What is a podcast?

A podcast is an audio file, typically an MP3 file, that you can listen to over the internet, or download/subscribe via an automatic “feed”. Many content providers offer the ability to download podcast feeds at no cost. These feeds deliver podcasts to your computer. After you download these podcasts, you can listen to these files on your computer or load them on to a portable media player and take them with you.

What do I need to listen to a podcast?

Now that you know what a podcast is, you’ll need to decide how you intend to listen to the downloaded podcast. If your computer has a sound card and can play MP3 audio files, you can listen to podcasts directly from your computer by clicking the title link. Or, you can use podcasting software (e.g. iTunes, iPodder, Odeo) to download podcasts to your portable media player.

Podcasting software is usually free, and allows you to subscribe to and manage your podcast subscriptions as well as transfer podcasts from your computer to a portable media player. Once you download and install the software, you can subscribe to downloadable podcasts. The podcasting software will automatically check for updates and download the files to your computer so you can load them onto your portable media player.

How do I subscribe to podcasts?

There are several different ways to subscribe to our podcasts, depending on the type of information you are interested in. Please visit our Subscription Options page to learn more.

Need Help?