Click on any of the entry titles to get more information about all the awesome things written about!

Tuesday, March 28, 2006

Grab a mug of green beer....

'cause it's St. Patrick's Day again on Sonic Society! They are traveling to Ireland disguised as American Tourists with Kerric Harvey in "Driving In Ireland".

Then after one week withdrawal of Yankee Clipper, it continues again with episode 12! (Seriously, I was getting the shakes... Withdrawal is a nasty thing... you don't just CUT people off like that!!!) ;-)

I also saw in the notes that we are going to hear a sketch by Coyote Radio! Yaaaaaayyyyy- Arizona! WooHOO! (Boy it's either way too easy to get me excited, or I'm on coffee overload!)

Off to run around the block a few times...
Dani

Hooray Decoder Ring!


Retro Radar featured fellow addicts Decoder Ring Theatre on their website. Great article, and a great site for those like me who like to go old old OLD school now and then. :-)

I'm a big pin-up fan... do with that what you will. ;-)

Congrats Gregg and gang!
~Dani

Cool Radio Theatre Exists in Arizona too!

UPDATE: Anyone know someone who can babysit my kids? I actually convinced Mr. Addict to join me on this journey- so I'm scrambling. But I am determined, and will my butt up to Prescott this Saturday for the Fool's Fest!
For those of you in the area, or have access to alot of cash and time to kill- here are the details!! It looks to be an awesome evening!
~Dani
(Mom- if you're reading this- call me!!! Don't you want some quality time with your grandchildren?? Hmmm??)



Which I all ready knew of course- but I've been holding out. OK, not really holding out, but I finally got on their mailing list. :-D From their website:


Digging up the corpse of American radio theater and putting a funny hat on it, that’s the Coyote’s plan for world domination.

Come visit your friends in the tiny northern Arizona town of Crest Top (rhymes with “messed up”) for a taste of things that just ain’t right.

Of course, there’s no connection between any real town in northern Arizona and their innocent comic shennanigans.


From Prescott, AZ, Coyote Radio has podcasts! Yes, the plural is intentional. Not only do they have their hilarious live theatre group, but they have a few other shows they are broadcasting from their community radio station up in Northern Arizonaland... which I just found out in Google maps is 122 miles away from the Addict. Well, it's closer than Halifax...

But now even those IN Halifax can hear what Coyote radio has to offer! They are also hard at work on building their new studio- very exciting!

I now have my calendar marked for April 1st- there is no reason this addict can't get her butt up to Prescott for their grand opening! After all, for the average driver it's 2 1/2 hours... but I'm not your average driver. ;-)

See you in Prescott on April 1- and that is no foolin'!
~Dani

Sunday, March 26, 2006

Another Monster-ous Tuesday


...but in a good way! Tonight on Sonic Society they are re-visiting their friends at Willamette Radio Workshop, and we will listen to their adaptation of the classic Frankenstein tale.

After, we get to hear the second half of the interview with Sam Mowry. The interviews Jack has with everyone are great conversations and really nothing like a conventional interview at all- so make sure you tune in to that!

As always, I will let you know when the podcast is up as well! But until then, tune into CKDU tonight at 8pm eastern to listen!
~Dani


UPDATE: Podcast up! Sorry it took so long for me to get to this, having one of those weeks I'm just glad are over, hehe. I've got plenty of things bookmarked to blog about when I get a free hour or two... yikes! You shall all hear from me soon! (Whether that is good or not, I leave up to you...)

Podcast link here

Show Notes:

Sunday, March 19, 2006

Got iWood?


For that iPod that you want to keep safe- here's a little protection:

From Podcasting News:
Miniot has introduced the iWood 5G, an iPod case carved from fine hardwood. The case fits 30 and 60 Gb 5G iPods.

When closed, the case accepts a headphone jack. The case must be opened to access the sync connector, but the iPod does not need to be removed.

Hardened steel hinges and tiny magnets keep the iWood case shut. A monogram on the top and internal message engraving can be used to personalize the case.

The case is available in maple, walnut, mahogany, cherry and oak.

The cases start at € 85.

