In Touch Programming: Anytime, Anywhere

Since the editors of the New Oxford American Dictionary chose podcasting as their 2005 word of the year, chances are good that you know the term. What you may not know is that podcasting can revolutionize the way you listen to radio. And while the term is a shortened form of “iPod broadcasting,” the good news is that you don’t need an iPod to take advantage of this exciting technology. In fact, any kind of media player—even the one on your computer—can connect you to Dr. Charles Stanley’s vital teaching when it’s most convenient for you.

Simply put, podcasting was developed to make on-demand audio content available to listeners. Like TiVo or DVR for television, podcasting allows you to choose which programs you want to hear and when you want to listen to them. Using a software program on your personal computer (called an “aggregator”), you can subscribe to an audio (or video) program’s RSS feed. The aggregator then scans all your subscriptions according to the schedule you define. When it finds a new show, the aggregator copies the show to your computer’s audio library. You can then listen to your new shows whenever you want using any desktop audio player. The aggregator can take it even further; it an automatically download the program to your portable MP3 player.

You may have thought that without investing in an iPod (or other portable MP3 player), you wouldn’t benefit from podcasting. But you don’t need a portable player at all, much less an iPod. Nor do you have to have Apple’s aggregator, iTunes, to start listening to In Touch podcasts. Though iTunes is easy to use and readily available, you can find dozens of aggregators. Using any aggregator to receive the In Touch podcast frees you from the time constraints of a traditional radio broadcast by creating a “time shift,” bringing your favorite content right to your computer.

Perhaps In Touch and the daily devotional haven’t made it to your area yet; perhaps your drive time doesn’t coincide with your favorite station’s schedule; perhaps you always seem to miss one broadcast in a series: podcasting ensures you will always be able to listen to Dr. Stanley’s broadcasts. Even better, you’ll be able to listen anytime you want.

 Learn how to set up iTunes for Podcasting