Is Podcasting simply too difficult? In many cases, I believe it is. Perhaps applications such as iTunes will lay the ground work for great adoption.

I wrote about podcasting last May, and some recent news tells me it’s time to get back to the subject.

First, a brief refresher. It’s necessary; “podcasting” is an incredibly misused word.

Podcasting means putting audio files on a website regularly, using a technology called RSS - Really Simple Syndication. People using the right software can automatically download each new program posted to the site.

The automatic part is important. Podcasting is not simply putting audio files on your site and letting people download them. That’s known as “putting audio files on your site and letting people download them.” To be a podcast, it has to be automated.

No RSS, no syndication, no podcast.

The original idea was that people would download (or buy) podcasting software, then set it to retrieve their favorite shows overnight. They’d automatically be put on their MP3 players. Those shows - those podcasts - would be created by hundreds or thousands of people all over the Internet, and on every subject imaginable.

The end result would be that listeners could create a custom “radio” network of sorts with only their favorite content, and that anyone could become a syndicated radio host…. Source: USA Today