about I podder
- From: "Joseph Machise" <josephmachise@xxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <jfw@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Thu, 17 Nov 2005 05:00:37 -0500
Dear People on the list,
I have tried to send you the Ipodder program,
but I can't send it threw the system,
so I am sending you the Ipodder Manual,
you can go to the site and get the program,
I hope you will be able to write scripts for the program.
All the best from Joseph,
please reply to these posts.
Why do bad things happen to good people!
iPodder 1.1 for Windows Manual iPodder 1.1 for Windows Manual
Author:Lisa Williams
Organization:iPodder "Lemon Edition" Team
Version:1.4
Date:2004/11/23
Table of Contents
1 The Basics of iPodder
1.1 What is iPodder? What is a podcast?
1.2 Where can I download new versions of the software?
1.3 Where can I find information and updates on iPodder and podcasting?
2 Installation
2.1 Download iPodder
2.2 Install iPodder
2.2.1 Start installation
2.2.2 Agree to the iPodder GNU GPL license
2.2.3 Choose where you want to install iPodder
2.2.4 Desktop Icons and launch iPodder when you start your computer
2.2.5 Install iPodder
2.2.6 Last steps to install iPodder
3 First Time iPodder
3.1 Finding podcasts to subscribe to
3.2 Downloading new podcasts
3.3 Getting podcasts onto your iPod
3.4 Podcasts are everywhere
4 iPodder Features, Step by Step
4.1 The Status Tab
4.1.1 Add a feed Manually
4.1.2 The Subscriptions Window
4.1.3 Select Feeds from the Podcast Directory
4.1.4 Remove Selected Feed
4.1.5 Check For New Podcasts
4.1.6 Check selected feed
4.1.7 Status
4.1.8 Hide
4.1.9 Quit
4.2 The Scheduler Tab
4.2.1 Scheduler Options
4.2.2 Checking podcast feeds at specific times
4.2.3 Checking podcast feeds at regular intervals
4.2.4 Apply scheduler settings
4.2.5 Scheduler Information
4.3 The Preferences Tab
4.3.1 General Options
4.3.2 Advanced Options
4.4 The Info Tab
4.4.1 Karma
4.5 The Log Tab
4.5.1 Good Reasons to Read the Log
5 Glossary
6 FAQ
6.1 Do you need to have an iPod to use iPodder?
6.1.1 Using iPodder to download podcasts to play on your computer
6.1.2 Use iPodder to download podcasts to play on your non-iPod Mp3
player
7 About This Manual
7.1 Author
7.2 Credits
7.3 Version History
1 The Basics of iPodder
1.1 What is iPodder? What is a podcast?
iPodder helps you find, subscribe to, and download fresh audio onto your iPod.
Podcasts are audio distributed in MP3 format using ROSS technology. Podcast
content can be everything from great homebrewed radio shows, music, and
increasingly, shows from public and commercial radio that stations are making
available for you to listen to how you want to and when you want to on your
computer or portable media player.
iPodder was created by the iPodder development team:
Concept by Adam Curry and Dave Winer
Erik de Jonge (dev)
Andrew Grumet (dev/gui)
Martijn Venrooy (design/gui)
Perica Zivkovic (dev)
Garth T Kidd (dev)
David Janes (dev)
PJ Cabrera (dev)
Helio Chissini de Castro (dev)
Many team members have weblogs. You can find updates about the team and links
to
some of their sites by visiting http://ipodder.sourceforge.net/team/index.php
1.2 Where can I download new versions of the software?
You can download the newest versions of iPodder at the iPodder project page on
Sourceforge: http://ipodder.sourceforge.net/index.php
1.3 Where can I find information and updates on iPodder and podcasting?
You can find information about iPodder and podcasting at http://www.ipodder.org
2 Installation
2.1 Download iPodder
Download iPodder[version number].exe from
http://ipodder.sourceforge.net/index.php.
2.2 Install iPodder
2.2.1 Start installation
Click on the iPodder.exe icon. A Setup Wizard will launch. The first screen of
the Setup Wizard will tell you to close other programs before installing
iPodder.
2.2.2 Agree to the iPodder GNU GPL license
The next screen will show you the iPodder license (GNU GPL). Click "I Agree."
2.2.3 Choose where you want to install iPodder
On the next screen, choose which folder you want iPodder setup to install
iPodder in.
