Podcasts are one of the most popular forms of media today. Usually offered as an mp3 audio file, the podcast is like a slice of radio but with much more flexibility. A podcast can be listened to at any time and pretty much anywhere in a number of ways.
Our audience at Mendelspod is technically savvy. Still, from time to time we get a question about how to listen to the show. Most often it’s “how do I download the Mendelspod show to my iPhone?" So today we’re putting out this guide that goes over the 5 ways of listening to a podcast.
1. Play podcast and listen with your desktop or laptop. This is by far the most straight forward way to listen to Mendelspod, yet perhaps the most limiting in that you have to be at your computer to listen.
2. Download the mp3 file and listen through your media player. Perhaps you only have time to listen to part of a podcast and not all. Yet if you close your browser window, you lose your place. There is a way to download the podcast to your computer and play it at your leisure.
How To Download a Mendelspod Podcast To Your Computer
The process of downloading the audio file to your computer depends upon your browser and whether you are on Windows or Macintosh.
Windows
For Internet Explorer, right-click on the MP3 Audio file (located on the bottom grey bar of the podcast player) and choose “save this link” from the pop-up contextual menu.
For Firefox, alt-click on the MP3 Audio file and choose “save this link” from the pop-up contextual menu.
Macintosh
For Safari, control-click on the MP3 audio file and choose “download linked file” from the pop-up contextual menu.
For Firefox, control-click on the MP3 audio file and choose “save link as” from the pop-up contextual menu.
3. Subscribe to podcast through RSS. Let’s say you’ve listened to a podcast on Mendelspod, and now you want to subscribe so that each time we produce a show, you are notified. One of the most common ways to subscribe is through RSS feeds.
How to Subscribe to Mendelspod through RSS Feed
On the Mendelspod Home page, click RSS Feed. This will take you to a page powered by FeedBurner listing all of the recent Mendelspod content. From here you can either play the mp3 or download it just as you do from the Mendelspod site.
Also on this page, you’ll see the chance to subscribe via web-based “podcatchers” such as Podnova.com or with iTunes.
You can also have the Mendelspod feed delivered to your mailbox each day buy clicking the link on Mendelpsod Home RSS via Email.
4. Subscribe to Mendelspod through iTunes. iTunes is by far the most common software used to subscribe to a podcast and the iTunes store is the largest collection of podcasts.
Simply open iTunes (you may need to download first) and click File, then Subscribe to Podcast. iTunes will automatically populate the most recent shows from Mendelspod.
5. Listen to Mendelspod on your phone or tablet. Now we’ll get into the fun stuff. Accessing Mendelspod podcasts from your phone means you can catch our show while on the go--at the lab bench, in your car, or at the gym.
How to listen to Mendelspod on the iPhone, iPad, iPod
I’m listing some links to help out here. The first is Apple support. Note that since iOS 6, Apple offers a Podcasts app which makes managing podcasts on your iPhone and iPad quite easy.
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3281?viewlocale=en_US&locale=en_US
This second link offers a list of alternative podcasts apps in addition to Apple’s own app. At the top of the list are Downcast and Pocket Casts.
http://appadvice.com/appguides/show/podcast-apps
How to listen to Mendelspod on an Android mobile device
This article published by DigitalTrends.com offers instructions for downloading a podcast to your Android device.
http://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/how-to-download-listen-to-podcasts-android-ios-iphone/
How to listen to Mendelspod on a Windows 8 phone
This first article about subscribing to podcasts is offered by Windows phone support.
http://www.windowsphone.com/en-us/how-to/wp7/music/subscribe-to-podcasts
This second article suggest still using iTunes even with the Windows 8 phone.
http://winsupersite.com/windows-phone/windows-phone-8-tip-enjoy-podcasts-go
Finally, this third article gives a detailed comparison of 3rd party apps for Windows Phone 8.
http://allaboutwindowsphone.com/features/item/18410_Podcatchers_podcast_managers-c.php
There you have it. 5 different ways to listen to the Mendelspod show. Many of our shows are video and all of these can be accessed over Youtube and the Youtube app as well. But for the regular podcast fans in the audience, we always offer the audio version of every show.
Happy listening!
Note: Please write in and tell us how, when, and where you listen to Mendelspod. Over the next few weeks, we’ll be publishing these stories to share your podcast listening ideas with others.
