Hello!

just wanted to repost the P.S. from the previous post to re-assure you that there is a real team behind this site and we are reading EVERY comment. The elves in Santa's workshop are still hard at work for the next version of Nokia Podcasting to implement many of the great suggestions that mostly originated from your comments on this site.

We apologize for the lack of updates to this blog and will work hard to get something up at least monthly if not more often. We dont want to waste your time posting empty hype, but there are many creative and cool things our Nokia Podcasting users are doing with the app which are definately worth sharing.

We'll update the site again this week with the SIS version of NOKIA PODCASTING which is now on the ROM software of N95 8GB, N81, N82 etc. There are some minor bug fixes and work done to improve the battery life, but the main value is that the text is now localized to the country languages. note that this is NOT a major updated, but is worth installing if you have only installed the previous 1.03 SIS. (No need to install if the app is in your SW or pre-installed)

Anyway, here is the repost from before:

I just got a comment asking if anyone is moderating this site. I get notified of every comment as its posted and often will send a personal email if there is a specific question. (as well as delete SPAM. You know who you are!) But since the scope of this blog isnt as a support site, there are some comments which are just forwarded to the development teams to evaluate the feedback for future development or bug fixes.

Just wanted to let you know that Big Brother is still watching, even if we dont always have something new to post.

Click Here to see a walkthrough demo of Nokia Podcasting
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http://www.devicescape.com

I just found out about this sweet little app and am posting the info before we've tested it on all the compatible devices. But it seems to work great on both N95 and N95 8GB, so I'm sharing it right away.

Devicescape.com works like a charm for all my "personal" WiFis APs … I setup the APs on the devicescape website and configured all my N95 Internet apps (Podcasting, Browser, etc.) to use the "Devicescape" access point by default. Whenever an app needs a connection, it auto-magically connects to the currently available WiFi - no fiddling around with settings anymore, no "Always ask"needed. Very neat ;)

Apparently it also works with commercial WiFis that require a login, but I haven't tried that, yet.

How do you do it?

1. Install the Devicescape application (http://www.devicescape.com) on the N95

2. Create an account on the devicescape website and add all the WiFis that you want to use to your profile (incl. WEP/WPA key settings, etc.)

3. Setup the Podcasting application to use the "Devicescape" access point by default

4. Now every time Podcasting needs a Internet connection it will automatically connect to the currently available WiFi network, without you having to change the settings or selecting the access point manually. This works for manual or automatic downloads.

This is especially helpful for Podcasts which have links to their website from their RSS to view/add comments or when a text enclosure requires the user to connect to a browser to view.

5. Of course, the "Devicescape" access point is available for all applications in the phone (Nokia Music Store, Browser, Maps, eMail, VoIP,, etc.)

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P.S.
I just got a comment asking if anyone is moderating this site. I get notified of every comment as its posted and often will send a personal email if there is a specific question. (as well as delete SPAM. You know who you are!) But since the scope of this blog isnt as a support site, there are some comments which are just forwarded to the development teams to evaluate the feedback for future development or bug fixes.

Just wanted to let you know that Big Brother is still watching, even if we dont always have something new to post.

Click Here to see a walkthrough demo of Nokia Podcasting
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Some podcasters are wondering why the "Content may not play on your device" warning is popping up for normal audio files. Our development team gives the answers:

The determining factor for whether or not the podcasting app displays this warning is actually not the file extension, but the mime type that is provided in the enclosure tag. (We only use the file extension for display on the UI.)

Whatever content you use, just make sure you provide a MIME type that is supported in our phones.

A complete list of Browser MIME types in Nokia GSM Devices can be found here:
http://www.forum.nokia.com/info/sw.nokia.com/id/444aa596-38d4-473c-81ed-657da920d163/Browser_MIME_Types_in_Nokia_GSM_Devices_v1_8_en.pdf.html
(look in Chapter 7 for S60 3rd edition).

One exception to this is MP4 (video and audio mp4 content). Because MP4 is a container format and we have no idea if the content within the MP4 container will be played correctly, for audio/mp4 or video/mp4 content we display the warning "might not display properly" and don't auto-download these episodes.

If your audio show is in aac format, the best MIME type would be "audio/aac" - that doesn't display any warnings.

And when creating an audio podcast specifically for a mobile audience, I would recommend to use AAC (or better yet, eAAC+) because of the smaller filesize and/or better quality at the same file size, compared to MP3.

The Nokia Music Manager from the Nokia PC Suite (download here) is able to convert your mp3 files into eAAC+.

