Archive for July, 2008
Looking at Podsafe Music and the Public Domain For Your Show
Podcasts, audio and video, really aren’t Podcasts without music. The question is, where to source your music?
Many people are aware of the Podsafe Music Network. It is a source of specially licensed music that can be used freely (as in beer) on your projects with some simple stipulations. The idea - a good one - is to help indie artists like Uncle Seth or Matthew Ebel to promote themselves. Anyone can be a Podsafe musician or band (I am, myself, under a secret identity!).
However there are alternatives for podcasters looking for free-to-use music besides Creative Commons or Podsafe licenses. The public domain.
Podcasters typically use music in two different ways, either playing songs in order to showcase them, or as background, mood music. For most old PD music, the first use would tend to be limited to very niche shows, but it’s really quite useful for the latter.
The main advantage of the public domain (other than the freeness) are that you may be familiar with the song or the artist already, or at least the genre. If you are quickly looking for something to set a mood -say something comical or ridiculous - you know you can just look for dixieland featuring kazoo, or a particularly bawdy old blues song. Want something frantic? How about some old bluegrass or a foxtrot? Classical and Marching music is great, too. You are unlikely to easily find modern pop or rock, or newer country music in the public domain, though.
Example: I’m Wild About That Thing by Bessie Smith
Where do I snag public domain tunes?
The Internet Archive 78s and cylinders collection
and
Public Domain 4 U
I know there are dozens of you out there who know more and better sources… So why not share in the comment section?
34 Things I Learned at PodCamp Boston 3
It has been over a week since the end of PodCamp Boston 3, and I’ve had some time to collect my thoughts on the experience. Here they are in no particular order:
1. It is rewarding to run a 1-on-1 101 session for a newbie.
2. Creating content on the fly is exciting, even if somewhat daunting.
3. Use websitegrader.com
4. That rule of 2 feet? Use it. Ruthlessly.
5. Chris Penn is a font of amazing practical knowledge. (Seems I re-learn this at each PodCamp I attend!)
6. Spend time in the brainstorming area.
7. See a useful freebie? Pick up an extra and then give it away on day 2 to someone who missed seeing them.
8. If at all possible, attend any extra social events in the evenings.
9. Occasionally, the Fail Whale can be amusing!
10. I’m not the only human with social media overload issues.
11. Never, ever doubt the power of a focused and like-minded group of creative thinkers (to crash a Harvard University load balancing server).
12. If you have a question, keep asking around until you get an answer.
13. Don’t assume presenters are recording the sessions they lead. Bring a media device of your own.
14. Don’t concentrate on networking with just A-listers or just peers, bring everyone into your social network, Today’s newb will probably be tomorrow’s Rock Star/Ninja.
15. Don’t condescend. You’re not all that.
16. Don’t get involved with melodrama: you’re here to learn and share, not star in a soap opera.
17. Have a ready answer for the question: “What do you do? / what are you working on?”
18. Polish up that elevator pitch!
19. Not everyone with an elevator pitch knows what he/she is talking about!
20. Give and give freely - it comes back to you.
21. Link to stories on CNN.com. They link back.
22. In July Heat, get specific directions to meetup places before setting out on foot to find them.
23. Bring a camera, even if audio is your shtick.
24. Bring a lanyard with a badge-holder.
25. Stuff your business cards into that badge-holder for quick access.
26. Drop your card in the raffle bowls!
27. Understand that a lot of the sessions may focus on Industry. If you don’t like that, create breakout sessions on stuff like “Using Audacity” or “WordPress SEO 101″.
28. Yes, your XYZ business should have a social media presence to one degree or another.
29. Is your site’s Raison d’Etre hard to succinctly describe? Figure out a simple way to say it and put it on your front page.
30. Guido Stein is a mensch - Find him and befriend him!
31. Whitney Hoffman’s kids are fully capable of leading a 101 “What is a PodCast” session.
32. No matter how good the alternatives are, Twitter is too sticky to go away (any time soon). They could drop the whale on a bus full of children, then bake their parents into meat-pies and people will still use Twitter over anything else.
33. Chris Brogan is not only a competent rhythm guitarist, but is amazingly good at extemporizing on social media themes. Search for a recording of the “New Media VS. Old” breakout session he moderated on day one to see what I mean.
34. Use Ping.fm to help avoid social media overload.