2.2.4 Desktop Icons and launch iPodder when you start your computer
The next screen will ask you if you want to add a Desktop shortcut icon, and
whether you would like iPodder to launch automatically when you turn on your
computer (the checkbox says "Add to Startup Group." Both are checked by
default.
If you don't want one or both of these options, uncheck the boxes.
2.2.5 Install iPodder
Press "Install." You will see a dialog box with a window showing the files that
iPodder is installing on your hard drive, and a status bar showing the progress
of the installation.
2.2.6 Last steps to install iPodder
At the end of the installation, you will be presented with a screen that has
two
checkboxes -- one which will ask if you want to see the README file (always a
good idea) and another checkbox that will ask if you want to launch iPodder
right away. Click it if you want to launch iPodder.
3 First Time iPodder
Launch iPodder. You will be looking at the Status window (see 4.1). It will be
mostly empty except for one podcast feed entitled Adam Curry: iPodder Test
Channel. You can click on "Check for New Podcasts" in the lower right of the
Status Window to download a "test" audio file from the iPodder test channel.
3.1 Finding podcasts to subscribe to
To subscribe to a few podcasts, click the"Select Feeds from the Podcast
Directory" button. You will be able to browse a directory of podcasts. Click on
the folders until you see a podcast that looks interesting to you. Click on the
name of the podcast, and then click the "Add selected feed button" at the
bottom
left of the dialog box. If you'd like to add a few more feeds, go ahead. If
not,
click Close.
3.2 Downloading new podcasts
Once you've selected one or more podcasts and added them to the Subscriptions
window, click "Check for New Podcasts." iPodder will scan your subscriptions
and
download the most recent podcasts from the feeds you selected. While it
downloads, you'll see status information in the Status window (for more info on
all the things tha the Status bars tell you, see 4.1.8).
3.3 Getting podcasts onto your iPod
For podcasts to get onto your iPod, you must let iTunes know what folder you
are
downloading the podcasts (which are mainly in mp3 format) to. Open iTunes.
Click
File>Add Folder to Library. If you don't know which folder iPodder is storing
the downloaded podcasts, in, click the Preferences tab in iPodder. You will see
a dialog box showing the folder iPodder is downloading podcasts to. (For more
information about setting your iPodder preferences, see 4.3). Sync your iPod,
and you're done! Bo-oo-iing!
3.4 Podcasts are everywhere
Remember that not all podcasts are in the podcast directory. The podcast
community is growing very rapidly, and no one directory or search engine
currently has it all. You can also find podcasts at www.podcaster.net and at
www.feedster.tv, as well as by simply using a search engine. For information on
how to add any podcast from anywhere to your iPodder subscriptions, see 4.1.2.
4 iPodder Features, Step by Step
4.1 The Status Tab
The Status Tab is the first iPodder screen you see when you launch the
application, and it is where you will spend most of your time. The status
window
shows which shows you are subscribed to, allows you to add or delete shows from
the list, and allows you to launch a check to see if any of the shows you are
subscribed to have new episodes. Here is a screenshot of the Status Tab:
The Status Tab
4.1.1 Add a feed Manually
At the top of the Status window, you'll see an address bar preceded by the
phrase "Add feed manually." If you know the address of the RSS feed of a show
you would like to subscribe to, you can type or cut and paste it into this
window. Press the Add button to the right of the address bar, and the show will
be added to the list.
4.1.2 The Subscriptions Window
Immediately beneath the Add Feed Manually bar, you will see a window which
lists
the podcasts you are subscribed to. The subscriptions window has four columns:
Name: Shows name of the podcast (sometimes this is a URL, sometimes a more
conventional show name, like "Morning Coffee Notes")
State: Shows whether you are subscribed or unsubscribed from a particular
podcast
MB: Shows how many megabytes of content you have downloaded from that source
thus far (this is not the size of files that will be downloaded in the
future,
so don't be scared if the numbers get larger as you use iPodder)
Location: This is the URL of the RSS feed that is associated with the podcast
4.1.3 Select Feeds from the Podcast Directory
Immediately below the Subscriptions Window are two buttons. The button on the
right opens a window which allows you to browse a directory of podcasts. You
will see a number of folders containing links to podcasts. If you click on a
podcast, the URL of its feed will show up in an address bar below the directory
window. If you click "Add Selected Feed" immediately below the directory
window,
the selected feed will be added to your subscriptions, and you'll receive any
podcasts that are put into that feed the next time you check your
subscriptions.
