across that information. I guess in the interest of customer service (and podcasty enclosure excuses maybe), instead of telling you your file is too big, they just smush it for you beyond recognition. That's nice of them. It was also nice of them to give me that 7-day trial period, because I'll be outta there very soon.
So I kind of had to go back to where I was about 24 hours ago literally and figuratively. (I'm in the same exact chair I was when this fun started.) Now I have the flash key, but this computer won't read it. Still, my old pal xdrive may yet save the day. More super-exciting updates to come...yawn...

The Morning After

In the rather pleasant light of dawn, though seen through eyes almost swollen shut from lack of sleep, it's pretty clear I'm not technically ready to be podcasting to any regular extent (the plan has been to do it weekly, but when do my plans ever work out?). I'll see how audioblog reacts to my queries, see if I can come up with another episode in the next couple weeks, and think about things being more regular in the next month, when my financial situation improves markedly. (And welcome to my long sentences.)

In the meantime, I guess I'll keep this blog going, in part to document my progress. Why let these long sentences in me go to waste? (Uh, don't answer that.)

When I got this jacked-up iMac CRT last year used at CPUsed, I didn't know there was such a thing as podcasting. I was just going to continue on with my site and maybe record audition mp3s for my freelance voiceover work. So this contraption looked pretty good at the time, although I didn't expect the noise it makes. Now, a year on, it's a very different world, while I and my same old anxieties live in it. I swear, me and computers is getting like my mom and dad and cars: get something used, and it's only a few months before we have our eye out for something else used that just a leeeeetle bit better. I didn't think I was like that, but here I am.

And so the learning begins. Description 01

Holy jeez, this doing my first podcast has been nothing but fun. And now the sarcasm has been established. :-)
My iMac can't handle 40 minutes of Audacity-native file, my MXL 990 mic got buzzier than usual, so I switched to the iRiver, a battery went dead, things that were supposed to be 44.1 ended up 32, someone else has description.blogspot.com, I forgot to take my Traveldrive to the cafe and used a computer with no CD-RW, so I just have the file that's on audioblog...and how did my 21MB file become 8MB? Yes, you people who have done, say, more than one podcast can answer that, and wonder why I'd go through all this newbie nonsense. We may find out someday. Or maybe there are clues in the podcast itself. (I'm not a newbie at teasing, evidently.)

[8.18: I've deleted the episode description because it's up on the post where I uploaded the podcast well and proper, and the audioblog subscribe/download links, because they're no good.]

If you're getting the idea of how green I am here, you'll have already assumed I haven't gotten to bothering with iTunes publishing yet. And you'd be right.