I have a thought but wanted to get the communities input before I invest the time, energy and money to make this happen
I am thinking about setting up a video podcast that focuses on EZ-Robot stuff. The thought is to produce a weekly show that would cover things asked in the community, network related things, ARC things, plugin things. I would do a live show and record while doing the live show, and then edit the parts that need to be edited to post the podcasts. Guests would be able to skype in to the show to discuss things that they are working on such as plugins or whatever.
I would setup a mumble server that would allow the community to participate like a call-in to ask questions or participate in the conversation from time to time. I would also setup an IRC chatroom to allow people to discuss things during the show which would possibly become part of the show. Again, Skype could be used to provide specific guests access to show off what they are working on.
There is a lot of equipment that would be needed to make this happen and I would make sure that the broadcast quality is HD but also stream through a few different outlets like twitch and youtube. I would also possibly include an RTSP, RTMP, HLS, Iphone and Radio stream. The setup would be based off of some of the more successful podcasts out there and could be nice not only for the community but also for educators.
Anyway, please let me know your thoughts. I don’t know if or when this would happen as I am just in the thought stage right now, trying to decide if this is something that I would like to do or not. I do think it would be beneficial to some and could also provide the teaching outlet that I have been trying to scratch.
I hesitate to be the first to respond, because I am going to be mostly negative, but it is very much based on my own personal preferences, not my opinion of whether this is a good idea or not.....
Personally, I detest podcasts. I can read 4-5 times faster than anyone talks, and I find written posts or blog entries to be better for long term reference (I can save them, search them with numerous tools, refer back to them later, etc...).
I simply don't have the time or patience to sit through a podcast, and even if you post them somewhere permanently so they can be reviewed by people who miss the live broadcast, you still lose the search-ability. This is the same reason I much prefer written tutorials or better yet, real documentation, to video tutorials.
That being said, podcasts, Ted talks, video blogs, and the like are very popular, so there must be plenty of people out there who disagree with me, hopefully many who overlap your target audience.
Alan
And Cheaper
Thanks for the input. I do appreciate it.
I think it would be an interesting avenue to explore, but if solely based on ez-robot stuff it could dry up a bit after a while, as I find developments on here come in waves. It may be worth your while to open up the subject area to other robotic developments, less arduino and more scientific or research based. It will allow you to keep it going, and hold the attention of outside viewers.
If I read what your saying correctly, then the goal of this podcast is to get community input and other people talking about the stated topics. It is a good way to get everyones opinion, and spread info in an interesting way.
I say it's worth a try, and if it doesn't work out, go to the written form like Alan suggested. Or perhaps have a speech to text engine going during the podcast and edit it before posting.
I had thought about making it more open for robotics in general. I would probably start with specifics for EZ-Robot stuff and then spread further if the content dried up.
I could also produce multiple podcasts. Check out Jupiter Broadcasting (http://www.jupiterbroadcasting.com). I participate in a few of their shows and learn/enjoy/agree/disagree with the shows a lot. They have a show called Linux Unplugged that I enjoy due to the community participation aspect of it.
Email coming Ron
David,
I would also suggest looking into creating a YouTube channel. You can also stream live in HD. No need to purchase special equipment and it's free. Id suggest looking into Patreon. You can create a subscriber service where people donate say $1 for every video you produce. Some robotics guys are making $2500 a month. The more videos you make the more money you can make. If that's something you are looking to do. Plus you have a larger audience to find you By chance. You would only be able to interact with your audience on your live broadcasts.
My 2 cents
Thanks, I appreciate the recommendations.
If I do this, I am going to go all in on it. I just don't yet know if I will or not.
I am already a Patreon member, just haven't put out anything yet. I have supported some people there though.
The live stream is what I am really interested in. I am looking into some good equipment that will allow a lot of things to happen. I know of a group that I can use that allows me to stream the content to them, and then they push out multiple feeds with youtube being one of them. The biggest issue that I have with youtube is that they will cut your stream if you play some background music or some video that is copyrighted. I totally get why they would do it and agree with it, it just means that if this is my only stream and I do something stupid, then I get cut.
I am considering pushing out to kodi boxes and the like. This is the way I normally consume feeds for the larger podcasts. Kodi then offers a much larger audience once I am "discovered" but then also allows for schools and the like to then play the video on tv/projector much easier.