Podcasting Tool Kit

Hi everyone. It's taken a while, but I wanted to post links to the software that makes up my podcasting tool kit, as I mentioned in my Writing Web 2.0 presentation last month. So, here they are.

http://www.skype.com/. Skype is free Internet telephony software. It has a conference feature, and calling from Skype to landlines is free until the end of this year. A great way to setup interviews at no cost.

www.pamela-systems.com. Pamela for Skype allows you to record your Skype calls. We use this on our Fanstar411 Podcast. Works very well, though it does cost $20 for the full feature version needed to record Skype.

http://www.gigavox.com/levelator. The Levelator is a great, great tool. No more loud voice from one person, and quiet voice from the next. Simply drag and drop your audio file into the Levelator, and it adjusts it so the volume is consistent. And it's free. One of my favorite tools.

http://audacity.sourceforge.net/. A great, free audio editing program. This software gives you everything you need to polish, mix, and render outstanding podcasts. It also allows you to record yourself, a great option if the podcast you're putting out is just your voice and not an interview.

Plantronics USB Headset. This is what I record with. It's a fantastic noise canceling headset. Search around the net for good deals, they're out there.

www.odeo.com. A great site to check out for basic podcasting. It's free, and has an online recorder. With just your mic or headset, it'll record and host your podcast for you. It also offers the ability to create a conference call phone number, and it'll record al parties that call in. Only downfall is the quality isn't quite as good as Skype. But, a great option since it's completely free.

Well, that's a few. If you have any questions or comments, please let me know.

Thanks.

Keith

Free Screen and Audio Recording Software

If you're looking for a great way to create demos and how-to videos by recording your screen, you could do a lot worse than CamStudio. It's a free alternative to Camtasia, and provides a lot of great features. Check it out:
http://www.camstudio.org/

AMA-Madison Hosts First Ever Power Hour

http://www.knupp-watson.com/ama/

We've invited hundreds of members from Madison organizations like Ad Fed, Public Relations Society of America, Association for Women in Communication, Sales & Marketing Executives, and Design Madison so you can really amplify your networking and mingle with some of the best marketing contacts in the area.

The theme for our October event naturally is Oktoberfest! So dust off your lederhosen and get ready to polka as you learn new ice breaker phrases?IN GERMAN! Register with your business card to be eligible to win fantastic prizes. And as always, there's plenty of free parking.

So mark your calendars to join us on Wednesday, October 18th at JT Whitney's from 4 to 7 pm.
A $5 cover will be charged for unlimited appetizers and tap beer or soda.

Bring a friend, bring two, bring five; we look forward to seeing everyone there!

Laura Rodriguez
VP Special Events - AMA Madison

Written communication is still greatest deficiency among new hires

I was just reading this article posted at the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel web site and it highlighted some interesting statistics. A new report released on Monday states that written communication ranked highest of all deficiencies among new employees. More than 80% of the respondents said the high school graduates they hired had insufficient writing skills, compared with 47% for two-year and technical college graduates and 28% for four-year college grads.

The National Commission on Writing assembled a report last July concluding that writing is considered an even more important job requirement for the states' nearly 2.7 million employees than it is for the private-sector employees studied in the Commission's previous survey of leading U.S. businesses. State agencies were more likely to consider writing skills in hiring and promotion, and to require writing samples from applicants. However, based on survey responses, the Commission estimates that providing writing training for those employees who do not meet state standards costs state agencies about $221 million annually.

So while there is an obvious emphasis on writing from those doing the hiring, it seems that most new hires aren't equipped to write effectively, and the cost of teaching writing skills after they're hired is high.

So where is the disconnect? Is it between school and business? Curriculum and the real world? Or is it a trend spurred on by instant communication medium such as email, instant messaging, and all the tools that go with it?