tomhudson's Journal: Poll: Does anyone really look at podcasts?

I've seen SO many people trying to do the "self-promotion" thing by making a series of podcasts that promote whatever they're trying to sell. Whether it's financial forecasting or self-improvement or internet marketing or search engine optimization or multi-level-marketing scam or herbal products or ways to improve server performance or the benefits of virtualization with your product or service or whatever,

Top 12 reasons I don't watch your podcasts or webinars

1. I can read faster than you can talk. Remember those 3 rules? Put it in writing. Put it in writing. Put it in writing. Give me the option of reading it instead.
2. I can't quickly skim it and find if there's anything I'm interested in.
3. I can't search it.
4. If I want to take notes, or argue against a statement, I can't just cut-and-paste it.
5. If something isn't quite clear afterwards, I'm not going to watch the whole thing again just to find the point in question.
6. There's only so much time in the day - If I have 5 minutes to kill, I'd rather watch Hitlers response to the ipad.
7. Powerpoint has already been proven to make you stupid. "... on the Internet" doesn't make it better. Not even when you add kittens. So shove your webinars.
8. You want me to sign up to watch your webinar or podcast at a specific time? You really ARE retarded, aren't you ... you get my time on MY terms.
9. Thinking "Podcasts are cool, so if I make one, hundreds of millions will watch it." Guess what - they'd all rather watch Hitlers response to the ipad too.
10. "It makes our product (and us) look cool and with it". No, it doesn't.
11. "People watch this stuff." Maybe if you have a zombie Michael Jackson doing the presentation ... while eating brainz ... or Hitler saying why your product sucks ... otherwise, it's as annoying as getting rick-rolled.
12. "People can send links to it to each other by email" ... sure, but they won't ... unless it's Hitler trashing your product while a zombie Michael Jackson eats his brainz.

The ones that REALLY cheeze me off? I click on the web page, and they start immediately, instead of giving me the chance to decide on your own if I want to freeze my browser. No wonder people love flashblock.

So, here's the podcast poll:

[_] I'd rather be rick-rolled.
[_] I avoid podcasts like the plague
[_] I might watch one once in a blue moon
[_] There are a few I watch, but most of them are creap
[_] I HEART podcasts.
[_] I use them as an excuse to blow away 15 minutes at work "keeping up with trends".
[_] My job involves making podcasts, you insensitive b*tch!
[_] We use them because everyone else does ... we don't actually know if it helps or not.
[_] In Soviet Russia, podcast watches YOU!
[_] "I've got this podcast of Hitler invading CowboyNeal"
[_] "You picked the CowboyNeal option? Ha ha you've been rick-rolled."
[_] "You picked the Rick-roll option? Ha ha you've been ... oh wait ... um, never mind."
[_] "The podcast isn't dead. It's um, it's pining. For the fjords. And the forest. And the lumberjacks in the forest. I'm a lumberjack and I'm okay, ..."

Paradox?

[Farmer Tim]

[X] I avoid podcasts like the plague
[X] My job involves making podcasts, you insensitive b*tch!

I don't do it often, so I have no problem occasionally siphoning money from idiots for a bandwidth wasting service that nobody uses.

What's worse than podcasts is those stupid "host" Flash video overlays, where some actor appears and floats over the content you want to see telling you how much you'll enjoy the site if only you could get to it through the f***ing video overlay. It's the web equivalent of being on ho

There's an idea!

[peacefinder]

Make an actual instructional video/podcast/webinar formatted as a Hitler-rant video. Possible topics:

*: Check with snopes before forwarding that e-mail to everyone you know.
*: The proper response to a software vendor telling you to forward HTTP / RDP / Telnet / FTP unfiltered from the internet to your primary business server.
*: Facebook privacy settings.

Re:

[tomhudson]

Make an actual instructional video/podcast/webinar formatted as a Hitler-rant video. Possible topics:

Don't laugh - doing the poll gave me an idea for a Hitler rant, so I found the clip w/o the subtitles.

I'm going to play around with it this weekend if I have time - I've got 2 topics in mind :-)

Re:

[plover]

I just saw one on cloud computing security that had me laughing: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VjfaCoA2sQk [youtube.com]

Podcasts!

[plover]

[X] I avoid podcasts like the plague

Seriously, I've had to listen to a few for some classes I've taken, and they completely suck.

I can read. I can read fast. I can even read Tanglish if English isn't your first language.

If it's a product, or a cool hack, I'll watch a video from time to time. But I won't waste a second on a podcast. I'd rather have the headphones set to "trance" and read.

For that matter, I don't like voicemails or answering machines, either. If you want my attention or if you need somethi

well hang on now, I'm confused

[drachenstern]

Are you counting even the TWiT stuff as podcasts here, or more just the infomercial stuff? I like the TWiT stuff because it's like tailored radio, that I get to listen to on my own time. Same for MaximumPC (because what they talk about is sideline to the mag, and it's good commentary about 60% of the time - the rest is them being vulgar or sophomoric).

However, I'm trying to stomach my way through the ASP.NET podcast and it's utter garbage. About a third of the way and I'm ready to stop it altogether. I'm j

Re:I picked the Russian option... .

[moose_hp]

I think I checked the "Post Anonymously" by mistake.

once in a while

[Randle_Revar]

I listen to podcasts (mostly TWiT and similar) once in while. I probably would listen to more if I commuted by public transit and had a DAP to put them on.

written word please...

[pnutjam]

[x] I'd rather be rick-rolled. [x] There are a few I watch, but most of them are chttp://slashdot.org/~tomhudson/journal/246770#rap ------------ You seem to be talking about video podcasts, those really suck. I would usually prefer to read. A good audio podcast is great for the long car rides or while I clean the house and do dishes. I like some of the NPR Podcasts.

[X] I HEART podcasts.

[MonTemplar]

Podcasts can definitely be both entertaining and useful, particularly if you've got regular periods of time (like commutes) where you're not doing much else. The trick is to pick a small-ish selection that you can find time to watch or listen to on a regular basis.

My preference is for audio, as I can listen whilst doing other stuff.

-MT.

[X] I HEART podcasts.

[themusicgod1]

There are podcasts today that are really just the current format for the radio shows of yesteryear, and you can really build communities around good radio.

Personally I've stopped listening to podcasts(mostly out of lack of hard drive space/reliable audio player), but I have spent a significant amount of my life listening to podcasts/radio, and my life would have been much worse without them. I'd like to get back into it though.

Still-publishing suggestions I've listened to recently:

ZenCast [libsyn.com]

r4nger5 [r4nger5.com]

Watch? Not so much...

[rthille]

I drive quite a bit sometimes, so I _listen_ to podcasts a lot then. Point of Reason is an excellent one. And the SciAm 60-second ones are good too.

Re:

[rthille]

Whoops, Point of Inquiry, and For Good Reason, both by D.J. Grothe (though he's not doing Point of Inquiry anymore, and I haven't listened to the ones he didn't do yet)

podcasts?

[Chris.Jee.Pander]

I think I tried them in the past. Hard to remember. Made about as much of an impact for me as "push technology", but I would have to say, I hated push, and I just don't get much from podcasts.

Just found one I like

[gmhowell]

Just found one I like at meetthegimp.org. It's a subject that lends itself well to the medium. Most podcasts... What's the point?