Alltel | Croncast - Life is Show Prep

Stepping out of Room 214 into the hallway

Tue, 23 Oct 2007 09:49:34 -0500

In January of this year I took the position, VP, New Media with Room 214, an internet and search engine marketing company. I brought with me Castlock, the podcasting and rss metrics platform that I developed in early 2006.

This was an exciting opportunity. I had built a solid relationship with the founders of the company over the previous year working closely with them to produce podcasting and new media campaigns for the Alltel Racing podcast (NASCAR driver Ryan Newman), four podcasts for NFL Pro Bowl players during 2006 season and many other client podcasts; all the while holding a position as Associate Director, e-Learning for another company. Many of you might remember us talking about this last January.

The last ten months working for Room 214 have been great, but the time has come for all of us to move on.

What will I do now?

I'm not sure. But I do have quite a few options . . . probably more than I realize. There are a couple that leading the pack right now.

My first option is to make sure my resume is up to the task of assisting me gain new full-time employment. It is pretty amazing how over the last three years podcasting and rss have transitioned to "new media" and are being welcomed into the corporate structure. All that bickering about every company being a media company seems to be coming true!

My second option is to put more energy into my podcast production company, Palegroove Studios, and get back in the saddle for podcast production, consulting and licensing of Castlock. When I started with Room 214 I put it on the back burner since I was doing the same work as my "day job".

My third option, and least viable as a solution, is to go all out Croncast. I would love nothing more than to be doing the show full time and bring video into the mix but this doesn't seem to be the right time.

That's it, that is what's been up around here.

Like any time of transition this is an interesting and exciting time. I am already wondering which path I will end up going down and where the choice(s) that I make will lead my family next.

If you've got any thoughts send them to me from the contact page, email kris[at]croncast.com or send them the old fashioned way and give me a call on my GrandCentral line (thanks Rick!) at 630.445.1719.

Update: I should have added this the first time around (it was in the show notes from Monday!)

Feel freed to check out my Linkedin Profile

Tags: Kris Smith Room 214 VP, New Media Palegroove Castlock

Kris Smith - New Media, RSS and Podcast Expert

Mon, 01 Oct 2007 16:43:14 -0500

Kristopher Smith
http://linkedin.com/in/ksmith
Naperville, IL 60565 (630) 445-1719 ● kris[at]palegroove.com

Career Objective

A leadership position with a company interested in benefiting from the opportunities presented by leading edge new media technologies where a commitment to innovative ideas and entrepreneurial spirit is recognized and rewarded.

Qualifications Summary:

Accomplished entrepreneur and strategist with a demonstrated history of success integrating new media technologies into existing platforms and campaigns for Fortune 500 companies.
Combined expertise in RSS and podcast development with an extended network of relationships with independent, corporate and mainstream media.
Developed and licensed Castlock, a robust new media management and RSS metrics platform that enables users to manage large libraries of content and maintain statistics privately.

Professional Experience

Room 214, Boulder, Colorado ● 1/2007-11/2007

Vice President, New Media

Leadership force for product development within an organization that integrates new media, public relations efforts, web marketing methodologies and technologies under cohesive systems that drive measurable calls to action via the Internet. Company services were solicited from some of the most recognized PR firms and creative agencies to positively impact corporate sales, brand awareness and communications.

Major Contributions:

Developed moderated media RSS feeds (mmRSS) for episodic and archived content delivery via RSS

Orchestrated product development and integration of emerging technologies such as Twitter and other social media APIs into Castlock, a robust new media management and RSS metrics platform

Created and delivered new products from the Castlock code base, RSSignite and Episodr

Spearheaded integration of new media including podcasting and RSS into new client product offerings and marketing campaigns

Invigorated existing client marketing campaigns with new media elements

Directed digital media production from concept to final deliverable

Initiated research and development for RSS strategies and effective RSS search engine optimization

Served as company spokesperson at industry and new media events around the country

Career Note: As a representative of Room 214 and respected authority in the new media field I delivered the following presentations:

Podcast & New Media Expo (Sept. 2007) Ontario, CA.Compression Killed the Video Star

PodCamp NYC (Apr. 2007) New York, New York. Panel Podcast Open Metrics Initiative.

eLearning 2007 (Mar. 2007) Chicago, IL. Using RSS Feeds, Podcasts to Deliver Distance Education

Podcast Academy 5 (Feb. 2007) Duke University. Understanding Authenticated & Personalized RSS Feeds

Joint Commission Resources/Joint Commission, Oakbrook Terrace, Illinois ● 5/2005-12/2006

Associate Director, eLearning

Promoted to direct eLearning digital product development for Joint Commission Resources. Led innovations in delivery of information required to comply with the accreditation standards of the Joint Commission on Accredited Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO). JCAHO accreditation and certification is the standard of excellence in health care organizations.

