Currently, users of Internet resources are increasingly faced with the concept of "podcast". Mostly files with this name are found on media sites. To evaluate the convenience of their use, you should learn more about this format.
A podcast (in English: podcast) is an asynchronous radio show that is broadcast live on the Internet. These audio or video files are usually available for automatic download (download). Users have the opportunity to listen to (watch) the recordings on a computer or player (MP3-player). The convenience of this format contributes to its increasing popularity. Already in 1998-2001, such large companies as Real Networks and ESPN repeatedly applied this technology in practice, but the general public did not know about it until 2004. Individuals and companies have contributed to the rise and popularity of podcasts. One of them was Adam Curry, with his idea of automating the delivery and synchronization of text content to portable audio players. The term "podcasting" was first mentioned in February 2004 in an article by Ben Hamarsley in the British daily Guardian. It arose from the combination of the words "Pod" - after the name of the portable media player from Apple - and "Casting" (translated as "broadcasting"). Although from the point of view of etymology, this name can be misleading, since to use the technology there is no need to use an iPod or any other portable media player: the file's content is available to any computer user with support for multimedia data recognition. Today, thanks to the Internet, low-cost hardware and software, audio podcasts perform functions that were once available only to radio stations. In June 2005, Apple launched its iTunes 4.9 app with integrated podcast support. This allowed users to receive them in no time. There is no need for expensive equipment to create broadcasting independently. A computer with an Internet connection and a good microphone is enough for this.