Tech Podcasts

Not surprisingly, one of the most popular genres in podcasting is technology-focused shows. After all, anyone creating a podcast is already pretty comfortable with tech, and most of the early listeners of podcasts were also very tech savvy. Over time, there will be more "flashing 12's" listening to and creating podcasts. But there will always be a hungry base of listeners eager to hear about the latest in tech news and development. Table 3.16 offers a small and diverse sampling of what is out there in the way of tech podcastsfrom PC focused to Mac focused, to all tech issues in general to tech issues for teenagers, or to those interested in digital photography. The variety of tech podcasts is vast.

Table 3.16. Popular Technology Podcasts

Host(s)	Podcast	Website URL
Victor Cajiao	Typical PC User	www.typicalpcuser.com
Christopher	Tech4GenY	www.tech4geny.com
Leo and friends	This Week in Tech	www.thisweekintech.com
Adam	MacCast	www.maccast.com

Typical PC User

Victor Cajiao hosts this podcast from California. Like his tag line, "help for the rest of us," states, this is a podcast where the typical PC user can come to learn about new ideas and to share and hopefully get answers for his or her problems. Victor is a friendly host, and you can really feel his passion for his listeners. The show is released about three times a week, and the average length is 30 minutes per episode. The show is G-rated.

"I had a 70-year-old aunt of mine, who had never used a computer as of January of 2005. We gave her an old computer and I got her an Internet connection. She loves Morgan horses. I spent 3 hours one afternoon just showing her what was available on the Internet around Morgan horses. And I saw this woman's face light up in a way I had never seen before, and at that moment between that and listening to some podcasts, I said, you know if I can do that for some other people who are not the über geeks, where I can bring them to a show where they can learn the basics and then also do some intermediate stuff, I think I can get my heart into that. And to me that is the first thing for podcastingyou have to have heart for it before you can have brains for it."

Victor Cajiao, Typical PC User

Tech4GenY

Christopher produces this podcast out of New York City. Not all podcasters have to be between the ages of 30 and 44, and Christopher proves that by podcasting while he is still in high school. He is normally joined by a cast of other teenage podcasters, or he is out interviewing the biggest names in technology. Additional hosts include Alexander, Anthony, Eugene, Jack, and Mike. This show is released about once a week, and the typical length varies from 15 minutes to 1 hour. The show is PG-rated.

"The focus was that [we] would deliver tech news from the younger generation with punditry. It is basically the younger voice.... We are kind of like a kid show on The Screen Savers."

Christopher, Tech4GenY

This Week in Tech

Hosted by Leo Laporte of TechTV/ZDTV fame, and joined with a cast comprised of the who's who in TechTV reporting, this show is released every Sunday at midnight, because that is basically the only time the Internet can handle the strain of all their loyal listeners downloading the show at once. The typical length of the show is 1 hour per episode. The show is G-rated.

MacCast

Adam Christianson has one of the most popular Mac podcasts, with a loyal audience of well over 12,000 subscribers. If you are at all interested in the Mac platform, then this is a must-listen-to podcast. Six to eight shows are released every month, with an average length varying from 30 minutes to 1 hour. The show is G-rated.

"The MacCast [is] for Mac geeks by Mac geeks. It's pretty much an every-Mac-user-type show. I actually have a lot of PC users, and a lot of new switchers. Some of them were thinking it was going to be very technical with the geek term. That it was going to be over their head, and [they] got to listening to it and realized it really [was not over their head]. I kind of cover all ends of the spectrum, and when I do get really technical I try and make sure that I explain to other parts of the audience what I am talking about, so that people don't get lost, but not try and talk down to them in a way that the more tech-savvy guys are bored."

Adam Christianson, MacCast

Thriving as a Tech Podcaster

Ninety-nine percent of people who podcast will never reach the size audience that Leo Laporte has been able to reach with TWiT. If that fact bothers you, then you should give serious thought to why you're podcasting to begin with. Victor articulated it very well when he said that you have to have heart for a subject before you can have brains for it. There is plenty of room for additional RSS feeds in the tech genre; you just need to make sure that the subject you decide to podcast on is something you would want to subscribe to yourself.