Audio Available (already) @ HCPLC.org

Did you know that the library already provides - locally created - downloadable audio content to our library customers. Here's a summary of the library's Oral History Project provided by Cody Shelburne, the library's "technologist" behind ...

Hillsborough Remembers: Voices of Our Community
Curious about Tampa History? Did you know that you can experience it in the first person? Just go to Hillsborough Remembers on our website! There you will find over 60 interviews of Tampa residents, recounting Tampa’s past as they remember it. The Civil Rights and WWII eras are prominently featured. You can even download and listen to mp3s of the interviews! There are over 40 hours of interview audio available. So go to our website and put a little local history in your iPod today!
-Cody Shelburne

Many library employees and volunteers have worked on the Oral Histoiry Project in the past few years. The Project is currently managed by Paule Fahle @ JFG.

Podcasting in Libraries

Podcasting has been around for years but we noted in the eMarketer report posted earlier this week that the podcast-user base is growing at an incredible rate. How have libraries responded to the growing availability of this resource as a means of distributing audio and/or video content? The Boulder Public Library has podcasts created by teens linked from their Teen page. Visitors to the site can listen to the teens provide news from the library Teen Advisory Board, interview artists displaying art in the Teen Gallery, or listen to reviews on books, movies or music. The Denver Public Library provides podcasts of storytime favorites.

Many libraries are creating podcasts but I have found that the Pierce County Library in Tacoma, WA has found some very interesting and diverse uses which help to promote library services. They’re using podcasts to instruct parents on Early Literacy Skills, to inform the public on What’s New at the Library, How to Apply for a Job at the Library, How to Volunteer at your Library, Booktalks for Adults, Virtual “sightseeing" Tours of the Library for Children, Teens and Young Adults, Librarian Book Reviews, and an interview with the Library Director on her background and where she sees the library going in the new millennium.

Our library system has a wonderful collection, outstanding electronic resources, numerous special services, programming for every age group, and a very talented staff. How can we use podcasting to inform the public and expand our service base?

Podcasting Books (yes, books!)

Take a look at...

Absolute Beginner's Guide to Podcasting by George W. Colombo & Curtis Franklin Jr. [Indianapolis, Ind. : Que, 2006].

If 2004 was the year of the blog, 2006 may well be the year of the podcast. Podcasting, a form of recording and syndicating audio programming over the Internet, is rapidly gaining in popularity, and libraries may want to consider purchasing a guide or two on the topic. Absolute Beginner's Guide lives up to its name, giving new and wannabe podcasters the background they need to start and create listenable shows. From an overview of podcasting and how it works to processing, posting, syndicating, and promoting content, it covers all the basics.

Podcasting for Dummies by Tee Morris and Evo Terra. [Hoboken, N.J. : Wiley Pub., Inc., 2006]. Also available as an eBook from NetLibrary.

Podcasting is like blogging out loud! It gives you a voice—one that can be heard worldwide on computers, iPods, or other MP3 players. You can podcast to boost your business, promote your passion, share your opinions, or just have fun. The point is to say what you want to say to those who want to hear it. With step-by-step explanations, screen shots, and tons of examples, this guide clues you in on recording, producing, and hosting your very own podcast with info on:

-Finding your voice and your niche, whether you want to talk tech, make your own kinds of music, educate listeners, make people laugh, do soundseeing tours, serialize your novel, or invent a new podcasting genre
-Getting the bare necessities (if you don’t already have them), including a microphone, recording software, and an audio card
-Audio editing software such as Audacity, Cakewalk for PCs, GarageBand for musicality, and Audio HiJack Pro for Macs
-Recording, including understanding dB (decibel levels), capturing or minimizing ambient noise, and more
-Editing with GarageBand or Audacity, adding bed music, and including intros and outros for a signature finishing touch

You want your podcast to be heard. Podcasting For Dummies helps you launch and promote it with info on how to:
-Downsize your audio files with MP3 compression
-Change bit rates and sample rates in Audacity and iTunes
-Create and edit your ID3 tags in Audacity or iTunes
-Post your show notes using Movable Type or Libsyn
-Simplify the RSS 2.0 feed by using blogging software or a podcast-hosting company such as Audioblog.com, Podcastamatic, and Feeder
-Ping for publicity
-Communicate with your listeners on your blog, through online discussion groups such as Yahoo! Groups or Google Groups, or on online forums

Of course, if you want to be a podcatcher (a listener) and subscribe to podcasts, this guide shows you how to do that, too! Complete with a companion podcast—a free weekly audio commentary that will keep you up to speed on the podsphere—this guide helps you get your message heard, loud and clear. [Amazon.com]