Slashdot Mirror
MIT Plans To Convert Cell Phone Users Into Podcasters
robyn217 writes "A new research project at MIT's Media Lab, entitled RadioActive, aims to turn every cell phone or PDA carrying member of the public into a podcaster, and every mobile device into a virtual podcasting studio. The project defines a large-scale asynchronous audio messaging system in which voice messages can be threaded like text in a discussion forum (like on Slashdot) as a method of 'discussion-on-demand.'"
MP3 ON THE INTERNET" confirm/deny
[x] confirm
Another useless feature that I don't need on my cell phone. The phone companies will probably charge the heck out of it. Bad enough I'm paying $0.10 USD per instant message spam that I'm getting every month since I can't turn it off.
As if there aren't enough totally useless text-based blogs filling up the internet, now our phones will be able to stream a constant flow of totally useless podcasts. I'm not sure which is worse, reading poor grammar in blogs on ugly looking websites, or trying to understand the voices of numerous self-important podcasters.
/. post was a min-podcast instead. How'd you like to try to listen to them all? The different voices (accents, etc) would drive me away in very little time.
Just imagine if ever
I mean, leaving video messages back and forth is no more useful than leaving text messages for one important reason: You lose the fluidity of real conversation/discussion. If I'm having a heated discussion with someone about something, it's nice to be able to get a word in edge-wise so I can properly have a conversation with them. And facial cues/expressions kinda don't work when you can't gauge audience reaction.
I'll form my OWN solar system! With blackjack! And hookers!
[x] Deny
An mp3 on the internet is an audio download
An RSS feed that contains audio downloads for the purpose of automatic and easy synchronisation to a digital audio player is a podcast.
People like the linked article don't know what they're talking about when they say that an ordainary download can be called a podcast. You could call it a threaded audio message board, but it wouldn't be a podcast.
One disadvantage to discussion boards that are audio based is that you can't search or index the information without some kind of speech-to-text recognition.
That said, what if you could search audio by speaking into a mic and having the search engine search for those sounds. An intersting case, humm.......
When the posters fear their moderators, there is tyranny; when the moderators fears the posters, there is liberty.