Audio Porn- headset edition

Having just bought myself a new microphone, I will not be taking advantage of these new, beautiful-looking headsets. So I will just, uh, spread the love!
~D

.Audio PC Headset Family

Plantronics' new family of .Audio™ PC headsets are developed for a wide range of uses, including gaming, podcasts, Internet telephony, and multimedia. The .Audio 340, .Audio 510 and .Audio 550 stereo headsets headline the new family of 13 products that all boast brilliant sound quality, as well as new contemporary designs that reinforce Plantronics' commitment to style.

.Audio 340

Plantronics .Audio 340

The Plantronics .Audio™ 340 features a behind-the-head headband that rests stylishly above the neckline for a feather-light fit as users explore music, gaming, DVD's and applications in robust stereo sound. Perfect for Internet chat and VoIP communications, the .Audio 340 features a noise-canceling microphone to enhance speech recognition, and is compatible with all popular Internet chat and Internet telephony services from companies such as AOL, MSN, Skype and Yahoo!, among others.

.Audio 510 USB & .Audio 550 DSP

Plantronics .Audio 510 USB and .Audio 550 DSP

The Plantronics .Audio™ 510 USB and .Audio™ 550 DSP are ideal for multimedia applications like gaming, music, and movies. They offer a supple, lightweight design and 40mm speakers that convey music and gaming with dynamic base response. The noise-canceling microphone cuts out background distractions and enhances speech recognition accuracy for chatting and recordings, such as podcasts. The .Audio 550 DSP features a digital signal processing chip for optimizing audio levels, and PerSono™ Audio Control Center Software, which provides music lovers with full control over microphone and audio characteristics like volume, bass and treble.

Thursday, March 16, 2006

Oh you know you wanna go..

..to the Podcasting Expo! Registration is NOW open for this year's expo, which will be September 29th and 30th, in Ontario! (That would be California, not Canada eh).

I was so bummed to not be there last year, that I'm going to do my darndest to get there this year! How difficult can it be- it's only a state away! Besides, I've all ready got friends bugging me about going...

Hmm.. a weekend away, break from the mini-addicts, and meeting all the people behind the podcasts I've come to know and love... and even learn a thing or two to boot! What a tough decision... ;-)

~Dani

Fan Audio Gone Wild!

Jesse over at SFF Audio posted this wonderful info about Pendant Audio:


Pendant ProductionsPendant Productions now has six different audio drama series on offer. I count five of them as definitely able to pique SFFaudio reader interest. The sixth is a James Bond one and as such almost qualifies as fantasy, right?

Pendant's series are created by a dedicated crew of authors, actors and fans. They are making audio dramas in a radio serial style first produced in the 1930s and 1940s. I think they are doing some amazing work, I hope you'll check them out!

Here are the details on each series:

Superman The Last Son Of KryptonSuperman: The Last Son Of Krypton
The "Man of Steel" with those mild manners gets the star treatment in this ongoing monthly serial adventure based on the modern incarnation of the character in DC Comics.




Superman The Last Son Of KryptonWonder Woman: Champion of Theysciria
The Amazon princess returns in this ongoing monthly serial adventure based on the modern incarnation of the character in DC Comics.





Superman The Last Son Of KryptonBatman: Ace Of Detectives
An ongoing monthly serial adventure based on the modern incarnation of Batman found in DC Comics. Alfred, Robin and the Bat himself battle criminals in Gotham.




Superman The Last Son Of KryptonJames Bond: To The End
This is a limited series based on the character created by Ian Fleming. James Bond is of course a suave secret service agent for the British government. Part 6 of this limited series is already in the can, you can subscribe to the podcast using this feed:



Superman The Last Son Of KryptonStar Trek: Defiant
Set aboard the USS Defiant, last seen in Star Trek Deep Space Nine, this is a fan created Star Trek adventure with a whole new cast and cew! Chock full of the Star Trek Federation space ship sound effects - lots of bleeping and blooping - also found here is a well written, familial show. Lots of fun.


