this (for me) has got to be the number one, top of the list, first and foremost, craziest, stupidest, and by FAR most annoying interactive audio issue in the wild and whacky world of ringtones. right now, there are *at*least* fifty (50!) different ringtone formats being sold to consumers on over 500 different models of cell phone. how did this...

The 2nd Annual Podcast & Portable Media Expo brings together influential podcasters, media, corporate executives and device makers to cover business, marketing and legal issues for audio and video podcasts and portable media.

Given my history working with established artists, I'm often asked by my clients to seek their participation in various endeavors involving either new technologies or new forms of distribution (or both). However working with artists is in itself an art -- and requires a certain delicacy, diplomacy, and an understanding of how they think & operate (which often as not...

For almost a century, Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov's Principles of Orchestration has shown composers the secrets of arranging music for orchestral instruments. Thanks to Garritan's new Flash-based version, you can now see and hear the examples play back for free. About a year ago, composer Greg Moore recommended I check out the work sound designer Gary Garritan was doing, including his...

Every bit of research I've seen shows that iTunes is the number one podcatcher. My own shows generate about 80% of their audience via the iTunes Music Store. Unfortunately, there is often some lag time between when I upload a new show to Libsyn and when that show appears in the iTunes Music Store podcast list. There is a fix for this. You can manually ping iTunes and let them know your show has been updated. Here's how to do it.

If you have at least seven of these traits, I'd say you're well on your way to having what it takes to be a podcaster. There might be one more I'd throw in as an afterthought...if you want to be a professional podcaster, you must be willing to constantly explain how you earn a living to your father-in-law.

Given your involvement in digital media, you've no doubt heard of The Long Tail http://www.thelongtail.com. This is the notion, made famous by former Wired editor Chris Anderson, that suggests that people value highly cherished entertainment content that's important to them but that they can't find anywhere but online because it's viewed by the major content owners as too obscure to...

Talk about happy coincidences: About the time my analog desk phone died last month, Skype made computer-to-telephone calling free. (Computer-to-computer Skype calls have always been free.) Because I'd bought the old phone specifically to work with a telephone tap, I started looking into ways to record Skype-based interviews. I found an easy and inexpensive solution called Ecamm Call Recorder. My...

Lightroom can process files from hundreds of digital cameras. This is a real plus for photographers who enjoy using older models as well as the latest and greatest. For example, I just posted an article on Raw Photography with Older Cameras where I waxed happily about how I still enjoy shooting with my black Canon PowerShot G2. It supports...

In Hong Kong a couple of weeks ago, and the media and volk seemed obsessed by the "Bus Uncle" incident. The Wikipedia entry is pretty good on it. A phone video of a probably drunken exchange on a bus was downloaded onto YouTube, a video file sharing site very popular in Asia, and had over 2 million hits, and found...