Here is a screenshot of how iPodder shows you the podcast directory:
Selecting Feeds from the Podcast Directory
4.1.4 Remove Selected Feed
To the left of the Select Feeds from The Podcast Directory button, you will see
a button marked "Remove selected feed." If you click on a podcast in your
Subscriptions Window (See 4.1.3), it will be highlighted. If you click the
Remove selected feed button, the highlighted feed will be removed from your
list
of subscriptions.
4.1.5 Check For New Podcasts
Clicking this button will cause iPodder to scan all the subscriptions shown in
your Subscriptions window and check them for new podcasts. If it finds any new
podcasts, they will automatically be downloaded for you.
4.1.6 Check selected feed
If you only want to check on one of your subscribed feeds for new podcasts, you
can highlight the feed in the Subscriptions window and click "Check Selected
Feed.
4.1.7 Status
The Status area has two status bars. The top bar shows the progress that
iPodder
makes as it scans the feeds you are subscribed to to see if there are any new
podcasts associated with those feeds. While you are checking your
subscriptions,
this bar will show you which feeds it is scanning as it runs through them.
The second status bar shows you how many enclosures (podcasts) you have
downloaded. If you are currently downloading a podcast, it will show you the
status of that podcast.
While you are downloading new podcasts, the top status bar will change. The
bottom status bar shows you the download progress of a particular podcast,
while
the top status bar will show you how many podcasts total you have downloaded in
this session, and how many you have left to download.
When you are done, the top status bar will be blank, and a line of text will
give you the date and time of your last check. Above the lower status bar, it
will tell you how many enclosures (podcasts) have been fetched (identified as
new and downloaded).
4.1.8 Hide
Hides iPodder, but lets it run in the background.
4.1.9 Quit
Shuts down iPodder.
4.2 The Scheduler Tab
The Scheduler Tab allows you to set iPodder to check your subscriptions
automatically. This is useful if you would like to set iPodder to check your
subscriptions and download new podcasts while you are asleep or away from your
computer. You do not need to set a schedule for iPodder for iPodder to work. If
you don't want automatic downloads, you can simply launch iPodder and click the
"Check for new podcasts" button to scan for any new podcasts that have been
issued since the last time you checked.
4.2.1 Scheduler Options
To have iPodder download podcasts automatically, you must click the "Check for
new podcasts automatically" checkbox at the top left of the Scheduler Window.
Once you decide to enable iPodder to check for and download podcasts
automatically, you have two scheduler options -- checking at particular times
you specify, or checking at an interval (12 hours, 24 hours, etc).
4.2.2 Checking podcast feeds at specific times
Check the radio button on the left of the Scheduler options window if you want
to specify particular times for iPodder to scan your subscriptions.
4.2.3 Checking podcast feeds at regular intervals
Check the radio button on the left of the Scheduler Options window if you want
iPodder to check your subscriptions at a particular interval (12 hours, etc).
4.2.4 Apply scheduler settings
Be sure to press the Apply scheduler settings button, directly below the
Scheduler Options window, once you have made your schedule selections.
4.2.5 Scheduler Information
The scheduler information window, directly below the Scheduler Options window,
will tell you when iPodder last checked your subscriptions ("Latest run") and
when it will next check your subscriptions ("Next run").
4.3 The Preferences Tab
The Preferences window gives you some options to control how iPodder starts up,
what it does with the podcasts it downloads, and an extension to allow you to
execute Windows commands after each download.
4.3.1 General Options
General options control how iPodder starts up and what it does with the
podcasts
it downloads.
4.3.1.1 Hide iPodder at Startup
Hides iPodder on startup, allowing it to run in the background as you work. An
iPodder icon will be visible in the System Tray.
4.3.1.2 Check for new podcasts at startup
Directs iPodder to check for new podcasts when you launch iPodder.
4.3.1.3 Play downloads
iPodder will launch and play newly downloaded podcasts. Note: if this is
checked, and you have iPodder set up to download podcasts at 3AM, this means
you
may hear Adam Curry's voice playing from your computer at 3:06 AM. You may want
to uncheck this button if you use scheduling and don't want to be awoken by
downloads of new podcasts at odd hours. (For more information on scheduling
podcast downloads, see 4.2).
4.3.1.4 Select a folder
This allows you to tell iPodder what folder to put downloaded podcasts in.