Superman The Last Son Of KryptonThe Dixie Stenberg and Brassy Battalion Adventure Theater
The only all original series from Pendant so far, this is a light hearted "aerial adventure drama" inspired by such shows as Captain Midnight, Hop Harrigan, Adventures by Morse and Speed Gibson. The Dixie Stenberg and Brassy Battalion Adventure Theater is brought to you in part by Umket Industries.



I know I mentioned once I need a listening schedule- so much to listen to, so little time!!!
~Dani

Yeeeee-Hawwwww!

UPDATE: The Podcast is up and ready for your listening enjoyment! If you've not heard of Wasted Tape and their skits, you are in for a treat. There is even a little something from yours truly mixed in... hehehe. :-)

Podcast Link


The Sonic Society is going back to Texas this week with a tale from Texas Radio Theatre- "Bride Comes to Yellow Sky".

They are also completing their interview with Bruce Humphries of Schlock Theatre, and the 11th episode of Colonial Theatre's "Yankee Clipper".


Catch them tomorrow night if you can- 8pm eastern on CKDU FM. If not, stay tuned for the podcast! I will be the very first to know when it's up! ;-)

~Dani

Show Notes:

Tuesday, March 14, 2006

My silly post for today

I can't help it... it's Kiefer! :-)
~Dani

Jack Bauer's iTunes Playlist

Kiefersutherland Is it a bad thing that I can't separate Kiefer Sutherland from Jack Bauer anymore? Nahhhh.

Anyway, Jack took a break from killing terrorists and seeking out the centox nerve gas to make a celebrity playlist for the folks over at iTunes. And of course, just like Jack, it's pretty damn cool.

Not surprisingly, Jack included famously cool artists like David Bowie, XTC, The Police and Marvin Gaye. But I don't know about his inclusion of "Angel" by Sarah McLachlin. That must've been a Kiefer pick.

Click the thumbnail to the right to check out the tracklisting. Playlist

Saturday, March 11, 2006

Justice, Inc.


I need to check my email more often. Seems the gang at Decoder Ring was temporarily silent- and since no ninjas attacked they got back to work. The next installment of their "Black Jack Justice" serial podcast is up and ready for our waiting ears.

Now, off to finish checking my email and see what else I've been missing!
~Dani

"Tormenting" Audio


The cheesy gang over at Schlock Audio Theatre has been working hard- and their next B-movie remake is ready for our listening pleasure.

Go on over and download "Tormented"- now! It's as easy as two clicks, one to the site, and a right-click on the picture to download.

Indulge your cheesy side... you know you want to...

~Dani

More podcasting right under my nose

That podiobooks website keeps sneaking up on me- and I now know why. There is an Arizona connection! Today (well, at this point it would be yesterday) I get an email from Evo Terra, asking me why I live in the Southeast Valley, and have not yet visited the Dragon Page recording studio. I was like, "what am I missing???"

Turns out I'm missing ALOT- dammit! What sort of addict *am* I? Heck- even the Beyond Science podcast knows about them!

Dragon Page does everything from audio books, book reviews, to a few podcasts of their own. Go over and check out the site- TONS of good info and links and podcasts, oh my!

But I bet you all ready knew that- I feel like I'm the last one to know! *sniffle* I mean you should see their frappr map!
Watch out guys- the addict may be crashing your party soon! (Though if there's beer involved, I should come for the "Wingin' It" podcast. ;-) )

~Dani
PS- I've been told by some that they have had problems with trying to subscribe to the books on the Podiobooks site. Just an FYI- you have to register first (it's free), then you can go in and you get your subscription options. They have also just introduced rating options for subscribers. (Psst! they have a Frappr map too!)