NOTE: If you want your video podcast optimized for mobile (size, playback compatibility and no warning), use the format 3gp. (Most compatible devices are able to play frames per second (fps), newer devices like N95, N81, N93, etc can play 30 fps)

HACK!
OK....I realize you shouldnt need a workaround, but if you know your video format is compatible with the Nokia devices and you want to make sure the warning message doesnt come up, here is a way to "cheat".

If you have an MP4 video file in a format that for sure plays on our devices, you can set file extension to ".mpeg" and the mime type in the enclosure to "video/3gpp" to avoid that warning message and to allow auto-downloads ;) ... a bit hacky, but works nicely. Please note that the .mpeg extension is important, too.

Here's an example entry from an RSS feed:

Click Here to see a walkthrough demo of Nokia Podcasting
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I ran across this gem from The PodLounge while surfing the internet.

If anyone else out there is developing things that work with Nokia Podcasting, please let us know. Cool stuff like this puts a smile on my face.

From The PodLounge Forum:

For those of you with a Nokia mobile, the Nokia Podcasting Application is a real treat.

What's more - you can easily set The PodLounge to be your directory of choice for podcast searches:

Within the application go to: Options> Settings> Connection> Search Service URL and type in the following URL:

http://mobile.thepodlounge.com/nokia_search.php?q=#

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By following the above instructions, the next time you use the SEARCH feature, it will utilize ThePodLounge's directories. (Current default is from our friends at www.DigitalPodcast.com)

The ability to manually change your default Search directory is another way to personalize your mobile podcasting experience to get the content most relevant to your needs. Thanks to the PodLounge for offering this.

You can download Nokia Podcasting from the link above or click here to get detailed instructions.

Yes, it's been too long since the last update. (But I swear I've been answering just about every comment by private email. You havent been neglected or forgotten. :-) )

What's new?

Nokia will be attending the "Podcast & New Media Expo" again this year. We met a lot of fantastic and exciting Podcasters last year and got a lot of great feedback, so we're going to be out in sunny California to let everyone play with our new toys and we'll take copious notes about what you love, hate and wish for in your mobile podcasting apps.

If you want to come say hi, the date is 28-30 Sept in Ontario California at the Ontario Convention Center. Should be fun.

with that said, its also been too long since we've updated our default directories for our mobile app. So we'll be doing a minor overhaul of our RECOMMENDED and PODCAST DISCOVERY folders before then.

So in the past year, which audio and video podcasts do you find yourself listening to regularly? Who are the indie Podcast personalities or the mainstream podcast shows you cant live without? Are there certain themed folder topics that you want to see more of?

Or, if you are a podcaster who will be attending the event, be sure to let me know your Podcast Name, RSS Feed, and a note that you're coming and we'll try to get your show in a special subfolder for a limited time.

And before we start the comments, here's a little taste of something coming soon....

and in the very near future... the upcoming release of the Nseries Music Player will include the long-awaited and much requested Bookmarking feature.

(Great news... but be aware that the bookmarking is tied to the Music Player, NOT the Podcasting app. So only devices which either have the new player or have a sw update with the new player will have that feature. I know....I know... but the upcoming devices with Podcasting preinstalled should all have it.

Luckily there is now the Nokia Software Updater app up at Nokia.com, so those happy devices which take on the new player will be rocking and ready.

Just a reminder to check out the Nokia Music Podcast at our other blogspace: www.blogs.s60.com/nokiamusicpodcast

The shows are about 30-40 minutes long with full tracks, song commentaries and interviews with artists from many genres.

We started this show to try to practice what we preach... not only talk about podcasting, but also get hands on experience with all aspects of it. From the concepts, creation, distribution, etc.

It also helps to see different things which can be done in the RSS feeds to add value to the mobile podcast experience... and also the things which are a challenge. (Uh.. choosing "Go to Website" from the mobile takes me to the Music blog, but you have to scroll through a MESS of the side bars before finding the proper content. I think its a problem with the template of Movabletype, but something that still needs work to get a better experience.

But I've enjoyed finding podcasts which utilize the COMMENTS in the RSS feed so the mobile link can take you directly to browse or make comments on the device which is cool.

ANYWAY...

You can leave comments for the Nokia Music Podcast about the artists or recommend other "podsafe music" for consideration in upcoming shows as well. Let us know if there is a genre you are aching to hear that we arent hitting yet.

The RSS feed is one of the first defaults of in the FEATURED section of Nokia Podcasting DIRECTORIES.

Here is the RSS feed for the Nokia Music Podcast show to paste into your Nokia Podcasting application or your favourite PC/Mac Podcatcher:
http://blogs.s60.com/nokiamusicpodcast/posts.xml

Thanks for listening.

Media file meta-data entries (e.g ID3 tags) are becoming more important as podcasts are tranferred from PC to be played back on mobile devices.

