Nova Instructional Podcasting ~ What’s the podcasting buzz?

Podcast: A podcast is distributed media created for use on individual media players. Originally limited to audio files, many podcasts are formatted like radio programs. The word "podcast" was coined to refer to an iPod broadcast. Today all kinds of media can be shared by podcast, like videos, and photos.
Many podcasts are subscribed to through podcast management software like iTunes. Other podcasts are downloaded directly from websites. Either way podcasts can be created by the individual producers of media and sent directly to individual users.
iPod: An iPod is a handheld interactive device made by Apple, that allows you to easily view and listen to digital media anywhere. An iPod is docked to a computer and synchronized with iTunes, a media organization program, to load it with media like music and videos.
Multimedia: Multimedia literally means multiple media or media combinations. The media used can be audio, video, still images, animation, or text. These medias are combined in order tom better communicate in multiple ways. Podcasts can include audio, video, pictures, and text; and therefore they are an example of multimedia..
Hypermedia: Just as Multimedia is the combination of media, Hypermedia is the linking of media. Podcasting can be used in conjunction with other media and teaching tools. When these multiple forms of instruction are linked in an interactive way the combination is called Hypermedia. The simplest form of hypermedia is a hypertext document like this Web page. Links on this page connect you to other media like another Web page, or a podcast.
Distance Learning: Defined by the United States Distance Learning Association ( USDLA ) distance learning is the acquisition of knowledge and skills through mediated information and instruction, encompassing all technologies and other forms of learning at a distance.
Podcasting is designed for independent consumption of media, and is therefore ideally suited for distance learning. Podcasts can be combined with Web based content to complete a distance learning environment.