Podcasting: It's not just for geeks anymore

When Robert Walch started podcasting in December 2004, it was a pastime embraced by only the hardest-core geeks.

"It was the lunatic fringe," Walch recalls. "That was before early adopters."

Skip ahead two years. One of roughly eight baby boomers heading into their golden years has downloaded a podcast, according to a new survey by the Pew Internet and American Life Project released last week. These streams of audio, and increasingly video, can be downloaded directly from a Web page or acquired through subscription via software such as Apple's iTunes.

"We are at a crossroads of a major transition in the way media content is delivered," said Mary Madden, a senior research analyst who worked on the Pew survey.

The survey, conducted in August and including 2,928 adults, found listening to podcasts had increased significantly earlier this year.

While only 7 percent of all Internet users said they had downloaded a podcast when asked between February and April, that number had jumped to 12 percent by August.

Meanwhile, the number of podcasts has increased exponentially. In November 2004, Podcast Alley, an online portal for all things related to the phenomenon, listed fewer than 1,000 podcasts. Today, that number is 26,627, with almost 2,000 pending approval.

Walch attributes the boom to the release of a new version of Apple's iTunes software in June 2005 that made it easier for nongeeks to connect with podcasters without downloading additional software.

"My grandmother could subscribe," said Walch, whose Podcast411 features how-to interviews with some of the most popular podcasters on the Web.

Indeed, the most popular features on Podcast Alley are decidedly mainstream. Mugglecast, a show dedicated to "everything Harry Potter," tops the list. Other popular shows include Nobody Likes Onions, a comedy, and Distorted View, "uncensored news of the weird."

"Tricks of the Podcasting Masters," co-written by Walch and Mur Lafferty, was picked by Amazon.com's editors as one of the top reference books of 2006.

Still, Madden cautioned that podcasting remains outside the mainstream. Only 1 percent of adults who participated in the Pew survey said they download a podcast on a typical day.

"Podcasts are competing with other new technologies that vie for our attention," Madden said.

While podcasting is often associated with the Apple iPod, a person can listen to a podcast on any MP3 device. Similarly, the iTunes software is not necessary; other directories can be found at Podcast Alley, Podcast.net, and Podshow.com, while software for listening is available at juicereceiver.sourceforge.net/index.php and www.dopplerradio.net.