Boston PodCamp
September 9th, 2006Just got back from Boston PodCamp, which was my first foray into the world of “UNconventions,” where attendees miraculously do not have to pay for anything. I’m impressed by the overall level of organization for a free event, though I was a little disappointed by the panels and seminars I attended. They were generally very short, and so short as to be pretty light on content. Still, can’t complain for the price.
The most inspirational session to me was a session presented by Larry Lawfer and Mark Blevis on interviewing tips and techniques. I’ve been mulling over the idea of giving the interview podcast format a try, because I think there are some not only interesting but very talented people in the Mac development community who would have a lot to say if given a chance.
Of course, I am a great fan of Blake Burris’s Cocoa Radio, which does a great job of introducing us to some of the platform’s leading developers. But I think there are so many voices to capture, that we need more podcasts tackling the same or similar material, from slightly differing angles. In particular I think I could, if I didn’t turn out to totally suck at interviewing, do a good job of extracting very technical information from Mac developers. While Cocoa Radio spends a lot of time talking about inspiration and history, sometimes I really want to know “how did you decide on the data model structure?” or “what are you doing to handle concurrency problems with your threads?”
Perhaps that would lead to the world’s most boring, unlistenable podcast. But then again, you’re reading this blog, aren’t you? Now … to decide on my first victim, ahem, guest. Quick, before the motivation wears off.
September 9th, 2006 at 6:09 pm
Excellent idea. I think those who read the technical posts on your blog would stay awake. (Interested even!)
September 9th, 2006 at 7:02 pm
I don’t think you’re in particular danger of making it boring and unlistenable; interesting questions usually have interesting answers. I’m sure to the layman QA Podcast (dot com) is boring and unlistenable, but it’s not targeted at a lay audience.
September 9th, 2006 at 8:01 pm
I concur with your views, I too want to know the juicy, technical details behind the apps, and not just the inspiration behind it. If you’re up for attracting a huge audience for your first podcast, why not try interviewing Wil Shipley? :-)
September 10th, 2006 at 1:26 am
Will you provide text transcripts of your podcasts?
;)
September 10th, 2006 at 1:53 am
I think it’s a great idea, as well. When I found Cocoa Radio, I was disappointed that it was so non-technical. Go nerdy!
September 10th, 2006 at 5:06 am
Yep! Go for it, Cocoa Radio is great, but not technical… I would like to see some Cocoa podcast, e.g. on certain topics, like bindings (introduction, details, etc) or Core Data and stuff. Perhaps code-listings are not possible over podcast :-) But some general architectural introduction for sure!
September 10th, 2006 at 7:50 am
Definitely go the technical route; this is what I was also hoping Cocoa Radio would be when it was first announced :)
September 10th, 2006 at 8:30 am
I toyed with the idea of doing a more technical podcast with blake (or on my own) a few months ago, but I am so busy as is, I could never pull it off. I wanted to do something like .Net Rocks, but for Cocoa. It’s always been the direction I had hoped CocoaRadio would go.
September 10th, 2006 at 2:45 pm
Perhaps that would lead to the world”™s most boring, unlistenable podcast. But then again, you”™re reading this blog
Don’t let this discourage you, but the difference is that you can scan text for what you want whereas podcasts are linear. Email versus voice mail. If you can work within that, you should have a winner on your hands.
September 10th, 2006 at 3:29 pm
Thanks for the encouragement everybody. I’m going to let the idea simmer and maybe test the process out on a friend.
Scott: I think that’s a really important point to keep in mind.
September 10th, 2006 at 5:37 pm
I agree with all the ccomments here. It was also something I asked Blake, if he could dwelve more in the technical aspects
September 10th, 2006 at 7:02 pm
Hi Daniel– Thanks for coming to PodCamp. It’s great that you found a few things to take back with you, and I’d have to give it to our sponsors for the “free” part. Most of our sponsors were individual contributors, but we had some corporate love, too.
As for longer sessions, we’re toying with some other formats for folks who want to dive deeper. If you stay tuned, we promise to show you the alternative.
–Chris Brogan of PodCamp
September 10th, 2006 at 8:51 pm
Hi Chris – many thanks for stopping by and commenting. I’m looking forward to seeing what you come up with next. How do I “stay tuned?” Forgive me if I’m a little out of the loop… is there a blog or other RSS feed I should be following?
September 12th, 2006 at 3:12 am
Hey Daniel!
I’m honoured that you found the Interview Techniques session inspirational. I really enjoy doing interviews because they offer so many opportunities to learn something new and talk to incredible people. If you want to hear more about my style of interview, the full recording (including Q&A) of a presentation I did at Podcasters Across Borders is available through the Canadian Podcast Buffet at http://www.canadianpodcastbuffet.ca/?p=61.
Feel free to contact me with any questions.
Let me know when you start doing interviews.
Best wishes,
Mark
September 27th, 2006 at 10:48 pm
Daniel, I’d be very interested in such a podcast. I enjoy Cocoa Radio, but I often miss the deeper technical aspects as you mention yourself. So, where can I subscribe? :-)