Actually this was an unintentional podcast that just start happenening. You see, BlogTalkRadio (who my friend Kris just got a new gig with) recently released a new service called Cinch which allows you to record/create podcast by just making a phone call.

All you need to do is dial up 646-200-0000 and start recording at the beep.

What happens when you hang up is that the phone call is converted to mp3 and output in an RSS feed at http://cinch.blogtalkradio.com/YOURTENDIGITPHONE#. Really cool stuff.

Yesterday while I was stuck in traffic (which is usually when/where your typical marusin.com podcast is recorded), I started thinking about this service and dialed it up. As soon as it picked up, I got the crazy idea of conferencing my friend Kris into the call just to see if it would record the both of us. What resulted was this recording where Kris talks about Cinch and we discuss some of the possibilities with using the service and building some applications/plugins around it.

Download marusin.com podcast #13 (3.1mb – 13:41) or suck it in from my RSS Feed or subscribe to it in iTunes.

Not that I’m an expert on the topic of podcasting, but I got this interesting email from Apple today with some how-to’s/best practices and figured that I’d put it up here so I didn’t lose track of it for the day that I kick my ass in gear and producing some content! :)

Greetings from the iTunes Podcasting Team:

The Apple TV “Take Two” software upgrade has been released, making it easier than ever for people to enjoy your podcasts wherever there is a TV. A whole new audience will understand the benefits of podcasts as soon as they experience them this way.

Recommendations to help you create the best possible experience for users:

1. Apple TV viewers are immediately aware of video quality. If you encode your video podcast at 320×240, we strongly encourage you to increase the resolution to 640×480 or 640×360 (depending on the aspect ratio of your source files). When encoded well, video podcasts at this resolution look great on Apple TV and still play on iPhone and video-compatible iPods. To ensure compatibility, we recommend that you encode using QuickTime’s “Movie to iPod” preset or Compressor’s “Apple > Apple Devices > H.264 for iPod video and iPhone 640×480″ preset.

2. When you perform the final encode on your video, enable fast starting. Most recent versions of QuickTime enable this setting automatically. But it’s easy to undo the setting by making changes to the file after the encode. If you do make a change after the encode, be sure to “Save As” again.

3. Apple TV displays a large version of the podcast art (the file referenced in the tag). We recommend that you use a 600×600 square JPG or PNG file.

4. Several new introductory video tutorials have been developed for iTunes, including one for podcasts. If your web site offers how-to information for new podcast users, please consider linking to it.

For those hosting podcasts on their own servers, consider the following recommendations:

5. To reduce wait times, iTunes and Apple TV use byte-range requests in some circumstances. For example, Apple TV 2.0 employs this functionality when the user accesses the podcast directly over the Internet. We recommend hosting episode files on HTTP/1.1 servers that correctly support the HTTP byte-range request specification.

6. Please ensure that your HTTP servers return the correct MIME types in the Content-Type header. Failing to do so can create errors. A list of MIME types can be found in the iTunes podcast technical spec.

Useful links:

1. Installing the free upgrade on an existing Apple TV
2. iTunes Store Podcast Technical Specification
3. iTunes Video Tutorials: Get Free Podcasts

Many thanks for listing your podcast on iTunes.

Best regards,

The iTunes Podcasting Team

Good stuff!

- I think I’m ditching the “stuffing” brand. Doesn’t do much for me anymore.
- Have had a blog post in draft mode for weeks. Figured it would be easier to talk through then type out.
- For some reason I completely dance around the topic of the day = “RSS Regurgitation”
- Web 2.0ish/Social Networking Sites are where the problem (somewhat) stems from = RSS Feeds (with all of my friend’s content)
- Tumblelogs are also a bit of a problem lately
- Mashed-up/Spliced RSS feeds = content regurgitation
- Providing a “blog-only” RSS feed is an easy solution
- Wouldn’t it be great if my RSS reader were “smarter”?
- What are your thoughts? How do you handle this? Am I just a big baby? :)

Download marusin.com podcast #12 (11.9mb – 17:16) or suck it in from my RSS Feed or subscribe to it in iTunes.

- As usual, it’s been a while. It’s been SO long ago that we last spoke that I forgot what number show we were on.
- I decide determine that I’m the only subscriber to my podcast :)
- I talk a bunch about RSS and what it’s all about (don’t be scared, non-nerds… I’m directing my explanation at you! Geeks will be bored!)
- Google Reader is where I spend my days (and nights)

Download marusin.com stuffing #11 (14.3mb – 20:48) or suck it in from my RSS Feed or subscribe to it in iTunes.

- Episode #10 was weird and I don’t know why
- I love fall
- I love draping myself in corduroy
- Weird weather so far in October 2006
- I get side-tracked about panhandlers and can’t remember how/why I got on the topic
- I went to Techcocktail 2 on Thursday night
- It was fun, but very crowded
- I need coffee and should watch the road
- “I will plan on talking to you again when the time seems appropriate”

Download marusin.com stuffing #10.5 (14.8mb – 21:26) or suck it in from my RSS Feed or subscribe to it in iTunes.

- I popped my podcasting cherry
- I went to Barcamp Chicago last weekend
- An explanation of what an Unconference is
- I wanted to organize a (*)camp last Fall
- My feeling summarized in one word: meh (I blame myself, though)
- My “peeps” weren’t represented
- “I don’t do heat well”
- Getting on my soapbox
- Boom 2.0 is not like the DotCom Boom
- “How are people expecting to cash out from Boom 2.0?” – ugh!
- The people that are doing things are doing them for themselves
- Yeah man, I use the term “Suits” – ugh! :)
- We’re hitting double digits next podcast! :)
- Lots of exciting things going on in my little web world

Download marusin.com stuffing #09 (17.16mb) or suck it in from my RSS Feed or subscribe to it in iTunes.

- I feel like it’s Fall 2004 and podcasting is brand new
- Preparing for Gnomedex
- I’m really going to try and record “conversations”
- I’m cutting people off while driving
- A “real” podcast in the works with the local crew? Hell yeah!
- I mistake an alley for the parking garage
- You’ll know lots about the podcast when we figure out a name!
- Swim lessons/dinner time
- Subscribe to marusin.com stuffing on iTunes!

Download marusin.com stuffing #08 (8.4mb) or suck it in from my RSS Feed

In this show I:
- Talk about my commuting as of late
- Talk about how Metra riders are a strange bunch
- Discuss going to the DaVinci Code this coming weekend (we haven’t been on a “date” in well over a year)
- Talk about books and nerd out a bit (go figure)
- Some brief Nintendo fan-boy talk (honestly, it’s brief!)

Download marusin.com stuffing #07 (7.3mb) (right click and save as) or suck it in from my RSS feed .

While you’re at it, check out my other podcasts.

In this show I:
- Go undercover at the local Caribou Coffee
- Talk about blogging for the last five years
- Ramble about things going on with me

Download marusin.com stuffing #06 (5.9mb) (right click and save as) or suck it in from my RSS feed .

While you’re at it, check out my other podcasts.

In this show I talk about:
- Podfading (and how we’re all guilty of it)
- Admitting I’m a Nintendo Fan-Boy
- Me being obsessive/compulsive about things

Download marusin.com stuffing #05 (4.9mb) (right click and save as) or suck it in from my RSS feed .

While you’re at it, check out my other podcasts.