4.3.2 Advanced Options
Advanced options allow you to tell iPodder to execute a particular Windows
command after each download, and show a log of which commands it executed and
the results. This window can also be used to run scripts on newly downloaded
content. This feature is currently under development and may or may not work
with a given script or command -- future versions of iPodder may include
different options here.
4.4 The Info Tab
The Info window gives information on:
The version of iPodder you are using
The names of the iPodder team
Technology that iPodder is based on
A disclaimer and license
Information on how to donate to the iPodder development project
4.4.1 Karma
The iPodder development team does not currently have an iPod to use to test the
iPodder software. Donating a few bucks makes Buddha say bo-oo-iiing!
4.5 The Log Tab
The Log Tab gives you a chronological list of the actions iPodder has
performed.
In general, the log will show you a list of feeds, when they were last checked,
if there were any new podcasts (called "enclosures" in the log), and when they
were downloaded.
The log statements are issued in fairly plain English. After awhile, your log
will get quite long. You're unlikely to need log statements from many weeks
ago.
To clean up your log and start fresh, press the "Clear" button directly under
the log window.
4.5.1 Good Reasons to Read the Log
Podcasting is in its infancy, and as a result, many podcast producers change
the
address of their feeds frequently. You may notice that you've subscribed to a
feed only to find that you've been scanning it for a week or two without any
new
podcasts. Looking at the log may tell you that that feed's address is now "404"
or no longer there. At that point, you can go to the website associated with
the
podcast and find out if there is a new feed address or if the show has been
discontinued, and you can delete the broken/missing/incorrect feed from your
list of subscriptions.
5 Glossary
Podcast
Audio in MP3 format distributed via RSS
RSS
Really Simple Syndication. iPodder reads RSS files, often called "feeds," to
check for any new podcasts.
Enclosures
Enclosures are files -- audio, video, or other -- whose links are embedded in
an RSS feed.
Feed(s)
RSS files are often referred to as "feeds," because unlike most files, they
are intended to change frequently to alert RSS readers to new content. Hence
an RSS feed "feeds" us new blog posts or podcasts. RSS is used to automate
the
distribution many different kinds of information so that a user doesn't have
to check back to a website all the time to see what's new -- RSS helps
deliver
it to them.
6 FAQ
6.1 Do you need to have an iPod to use iPodder?
-- Alison Fish (http://afish.typepad.com) No! You can use portable Mp3 players
other than the iPod. In fact, you don't need a portable Mp3 player at all to
use
iPodder to enjoy listening to podcasts.
6.1.1 Using iPodder to download podcasts to play on your computer
You don't need a portable mp3 player to use iPodder. If you're just listening
to
audio on your computer, you can use iPodder to subscribe to podcast feeds and
download podcasts to a given directory on your computer (see 4.3.1.4 for
directions on how to telliPodder where to put the things it downloads). Then
you
just have a folder of MP3s, which you can click on and play with any program
you
have on your computer that plays mp3s.
6.1.2 Use iPodder to download podcasts to play on your non-iPod Mp3 player
If you have a portable MP3 player other than an iPod, you can still use iPodder
to put podcasts on your player. Once you have your folder of iPodder downloads,
you can drag and drop them into your MP3 player in whatever way you usually add
audio to your portable player.If you use a jukebox program to manage the music
on your portable player, many have options like the one in iTunes where you
tell
the jukebox program to add or watch a certain folder, and it will add anything
new in that folder to your MP3 player. If you tell your jukebox program to
watch
the directory iPodder puts new podcasts in, it should give you access to the
podcasts (To find out what folder iPodder is putting downloaded podcasts in,
see
4.3.1.4).
7 About This Manual
7.1 Author
Lisa Williams http://www.cadence90.com/wp/ lisa AT cadence90 DOT com
7.2 Credits
Thanks to Andrew Grumet and Erik Jonge for answering questions to help make
this
manual better.
Thanks to Garth Kidd for introducing me to ReStructured Text.
7.3 Version History
Version 1.1 (11/22/04) Added FAQ section with information on how to use iPodder
without an iPod.
Version 1.2 (11/23/04) Introduced a version of the manual using
ReStructuredText
for automatic generation of HTML docs. My first attempt at ReStructured Text
markup. May be bumpy.
Version 1.3 (11/26/04) Added screenshots for Status Tab and Select Feeds from
Podcast Directory.
View document source. Generated on: 2004-11-28 11:51 UTC. Generated by Docutils
from reStructuredText source.
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