The Podcasts
What is a podcast?
How do I listen to the podcasts?
How do I subscribe to the podcasts?
What equipment do you use to make the podcasts?
The Forums
Why do I have to register to use the forums?
I’m new to forums, how does it all work?
Misc.
How/Why did you start Notes from Spain?
What happened with your India motorbike trip?
The Podcasts
What is a podcast?
A podcast is just like a radio programme, except that you get it straight from the internet, and you can listen to it whenever you want – on your computer, or out and about on your mp3 player (it doesn’t have to be an iPod!)
How do I listen to the podcasts?
You can either listen to them straight from this site, or by subscribing to each podcast series individually (see below).
To listen straight from the Notes from Spain web site, you have two options. Firstly, you can click on the silver/black ‘listen now’ button in the left-hand column – there’s one for each podcast. This will cause a player to pop up, and the latest podcast in the series will start playing first. To listen to an earlier show, just select it from the list in the player.
Alternatively you can navigate to earlier shows via the list in each podcast’s home-page. Click through to the one you are looking for, then look for the ‘Click here to download/listen’ link at the top of the post. Right click on this link and you will be given the option to ‘save link as’, or ‘save target as’, allowing you to download the podcast to your computer. Then you can listen to the podcast at home or transfer it onto any mp3 player.
How do I subscribe to the podcasts?
Some software, such as iTunes lets you ‘subscribe’ to the podcasts and receive these automatically each time we publish a new one. For iTunes users this is especially easy, just click on the ‘Advanced’ menu in iTunes, and select ‘Subscribe to podcast’, then enter the shows’ RSS feeds, which are as follows:
Notes from Spain: http://notesfromspain.libsyn.com/rss
Cuisine from Spain: http://cuisinefromspain.libsyn.com/rss
Notes in Spanish: http://notesinspanish.libsyn.com/rss
What equipment to you use to make the podcasts?
I initially hooked up stereo binaural lapel mics to an iRiver 799, a great little mp3 player that has now been discontinued. For the latest podcasts (since around number 64), I’ve been using the wonderful Zoom H2 digital recorder. It is truly a step up from the iRiver in terms of quality and has great built in mics.
For editing I use Adobe Audition, and all my podcasts are hosted at Libsyn. For more information check out Podcastalley, or Podcast Pickle, where you’ll find lots of information on podcasting equipment and software, and really useful user forums. I certainly wouldn’t recommend buying anything without snooping or asking around in those two first.
The Forums
Why do I have to register to use the forums?
Making you register with a valid e-mail address is the only way to stop evil spammers filling our forums with rubbish. We promise
never to reveal your e-mail address or any other personal details to anyone. So register soon and get chatting!
I’m new to forums, how does it all work?
First of all, the forums are designed to be really easy to use. Once you register it’s just a case of finding the right section to post in and hitting the ‘New Thread’ or ‘Post Reply’ buttons. There is also a very extensive FAQ for the forum here, which explains everything really well.
Misc.
How/Why did you start Notes from Spain?
I was already experimenting with a blog on Spain, when, in April 2005, a friend asked me what a podcast was. The best way to find out seemed to be to try to make one from zero and post it on the internet. Having always been enamored with the medium of radio, making podcasts about Spain turned out to be incredibly good fun! So I made another, and another, and soon persuaded an initially reluctant Marina to get involved… and all of a sudden Notes from Spain had three different podcasts running and was turning up in newspapers like the New York Times! It’s a funny old world 😉
What happened with your India motorbike trip?
2000 km across rural Southern India in two weeks on a Royal Enfield!You can listen to the podcast, read all about it, and see the photos here.
Got a question you think ought to be here? Contact us!
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Notes from Spain by Ben Curtis 