Podcasting for Libraries

Podcasting: Searching for Content

Searching for literature in the public domain can be simplified by using the internet as a tool. Be careful of the resources you use as many personal websites on the internet may be unwittingly using content that is still copyrighted. Literature by A. A. Milne that features his character Winnie-the-Pooh is still copyrighted, yet, many personal websites have work posted by this author.
Websites that might prove useful for research purposes are:
www.gutenberg.org
www.books.google.com (Search for books marked as Public Domain)
www.archive.org In the end, keep in mind that you are the one responsible for knowing the works and being sure of the existing rights, if any, of the work to prevent yourself from infringing on copyright. Copyright infringement is punishable by law with statutory damages being awarded up to $150,000 per willful infringement of each work.

Podcasting for Libraries: Part 2

2). Programming Content

Copyright Law & Content

Copyright prohibits the use of a work by anyone other than the author. It is a common mis-perception that if you are not benefiting or making money from the work that you can use it as you will, however, this is not true. The Disney Corporation and various music production companies are well known for guarding their assets to the teeth so it is a good idea to take copyright infringement lightly, either ethically or financially.

For a work to be in the public domain it must be:

Published prior to 1923

or

Published without copyright notice between 1923 and 1977

or

Published with notice between 1923 and 1963 but copyright was not renewed

or

Published between 1978 and March 1, 1989 but without notice and without subsequent registration within 5 years

Otherwise the work still has copyright on it. Notice that all these laws change from country to country – you might not be able to use a book here in the US but find that it is within the public domain in another country. For more information, visit http://www.copyright.cornell.edu/public_domain/

Certain exceptions do apply. The doctrine of “fair use” allows for limited reproduction of a work for scholarly purposes, criticism and comment. For more information, visit: http://www.copyright.gov/fls/fl102.html

Upcoming blog posts will cover these following topics in Part 2:

Copyright Law & Content

• General law

Searching for Content

• Public Domain Literature
• Obtaining Author & Publisher Permission for Copyrighted Materials

Podcasting for Libraries

Programming Format

Who is Your Audience?

Identify your audience. Who do you desire to connect with and become a valuable resource for?

Identify the obstacles of reaching your audience. It seems that most of the patrons who are 'tweens to early twenties are familiar with and use MP3 players. The farther up in age, the larger the obstacle to inform a patron and make this technology relevant and accessible.

Endless Possibilities of Format:

o Book chats
o Audio recordings of classical and public-domain literature
o Audio recording of copyrighted literature that has been granted permission by author or publisher for use
o Recording of book club discussions
o First-hand accounts of local historical events
o Interviews
o Audio tours of a facility or website

What formats have you found to be the most interesting to you? What do you think would most apply to your library?

Want to learn to podcast?

I'll be posting tips and detailed how-to's on podcast....so keep tuned! In the meanwhile, check out Albert Lea Public Library's Podcast "Classics On-the-Go"- I've uploaded over 30 podcasts. These are stories read by volunteers, recorded with freeware using audio equipment that cost less than $150.

ImageChef.com

Interesting library news podcast

Interesting podcast content - it was last current in June or July but the idea of a library news podcast is intriguing...

http://libvibe.blogspot.com/

Also interesting to listen to as a podcaster - listening to the intros/exits and newsvoice.

Podcast in full swing!

I've been podcasting for a while now and have learned a lot....a lot! I've also been working on doing a write up on how-to as it's possible I might be presenting this information.

The volunteers have been awesome with the project - we all have a little diva in us!

What's been really interesting is what is popular for download and what isn't. Mother Goose? Not so much....Edward Lear's The Duck and the Kangaroo? Like gangbusters! Same with The Three Little Bears. (But who doesn't love that one? And it's an even older version with a naughty old lady - not Goldilocks. In my opinion, hilarious!)

Podcast up and going!

Alright, I've been hard at work recording children's stories (in the public domain) read by volunteers, editing them and then uploading them to our podcast website.

It has been a fantastic experience - I've learned a lot and am still learning. Some recording issues are unsolvable - like, what do you do in a building where EVERY room has a rattling air condition vent (or several) and if you render them useless you'll end up sweating out the volunteer and yourself?

I've found some great, user friendly tools and set-ups and some that aren't as easy but are necessary.

It took me about four months of research (the kind you do here and there and on weekends) .

It's a wonderfully geeky world with great volunteers. We're getting some favorites and eclectic materials recorded - it's great.

Music & Podcasting

One of the challenges of podcasting is creating a polished work. Music in the intro or to segue can help you accomplish a more sophisticated podcast.

Some websites worth visiting and with great goals are:
www.musopen.com
www.opsound.org
http://www.jamendo.com/en/
http://freemusic.org.ru/

http://www.soundsnap.com/ - Sound effects and loops.

As always, visit the licensing page of the website/artist to find out if and how you are allowed to use their work and what licensing you must make your production.

Have some websites you'd like to share? Please do!

19). Podcasting

I prefer Podcastalley.com for podcast searching. I'm pretty enmeshed in podcasting right now. I've been designing a podcast program for the library. It's a collection of children's classic literature that's in the public domain (no copyright worries) and I'm soliciting patrons as readers for the content. I'm absolutely excited every time I get a new person interested in being involved.

I've also done recording with Audacity. Audacity is the perfect recording software. It's free and does all that you need it to do and more. For recording equipment we're using a usb hook-up mic to laptop and a few other various sorts of eqipment. (Pop filter, headphones....)

When we have our podcasts up I'll be posting the RSS feed link.

There are many possibilties for libraries to explore with podcasting - one that I've got rolling around in my head if this all goes well is the idea of collecting oral histories or doing a community reading (a different person reading each chapter) of a larger work.

Want to listen to classics or do some reading and share it with others? Check out LibriVox - it's a VERY awesome project. Also check out Project Gutenberg - tons fo eBooks and audio.