Major Contributions:

Identified opportunities for new revenue streams utilizing innovative content delivery systems

Evangelized blogging and podcast initiatives to integrate new media technologies within the enterprise

Directed a division to develop digital products and manage legacy products focusing on increasing sales

Engineered courseware implementation, software, coding and course development for field cadre and central office employees

Disseminated educational training information to 400 global field staff via a custom RSS application

Palegroove Studios, Naperville, Illinois ● 2/2005-Present

Founder/CEO

Pioneered the start-up and development of the world's first podcast production company. Advised Fortune 500 clients on utilizing this medium to extend their brands. Developed podcasts from conception to deliverables which includes consulting with client on: show content, format, script writing, transcripts and creation of royalty free musical intros,outros and sweepers. Developed and licensed Castlock, a robust new media management and RSS metrics platform. Produced over 700 podcasts since 2005.

Podcasts Produced:

MasterCard, The Home Depot, Abbot Laboratories (2007)

Nascar Alltel Racing Podcast (2006 & 2007) produced podcasts in conjunction with XM Satellite Radio

NFL Alltel My Circle Podcast (2006 season) produced with nationally recognized radio talent from official team media outlets

Nascar Coors Light Racing Podcast for Coors Light (2006)

Fab 5 Summer '05 Podcasts produced for MTV Networks Affiliate Marketing (2005)

Developed and independently produced Croncast (2004-Present) delivered 3 times a week since November of 2004 and recognized by a number of media outlets including: The New York Times, Detroit Free Press, FOX News, and NBC (Chicago)

Career Note: As a successful entrepreneur and recognized expert in the podcast industry I delivered the following presentations:

PodCamp West (Nov. 2006) San Francisco, CA. Keynote panel The Future of New Media

Portable Media Expo (Sep. 2006) Ontario, CA. Leveraging Your Knowledge as a Podcasting Consultant

Podcast Academy 4 (Sep. 2006) Ontario, CA. Web Design for Corporate Podcasting

Waubonsee Community College, Sugar Grove, Illinois ● 5/2000-5/2005

Distance Learning Technical Support Specialist

Trained and supported university and college faculty throughout Illinois on the integration of technology into the classroom as part of ILLCO, a state funded initiative

Designed and developed all graphics, wrote code, recorded, edited and encoded all audio for a Flash virtual tour of the college campus for use online, CD-ROM and hybrid DVD

Recognized as innovator within organization promoted four times in five years

Languages

PHP, MySQL, RSS, XML, HTML

Audio/Video

Sound Forge, Acid Pro, WaveLab, Vegas, Waves, Fruity Loops

Blogware/Podcasting

Castlock and WordPress

Design/Interactive

Flash, Dreamweaver, Fireworks, Photoshop, InDesign and Illustrator

Courseware

WebCT, aTutor, Scenario Studio, and HorizonLive

Education

BFA Visual Communication with an emphasis in Digital Design 2005

American InterContinental University, Hoffman Estates, Illinois

Associates of Arts Degree December 2000

Waubonsee Community College, Sugar Grove, Illinois

August 1993 December 1994

Bradley University, Peoria, Illinois

Tags: RSS guru Podcasting professional PHP Castlock New Media expert RSS expert

Betsy and her husband Kris Jun 06, 2007

Wed, 06 Jun 2007 09:37:46 -0500
Croncast - 2007-06-06.mp3
Show: #372
Length: 23:06
Size: 15.8mb
Format: mp3
Betsy and her husband Kris Jun 06, 2007

Tickets are on sale now for the live show . . . get your's or find out more

Join Croncast Cronies . . . thanks to all those signed up already!.

Sorry this is late, I'm on the road today and have to get to what I get paid for . . . making podcasts for other folks like this dude.

I'll be back in the man pit for Friday's show. Expect at least 150 words worth of show notes.

