I have to admit that my reservations about Apple co-opting podcast production and distribution are beginning to falter. I still have a bad feeling about GarageBand because it seems to produce podcasts only in Apple’s proprietary formats (or am I mistaken about this? Please let me know). These probably could be converted to standard formats like mp3, but when the tools make it super easy to produce great content in proprietary formats, why would anyone bother? (Except for ed-tech nerds like you and me, of course).
So why the faltering of my opposition. Because Will Richardson linked to these terrific student produced digital stories this morning. I don’t think these sorts of things would have been produced if the only way to get it done was to use 5 or 6 arcane tools that needed to be MacGyvered together in order to work. Most people just don’t have the time or inclination to bother, nor do they care about the advantage of standardized file formats. And when I look at the results that can be produced by students using really easy to use tools, the educator part of my brain duct-tapes the ed-tech, open-source loving, ubergeek part of my brain that is trying to scream out in process. Enough of reading me - go look at some really cool stuff!
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