I go back and forth on podcasts… I’ll listen to a few like crazy during vacation or when I’m wanting to dive deep into a topic and then I’ll leave them for a while. Not so with the Mac Power Users podcast from David Sparks and Katie Floyd; since I discovered this podcast a few years back, I’ve been struggling to find time to go back and listen to the ones I’ve missed.
This podcast started back in 2009 — its longevity (193 podcasts and counting) should tell you something about its popularity. Dedicated to helping Mac users become POWER Mac users, I can guarantee that if you use a Mac, there are dozens, maybe even hundreds, of gems (hacks, apps, shortcuts, and How-Tos) tucked in these recordings that you simply do not know.
My biggest complaint, again, is that there are just so many podcasts and not enough time to play catch up. Instead of fighting an uphill battle, I typically just browse through their extremely detailed notes for each episode that provide links and a general idea of the topics in the audio and then I pick one or two and download and take with me on the road.
The podcasts are well done; excellent sound quality and music, and a professional level of editing set them apart from way too many podcasts that I’ve tuned into and lost interest in. David and Katie have one of the few podcasts that I’ve discovered that also happens to pull in actual advertisers… yeah, paid advertising. That speaks volumes about not only their popularity and audience size, but also about the quality of their work. There is much planning and work involved, and I recently got a first-hand look at their preparations for a podcast after they invited me on as a guest. (Yes, the grin on my face took a week to wear off.)
A few days prior to the actual recording, we had a conference call to visit with one another, ask questions, and get a general idea of the direction the podcast would take. I was given technical details about what software to use and how I could best help with the sound quality on my end. (The final new tech solution that I learned from Katie was the quick download of a Mac app called Shush that allowed me to define a keyboard button to turn on and off my microphone to cut out the occasional sniffs, coughs, and other annoyances while someone else was speaking — thanks, Katie!)
My conversation with David and Katie was all over the place, but it never really drifted far from orbit around GeekDad.com and my status as a geek. We talked about board games, some special projects I’ve done recently (such as the Bluetooth Arcade Controller I built for my sons), Atari emulators, building your own arcade, and my latest books (shameless plugs here) – due out in August, Ultimate iPad, and due out a bit earlier in June, a beginner’s guide to Tinkercad.
The podcast, of course, is Mac-centric, so we did manage to pull the conversation back to discussing apps that I use and recommend to my friends and family. We chatted about ebooks, my love of book scanning with the SV600, IFTTT.com, Evernote, and so much more. You can listen to the entire Episode 193 1hr47m discussion here.
As a huge fan of MPU (that’s what we fans of the show call it), I was extremely flattered to get the chance to talk with David and Katie, and I’m also glad to have the opportunity here to hopefully introduce some new listeners to their show. As I said, if you’re a Mac user you really need to be tuning in. Most months average four or five podcasts, and they’re always entertaining and educational and full of hints and advice and pointers…
I’d like to thank David and Katie for inviting me on the show, and I hope they both know that they’re geeks in good standing.
James, I listened to the MPU episode this week on which you were a guest and enjoyed it thoroughly. Thanks for sharing your ideas, workflows and other tips, and thanks for introducing me to Geek Dad 🙂
trinibass