Traditional Radio Is Hosed

Isn't that an awesome pic? It's from an old Wired magazine cover, actually from almost exactly a year ago. I found a blog entry from the same time with an amusing top ten list:

Why Traditional Radio is Hosed:
  1. The iPod. The ultimate personal radio.
  2. The cellphone. Commuters stuck in traffic were the salvation of radio in the 80s. Now we're still stuck in traffic, but we're on the phone instead.
  3. The 1996 Telecommunications Act, which liberalized the airwaves, adding a thousand FM stations to the dial and, due to the increased competition, depressing the economics of the incumbents. The act also relaxed the ownership limits in each market, leading to....
  4. Clear Channel. This giant is often blamed for radio's woes, but it's as much a symptom of the brutal economics in the industry as it is the cause. As the aforementioned competition ruined the business of local radio in the late 1990s, Clear Channel was able to do a roll-up of distressed stations and now owns more than 1,200 of them. Its plan was to dramatically lower the costs of radio with centralized programming and robot DJs. The result, however, was bland homogenization (with one exception). And still radio was broken.
  5. To whit: Clear Channel just wrote off 4.7$ billion in radio losses. A few days earlier, its main competitor, Viacom's Infinity, wrote off $18 billion. So much for the power of monopoly media.
  6. Radio listenership is at a 27-year low.
  7. Music is polarizing. This is why MTV doesn't play music anymore--there is no lowest-common-denominator playlist that enough people agree on to slow the tide of channel switching. The same is true for radio: Top 100, Top 40, Top 10--there is no magic list that can strike the right balance between broad popularity and grinding repetition to keep enough listeners. MTV went to reality TV and other "sticky" programming; radio went to cheap talk radio on the AM dial, where callers provide most of the content for free.
  8. The chilling effect of the FCC's obscenity crackdown, as evidenced by Howard Stern's departure to satellite.
  9. Howard Stern's rise in the first place.
  10. Washington DC's WHFS, my hometown alt.radio station and the soundtrack to my misspent youth, has just switched to spanish.

And what do you know? It's still hosed.
~Dani

Wednesday, March 08, 2006

Oh, Canada!-ian Music


UPDATE: LMFAO! If you are curious about just what this Audio Addict sounds like, go on over to the All Axis website, click on the Pickle Player in the top right corner, and take a listen to my promo for Sonic Society... damn I sound HOT! ;-) Then listen to the rest of the podcast- he's more mellow this time, a little bit jazzy... LOVE it.

Thanks Ajay- you made my day!! And yes, I was rolling my eyes... :-P


From March 2nd:
It sure doesn't take much to make me giggle and smile. All I had to do was stick my name on a Frappr map! Yours truly got a little shout-out today on my favorite music podcast, All Axis Radio. I first found Ajay through none other than Podcast Pickle, and I've been hooked ever since.

I'm pretty limited in my music choices on the terrestrial stations here in way-too-sunny Arizona (thanks alot, Clear Channel- pffft!), so thank (insert your higher power here) for the internet, podcasting and shows like All Axis, which focuses on independent Canadian music. I have to say, there's alot of good stuff up there north of the border!

But please, do not take my word for it- go on over and take a listen for yourself- then when you realize that I was right and subscribe to the podcast, drop Ajay a note and tell him the Addict sent ya. ;-)

~Dani

The Society goes Goth!

UPDATE: OMG- These guys up in Oregon ROCK! Did you know that Steven Colbert calls Oregon "the Canada of California"? That always makes me giggle, I don't know why... Anywho the podcast is up- so if you missed the show last night- head on over and download the podcast! You also will get a special treat- an extended version of DRE's Robotz of the Company and the Bot War! It's a great episode, and includes the voices of the SS duo themselves, Jack and Andrew. Trust me, you won't even recognize them!

LINK TO PODCAST


Another debut on the Addict's main addiction this week- Willamette Radio Workshop and their first ever On-The-Air Workshop production, Next Year's Girl. From WRW's website:


Next Year'’s Girl uses rich imagery and strong narrative to present a gothic horror twist on the classic fairytale, Beauty and the Beast. In this compelling story, an old woman shares her chilling experience as the sacrificial maiden sent by her village to the mysteriously foreboding castle of the Beast. But this is not a bedtime story for the faint of heart. Breeden plumbs the psychological depths of archetypal horror as she takes us down twists, turns and hidden dark alleys through the riveting theater of the mind.



