My favorite podcasts

If you’re at all familiar with the world of online music or the music revolution that is the iTunes music store you’ve heard about the latest craze, podcasting. What is it? It’s rather simple really. Podcasts are simply audio files (usually mp3) that the producers make available to listeners on a (usually) regular schedule. It’s sort of like delayed radio, but much better. iTunes has a built-in podcast manager that automatically gets the newest issues of all of your subscribed podcasts. But, this post isn’t about what podcasts are, it’s about what some of my favorites are. All of these links go to iTunes, which is a free download from Apple.
I’m a fan of several podcasts for different reasons. Below are a few that I listen to regularly.
The Ricky Gervais Show
I’m a HUGE fan of BBC’s The Office and Ricky Gervais is the man who played the wonderful David Brent. This podcast is hosted by the two writers of The Office (Gervais and Steve Merchant) as well as the increadibly funny Karl Pilkington (whom is usually the target of Ricky and Steve’s brutal assault). The show captures many of the bits of humor that make The Office so great and it’s a great way to get your dry english comedy fix until Extras is out on DVD. They’re only going to produce 12 episodes (they’ve done 9 so far) and then they’re taking a break, so get on the train while you still can!
Website: http://www.rickygervais.com
Photoshop TV
I’ve always been a little overwhelmed by how many different things Photoshop is able to do and like most users I have only mastered part of its capabilities. So, I decided to check out Photoshop TV and find out if it might assist me and growing my Photoshop skills little by little. I’m very excited about this podcast, which features several tips and tricks on every episode. So far I’ve watched about 5 episodes and I’ve learned at least 1 (usually 2) tricks that I didn’t know before each time I’ve watched it. It’s hosted by three well known people in the Photoshop community known as “The Photoshop Guys“. It’s worth checking out if you’re looking to further your Photoshop skills or find out how other professionals use the software.
Website: http://www.photoshopguys.com/
ABC’s Lost: The (Enhanced) Transmission
Hosted by Ryan and Jen from Hawaii (where Lost if filmed) The Transmission is considered by many Lost fans to be the best Lost podcast out there. Each show they now only recap the previous episode and talk about their ideas for the show but they also have some information about filming locations (which sometimes will give you a taste of what’s coming up in the show). At close to 2 hours long it’s one of the longest podcasts I’ve seen which I think is great. They also feature the Lostline which allows show listeners to call in and leave their ideas/thoughts about Lost for others to hear.
(UPDATE: Ryan and Jen announced today that they are ending their podcast for scheduling reasons. However, if you’d like to hear their back episodes I believe that they will still be available.)
Website: http://www.hawaiiup.com/lost/
The Officil Lost Podcast
This podcast is hosted by Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse, both writers for Lost, and contains some wonderful hints about the show as well as a short segment where they answer fan questions. This podcast is pretty short but the quality of the hints they give out makes it worth listening to.
Website: http://abc.go.com/primetime/lost/podcasts/
Cinecast
If you’re a movie buff looking for an outlet Cinecast is for you. Sam Hallgren and Adam Kempenaar offer up some of the most in-depth reviews that I’ve ever heard and so far I trust their opinion more than I trust Ebert and Roeper. They really dive into each movie they review and give you all the information you need to decided rather to check out a film or not. They also do older films, which is pretty unusual. I enjoy hearing about older films that I’ve missed, it has given me many film ideas for my Netflix queue.
Website: http://www.cinecastshow.com/