Wednesday, September 12, 2007

Libraries 2.0: Week 10: Vodcasts and Podcasts

There's a saying popularized by self-improvement folk: "Any tool can be the right tool."

Not so in podcasts.

The first podcast I heard started with a guy reading the table of contents to a journal. WRONG TOOL! (but he did have a Boston accent)

Another one I heard had a monotone bored person giving an interview. RIGHT TOOL! (but the wrong cast--making it the WRONG TOOL)

Another one had folks sharing their family stories on how they ended up in Sunnyvale. RIGHT TOOL! (and the right cast)

My point that podcasting is a tool which needs to be done just right or it doesn't work. I think the reason for this is that you cannot skim podcasts. You can skim blogs. You can skim RSS feeds. You can skim wikis. But you can't skim podcasts. And if you're expecting to get something from the podcast and, after listening to a slow talker for 45 minutes, the information doesn't present itself ... someone becomes quite cranky.

Generally, I'd prefer just to get the transcript of the podcast. You can miss inflections and such, but you still get the information. However, sometimes you need to hear the voices--like the Sunnyvale storytellers. Or maybe a podcast on heart murmurs. Or a comedy routine. Or if you're vision impaired. Exceptions are there, but, in general, podcasts are too tricky to warrant their use.

Much like hair pieces, there are times for podcasts--but those times do not occur as often as too many people seem to believe.

And have a good day.

3 comments:

Risa said...

I enjoy reading your blog. You have a lot of good points and a great sense of humor. Thank you so much for this mornings laugh!

Mark Wentz said...

Thank you, Risa, for the kind words.

Ann Farrell said...

Mark,
I agree with you completely about podcasts; unless you've got an engaging voice/presence, you'll lose your audience even if the message might be important-- even engaging. Or you need a fast forward button so that, if there is something important to learn, you can get there without having to endure the boring parts.