Thoughts on Podcasts, the great untapped digital resource

Podcast management on the iPhone and iPad have not exactly been easy for the past oh... 4 YEARS! Apple pushes out release after release of their very elegant iOS software with one tiny problem, no podcast management or subscription access on ANY iOS device.

Why is this such a big deal? Podcasts are one of the, let me repeat, THE greatest forms of free information and entertainment available. There is so much good content for learning that is available through the iTunes Podcast section. For whatever topic you are into, be it tech news, entertainment, food, gardening, photography, video games, there are tons of podcasts on each of these subjects. Want to learn how to use Photoshop?, just watch a bunch of FREE podcasts from leading professionals in the field and learn the fundemental tools to one of the most complicated programs out there. Then return later to learn the techniques to become a creative proffesional. 

I personally learned Photoshop years ago by reading books and taking a few college courses. But it was in large part watching podcasts from industry professionals that taught me how to take the tools and create the art and graphics I always wanted to create. The same can be said for any topic or program or profession that you are interested in. The tools to help are just a click away. 

Apple tried to remedy this partially with the iOS 4.3 update in March 2011 that allows users to stream their entire iTunes collection from their home computer to an iOS device. However you have to be on the same wi-fi network for this to be achieved. 

We have been forced to use iTunes to manage podcasts and use a very fragmented way to get podcasts, forcing us to stream them from the iTunes store or find another method to watch our favorite podcasts on iPhones and iPads. 

Finally there is a new universal app for iPhone, iPod, and iPad called Downcast. It has recently been updated to be fully compatible with the iPad and now offers us the solution that Apple refuses to implement (so far) into iOS. See the full video below for features and thoughts. 

New HDR Photo of the Las Vegas Spring Mountains

Here is an HDR of the Spring Mountains surrounding Las Vegas.

Taken from a single RAW photo and split up into 3 exposures and processed using Photomatix. Great program!

Larger version in my photo gallery

Terra for iPad Video Review

The Daily iPad Video Review

The Daily for iPad Review

News Corps. Released their latest news venture earlier this month. Devoted strictly to the iPad, for now, The Daily app sets out to redefine how we interact with our news by making an interactive hybrid newspaper and magazine.

The question is weather this will be a main source of news for people or will it just be an addition to the already great news apps that are available on the iPad for free. The subscription will run you $0.99 per week or roughly $40 if you purchase an entire year subscription.

The idea behind The Daily is to provide a daily newspaper in the form of a magazine that is full of interactive 360s, animations, and videos to supplement various news stories. This ads great value to the experience and is welcome on a device that has interactivity at it's core.

Editorially The Daily tries to not be biased but at the cost of being bland at times. Running stories that are interesting but what some would consider "un-newsworthy". The headline story however is typically very well done as are sports and entertainment. The rest is rather bland as far as content.

Functionally the app is very intuitive and beautiful with it's animations....when it doesn't crash or after you wait for the latest issue to download. This would have to be my biggest gripe with the app. The app constantly updates through the day causing you to have to wait a good minute even on the fastest Internet connections before you can dive into the news. Not exactly instant gratification. However after the app loads up the carosel like animations make the news fun to read and share with your friends through email, facebook and twitter.

The Daily really needs to figure out what it wants to be, a news source or a magazine. Being both does not seem to work. Some users will take issue that the app is more static than other news sources that constantly update every few minutes. Honestly it will up to you to figure out which kind of news you like better, daily or hourly.

Overall The Daily is an app that is worthy of downloading for the free trial period until the end of the month. After that, you are faced with a hard decision as to if you want to pay for this type of content and experience. Other apps like CNN offer an interactive experience not as flashy as The Daily, but with much more recent news content. Personally I will not be paying for a subscription until the app is much more stable and out of it's infancy with some content. The pros do not outweigh the cons in this case.

OVERALL SCORE: 6/10

Download The Daily for iPad