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A Quiz: Test Your Podcasting Knowledge
How much do you know about podcasting?
Take the podcast quiz and test your knowledge.
Question: Are there any size limitations
to podcasts?
Answer: There are no maximums or
minimums when it comes to podcast size. Obviously, the
larger files might intimidate listeners with a slow
connection. Podcasts can be successful at any size,
generally wise podcasters balance the file size and
the quality of their show.
Question: What are ID3 Tags?
Answer: ID3 tags consist of meta
data that describe the contents of the audio file (typically
ID3 tags relate to MP3 files). ID3 tags generally contain
information related to the audio file, including things
like title of the audio file, the artist, album, or
other relevant information. There is speculation that
podcasting search engines and directories will use the
information contained in the ID3 tags to categorize,
search, and group podcasts in the future.
Question: Are Podcasts are always in
the RSS 2.0 format?
Answer: No, while RSS 2.0 was
the first version to support enclosures, RSS version
1 also now includes an enclosure tag for podcasting.
While the current RSS 1.0 supports podcasting, RSS 2.0
is by far the more popular format for those podcasting.
This is not only because RSS 2.0 was the first standard
to support enclosures, but also due to the fact that
Apple iTunes uses RSS 2.0 for it's podcasts.
Question: Can podcasts be restricted
to a specific group of listeners?
Answer: Yes, while there are no
provisions in the RSS 2.0 specification for passwords
or protecting files, as with any web documents, podcasts
can be password protected by placing it in a subdirectory.
You can use any security mechanism available on the
http server to protect the entire feed or the actual
audio file.
Question: Are there any fee based
podcasts?
Answer: Yes, while the model has
not yet been widely adopted, some publishers have experimented
with providing fee based commercial-free podcasts.
Rather than charging advertisers to advertise in the
podcasts, the publishers have monetized the podcasts
by charging listeners for the contents of the podcast.
Typically the audio file is password protected and only
subscribers are able to download or listen to the file.
The model is similar to that which the cable shows HBO/Showtime
use, where they charge a fee for premium content. It
is likely that educational podcasts, or language lessons
will adopt this model.
Question: What file formats are acceptable
in a podcast?
Answer: It really depends on what
your definition of a podcast is. Initially the term
podcast referred to any RSS feed that contained an audio
file as an enclosure. The usage of the term podcast
has expanded and now many people consider any RSS feed
that includes a file in the enclosure field to be a
podcast. In other words, many people use the term podcast
to refer to an RSS feed that has a video file, or power
point presentation or other enclosure.
Technically you can put just about any
type of file in the enclosure field. If you are referring
to a traditional audio podcast, for the sake of compatibility,
most podcasters use either MP3 or M4a. The added benefit
of using an MP3 or M4a file is that both formats are
also supported by iTunes, which allow people to expand
their podcast with iTunes tags and include it in the
iTunes Music Store.
Interested in additional RSS FAQs visit
the RSS Knowledgebase http://www.feedforall.com/podcasting-knowledgebase.htm
or subscribe to the RSS knowledgebase feed http://www.feedforall.com/podcasting-knowledgebase.php
About the Author:
Sharon Housley manages marketing for FeedForAll http://www.feedforall.com
software for creating, editing, publishing RSS feeds
and podcasts. In addition Sharon manages marketing for
RecordForAll http://www.recordforall.com
podcast software for audio recording and editing.
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