Theatre of the mind... do you know that is my absolute favorite radio drama phrase? I mean, they all use it- but it doesn't matter, because it's so accurate. :-) Afterwards you can hear from one of the members of WRW as well as a fan of the Addicts blog, Sam Mowry. :-)


Then after that- we are up to Episode 10 of Yankee Clipper- quite a full show planned! Can you believe this is the 27th week straight of new radio drama? (I bet Andrew can believe it- LOL!)

On the podcast side, they just finished up with Biff Straker and Spaceways! If you haven't yet subscribed- well you know this Addict thinks you're crazy not to! Head to the podcast site and subscribe to the feed today! Now! This very instant!

All right, I've babbled enough, and it's nearly 1:30 in the morning! (Well that would explain it, wouldn't it?) I have some great entries planned, so you know what I'll be doing during tomorrow's (todays?) broadcast. :-)

Night!
Dani

Show Notes:

Turn that radio show into a podcast!

Just recently on a podcasting network I'm on there was a question about turning a radio show into a podcast. Well, what do you know? There is software available to radio broadcasters thanks to Prophet Systems and their pod accelerator. (why do I hear reverb when I think "Pod Acceleratorrrrrrr...."?) Some key features:

  • The system stamps the mp3, with ID3 tagging (containing metadata for the audio). The updated RSS information and the new .mp3 are uploaded to the designated location(s).
  • Included in the data you can update before posting, is how many prior shows to list. This is possible, as the system keeps track of all prior shows until you purge them from the RSS data and show description as well as website and podcast information.
  • Version 2.5.9, coming in September, includes iTunes tagging. The entire process from “Create Podcast” to “Podcast uploaded” has been consistently 5-6 times faster than real time, and will be much faster if the station audio is not compressed.
  • While the preceding is the most exciting addition to NexGen, we have also created two other ways to podcast audio.

• A “Show” that is already recorded, can be uploaded as a podcast from a menu option found in the Production library.

• The Digital Reel to Reel (DRR) timed background recorder module (version 2.5.9) is being outfitted with similar abilities, as mentioned above, meaning that once a show has been recorded, it can automatically be sent to a site for podcast download.


Ah.. ain't technology grand? What's next- software to make a podcast that doesn't require a human voice to record?

~Dani

Voices: New Podiobook Anthology


Back in January I mentioned Podiobooks.com- and it is gaining more and more momentum every day. Now the Podiobook is going one step further- the anthology. Introducing Voices, and collection of sci-fi stories in podcast form:

Voices: New Media Fiction is the first anthology to bring several of these stories together. With everything from short flash pieces to lengthy novellas, Voices has eighteen stories spread over 23 files to join you in your MP3 player everywhere you go.

With stories by Mur Lafferty (Geek-Fu Action Grip) and Cory Doctorow (Boing Boing Blog)- how could you not want to go right on over to Podiobooks and subscribe?

Saturday, March 04, 2006

Another cult sci-fi re-creation

BTR Productions has released another Blake's Legacy episode- Traces, the fourth episode in its
Blakes 7 sequel series, Blake's Legacy -- Restoration, now available for downloading at the BTR website!

Arriving on an unidentified planet in the Tarron system, the fugitives
discover a mysterious group of archaeologists digging up some strange
objects in the dirt and sand on the barren world. One of their number,
Feeld, believes that this discovery could lead to the biggest revelation
regarding the origin of the human race -- an origin with alien
involvement.

However, before too long Style and Asimov have a mystery of their own on
their hands.

What is the significance of the remains Feeld and the archaeologists
have discovered? Why is a flattened ration tin the most important item
on the planet? With the Federation closing in, and time running out,
will the fugitives discover the connection between the remains on this
planet and the secret Federation codeword "Brigand"?


They are also finding good success with their Dr. Who podcast that I mentioned a couple of weeks ago here on the Addicts blog- if you haven't listened yet, well duh why not?

Head down under and check 'em out!
~Dani

Wednesday, March 01, 2006

New Podcast Client for People w/o iPods

After I got over the fact that there are people who don't use an iPod, I checked out this new client- and it's pretty cool. Easy to use, functional... and it has an iTunes addition feature just in case you can't completely break the habit.

Jump in the fish tank and check it out!