To simplify episode management for users, populate the commonly used ID3 tags in your media files. These tags should be correct and valid and match the items of your RSS feed.

1. The “title” ID3 tag should match the item < title > in the RSS feed for the episode.

2. Set the “genre” ID3 tag to “Podcast”. This allows users to download MP3 files to their PC and synchronize them to their Nokia device using for example Windows Media Player (WMP) . If the Nokia device has a music player which allows you to search by Genre, it will then recognize the episode as a Podcast.

3. The “album” ID3 tag should match the < title > RSS tag of your Podcast feed.

4. The “artist” ID3 tag should match the item < author > RSS tag.

5. If you are using album art, use a small JPEG image (max. 30kB) and tag it as “Album Cover (front)” in WMP10 or WMP11. (Go to the Windows Media Player.
Find your podcast digital file (mp3).
Right click the file and use the ADVANCE TAG EDITOR.
Click the PICTURES tab and click ADD.
Browse for your artwork and click OPEN.
Change PICTURE TYPE to "Cover (Front)" and APPLY. Then Click "OK"

The graphic should now be embedded in your mp3 file and show up nicely when playing back on most Nokia NSeries devices (with the spiffy NSeries Music Player. For example, N95, N91, N76, N75, N73 Music Edition, N70 Music Edition)

If you dont do this, the artwork might not show up on the Nokia music player. (If adding artwork in other players, it might have the art listed as a separate file and not show up.)

Its important that your podcasts look as great as they sound... Do you really want your show showing up with "Artist: Unknown" "Genre Unknown" "Title: Unknown" with no artwork? Didnt think so.

More hints to help you get the most out of managing your Podcasts on the Nokia Podcasting app:

Subscribe to GOOGLE Calendar in Nokia Podcasting

You can now subscribe to your Google calendar (http://calendar.google.com) in the Nokia Podcasting application.

Log into Google Calendar. From the Google calendar, select:
Calendar Settings, Calendar Details.

Add the XML link under “Private Address” as a Podcast in the Nokia Podcasting application. (From the Nokia Podcasting app under PODCASTSS, click OPTIONS>NEW PODCAST and type in the RSS)

Simple, huh?

This is not only a nice feature for you, but its also a way for other family members, friends, or carpoolers keep track of who is where at what time. Thanks Google!

Continuing our series of hints to help you get the most out of managing your Podcasts on the Nokia Podcasting app:

Get your own personalized search result feed.

www.podzinger.com

1. Go to www.podzinger.com. Enter your search topic. (For example "N95". Or "Veronica+Mars") and choose if you want results for "Audio", "Video", or "Both".

2. When the results are returned, click on the llittle orange“RSS” icon
in the results page.

3. You will be shown a URL. In the Nokia Podcasting application, go to PODCASTS>OPTIONS>NEW PODCAST and type in that URL to subscribe to episodes which feature your key word.

4. Every time you update that feed, you’ll get the latest episodes which contain your search term.

Me love this long time... This feature lets me know when someone is podcasting an episode about things I am interested in. It also allows me to get individual episodes about the topics I want to hear about without having to subscribe/ unsubscribe to a full show. VERY cool feature from the folks at Podzinger.com.

Try it out and use the COMMENTS section to let us know what you think.

One of the things heavy users are asking for is a better way to manage their subscribed feeds. Until we get those features into our code, here is the first part of a series about some killer alternatives which should make your mobile podcasting experiences even better.

www.podnova.com

Setup all your favourite podcasts online. Its a little bit of work to get this setup and typing your new RSS or OPML into the Nokia Podcasting client, but once you do it...it rocks.

a. Sign in and Log in.

b. Add the URLs of your favourite RSS feeds. (or import your favourite OPML) The latest episodes of these feeds will now be ready to listen on the PC in one player. Cool! But we're not done yet.

c. Scroll down and find links to three different feeds:
i. A RSS feed with the newest episode per subscription
ii. A RSS feed with the episodes that you seperately added to 'PodNova podcast episodes for [your username]'
iii. An OPML feed with all episodes from all your subscriptions

d. Open your Nokia Podcasting app on your device. Open PODCASTING. Choose "OPTIONS". Choose "NEW PODCAST".

Type in that monster URL from the first RSS link that you see on your Podnova page. (This is the not so fun part. but its worth it.)

e. Now, you will get an updated Feed called "Podcasts for (Your Name)". This will put all the latest episodes of your favourtie podcasts into one feed.

One they are there, open the feed and use "OPTIONS" , then "MARK" or "MARK ALL" to manually choose which episodes to download.

Try it out and let us know what you think.

(PodNova is not afflicated with Nokia. The solutions just happens to work pretty great with Nokia Podcasting. Since Valentines Day is coming up, we want to share the love.)