It is possible to add podcast RSS feeds to the program which will then be processed automatically whenever the program is running on the computer system. The download interval for the selected podcasts can be changed in the program’s configuration.

It is possible to specify a download directory and a mp3 player podcast directory to move, sync or copy podcasts to the mp3 player directly after downloading them. Other available options include running a task after downloading podcasts or to download mp3 files only when downloading podcasts.

Robert’s Podcatcher will be default only download the last podcast from each RSS feed even if it has been added as a new podcast to the program. The only way to download previous podcasts is to click on the Catch Mo’ button to select them for download one by one. An option to download all podcasts of a specific feed at once would have been nice.

The podcast downloader requires a background process that uses about eight Megabytes of computer memory. That’s in addition to the two Megabytes used by the main program. Robert’s Podcatcher might be nevertheless useful for some users who do not use a music player with integrated podcast support. The portable software can be downloaded from the developer’s website. Should be compatible with most versions of Microsoft Windows.

When I read the description of Dir Caster it occurred to me that this must be one of the easiest ways to create a Podcast feed. Just upload the script to your webspace, place the mp3 files with correct ID3 tags in the same dir and et voila, the RSS feed gets updated.

The user only needs to publish the directory of Dir Caster or the url for the podcast feed to his audience who can then subscribe to the feed in programs like iTunes, iPodder or Doppler. This system is not restricted to podcasts however which means that you can also add music to the directory and make the link available to some of your friends.

The friends can then subscribe to the podcast and listen to the music that you upload to the web directory. The file config_inc.php has to be edited to reflect your podcast. You add the name, author and additional information to it.

Not all podcasts are like radio shows of course, some look much more like audio lessons, like university courses without the classes. And this is what I will be talking about now. I found a great website that has three large lists of links to websites that offer podcasts that teach you something. That something is either languages, cultur or university courses. It is up to you of course to decide what you want to learn and hear, just download all the podcasts you like and transfer them to your mp3 player. All podcasts are encoded in mp3 format which makes it possible to have even large lessons take up just some megabytes.

Let us take a look at the three possibilities:

Languages: Links to podcasts that teach you 14 languages including German, French and Japanese. Most of the courses are for beginners, I suggest you read the explanation at the website that compiled the list before you download the podcasts.

University Courses: A compilation of links to colleges and universities (US) that offer free podcasts of some of their lectures. You find a wide variety of courses such as law and social sciences.

Culture: Many links to interesting podcasts and even audio texts. Concentrates on art, pop culture and media. Great.