Podcasting definitely not a passing fad


Will Podcasting Steal the Show?

Talk about an overnight sensation.

In a survey published by Pew Internet & American Life in July 2005, a mere 13% of respondents were confident of the meaning of the word "podcasting."

What do you think the percentage would be today?

"The audience for podcasts has shown meteoric growth, particularly in the US," says Mike Chapman, eMarketer Editorial Director and author of the new Podcasting: Who's Tuning In? report. "It is variously projected to reach between 20 million and 80 million by 2010."

According to Mr. Chapman, the active audience is much smaller but it is still set to grow rapidly

In light of the skyrocketing audience figures — along with the audience's attractive demographics — advertiser are hot on the phenomenon's heels.

Advertising on podcasts, which are invariably free to the end user, is in its infancy to put it mildly," says Mr. Chapman. "However, the nature of the audience and strong growth in its numbers have already driven major brands to invest in podcast-based promotion. More advertising and sponsorship will inevitably follow, as evidenced by the sprouting up of several companies dedicated to facilitating podcast advertising and measuring its effectiveness."

In their pursuit of venues that deliver a measurable, targeted audience, online advertisers and marketers are paying serious attention to this new "anywhere, anytime" channel.

eMarketer projects podcasting advertising to reach $80 million this year and $300 million by 2010.

"With the introduction in late 2005 of an iPod with a high quality color screen, and the memory and processing power to support video playback, video podcasts or 'videocasts' are now becoming commonplace," says Mr. Chapman. "The appeal of moving images to both consumers and advertisers and the continued evolution of devices like the video iPod mean that videocasts will become the predominant format within the next five years. This, in turn, will support further audience growth."

Radio stations should podcast archives


Blog entry I found in the Linux Journal:

Let's help these folks start podcasting

Radio stations should archive programs as podcasts for the same reason newspapers and magazines should save stories as Web pages. Especially since it's so darn easy. And help is so handy. (Hint, hint.)

This occured to me this morning when I was listening to KZSB/1290, the live news outlet of our local daily newspaper, the Santa Barbara News-Press. KZSB has no website, but it does stream live, using Windows Media Player. This brings up the Kaffeine Media Player in my Linux laptop, but ... nothing after that. Pretty annoying.

The same idea occurred to me again a few minutes ago, when I wished I could hear the Tabitha Soren interview of Ana Marie Cox, better known as Wonkette, which I had heard on a Commonwealth Club radio broadcast in the Bay Area earlier this week while I was driving down to Mashup Camp. (Here's one blog report on the 'cast.) So I looked up Commonwealth Club podcasts on Google. The top result wasn't useful; but the second result was Commonwealth Club Radio Program, an "unrecognized" file format that turns out to be http://audio.commonwealthclub.org/audio/podcast/weekly.xml. An RSS 2.0 file, for podcasts.

That was cool, but... there's nothing about podcasts or RSS on the Commonwealth Club site, though there are pointers to webcasts on KQED and KALW, San Francisco's two main public stations. Those pointers also include "Listen Now" links (like this one here, for Wonkette), which have other links that bring you RealAudio webcasts, rather than podcasts.

What's strange in both these cases is that podcasting is much easier than webcasting. You store files and point to them in an RSS feed. In KZSB's case, most of its broadcasts are programs. It would be easy for the station to archive those programs as .mp3 files, for downloading as podcasts. Storage is cheap these days. So, why not? As for the Commonwealth Club, same question.

So now I'm thinking it might just be a matter of tools. How about mashing up something combining podcasting with the open source Rivendell broadcast content management suite, which is written for Linux by Salem Radio Laboratories, and which I featured here a few weeks ago.

Stations with lots of programs, and not just music formats, would benefit enormously, methinks.

As for the Commonwealth Club, a simple RSS feed with pointers to extant archives would suffice.

As for RSS, there's some additional background in the form of the RSS roadmap and two pieces about it by Dave Winer, who has guided RSS development since he first made it stand for Really Simple Syndication.

The second of those pieces is about how much companies have invested in RSS over the years. Another angle on it is, how much have they saved?

I think we can save them a lot of money.