Audience Survey, please fill this out for us
Look for the graphic on "Audience Survey" on the main page

Tags: dog therapist attacked by cat cat people circle of life love interest

OK, Mac suckas listen up, one time only

Wed, 16 May 2007 21:35:39 -0500
Today, I had to rely on our 9 month old and seldom used iMac to do something that my main PC was incapable of. Without it I would have been in serious trouble with a deadline.

Here's the story. Two days ago I upgraded, as recommended by Sun, Java on my PC to standard something or other 1.6. I log in today to the client file server, available only via the web, and poof it won't connect. Alright, maybe it is a FireFox issue. I go to IE7 and it asks me if I want Java to run, yes, and the same thing happens. WTF!

Long story short, IE7 throws a Java error (non-descript as always) and I give the iMac a shot. So, there. I've said it. My Mac did something that my PC couldn't today.

Tags: iMac Apple PC vs. Mac XM Radio Alltel Racing

Ron asks, 'What Equipment Do You Use?'

Sat, 09 Dec 2006 13:27:57 -0600
It's been a while since I talked about the equipment that I use and no time seems better than now thanks to this question:
"Can you tell me what microphones and mixer you use to record Croncast? (I heard the "expensive" microphone show recently and I had to laugh--I'm more interested in two microphones that are in the $100-$125 price range [each]).
Thanks!," Ron
Here's what currently makes up my audio signal path, hardware and software for Croncast.

2 - Marshall MXL 2003 microphones (Ron, for an extra $25 you won't be disappointed) [link]
2 - Universal Audio 6176 channel strips w/ preamp and compressor [link]
1 - PreSonus Firepod [link]
1 - Sony VGC-RB62G computer [link]
1 - Sony Sound Forge 8 audio editor [link]
1 - Waves L2 Ultramaximizer mastering compressor [link]
1 - Sony Vegas 6 multitrack for putting show together [link]
1 - Xing MP3 encoder (included in Vegas) encoded to Joint Stereo, 96 Kbps at 44.1 KHz
1 - MP3 Tag Tools to edit ID3 tags [link]
1 - iTunes to add more meta-data specific to iTunes (I can explain way below this)

This is what takes a Croncast from nothing to something.

Here's the breakdown.

Marshall Electronics MXL 2003 [link] microphones . . . I recommend these mics to everyone that asks. And after recently cheating on them with a Neumann U87ai I like them even more. With a price tag of $149 at most dealers you can't go wrong. We've used them now for two years and I own five of them. The sound is clear, they knock a lot of ambient noise down and their pick up pattern is second to none with a great low end and limited high end. The mic comes with a bass cut and a -10dB pad switch that can help when finding the right sound for your voice and recording space. These are phantom power microphones so I need a preamp.

Universal Audio 6176 [link] analog channel strip with 610 Tube Microphone preamp and 1176LN compressor. These two units are a new piece to the puzzle. They've replace the dbx 166XL that I was using for some limiting. The 6176's bring a nice warm sound to the shows that the 166XL didn't have. Most studios use them for recording bass tracks or heating up/distorting some vocals but I prefer them on a little lower setting to add a level bass and compression to our voices that would take me a couple of hours to create in post production through eq and other plug-ins.

PreSonus Firepod [link] is a 24-bit/96K FireWire recording interface with 8 preamplifiers (8 XLR/line inputs with phantom power). I originally bought this to replace an M-Audio MobilePre that was flaking out and causing intermittent popping in tracks. The reason that I chose the Firepod was primarily the 8 XLR inputs with phantom power to multitrack instead of force output to a single stereo track . . . a huge plus when recording more than 4 voices for a show. Also, if the UA 6176 wasn't part of the signal chain anymore I could live with the sound, I did for five months.

Sony VGC-RB62G [link] Intel Dual Core 2.8GHz with 2GB RAM. I've done little modification of this box other than adding a new video card, an extra FireWire card, a gig of RAM and a second hard drive. Usually, I prefer to build my own computer but was in the middle of the Alltel Racing Podcast when the old one died and I needed something right away. I went to Fry's and this box was best thing that they had in stock that met my requirements. It is or was sold as a Media PC and came with remote, surround speaker set up and more software than I could care to have (primarily the shit that just gums up the system). The only complaint that I have had so far with this computer is that every input in the back of it USB, FireWire or 1/8' has a ton of electrical noise in it when used for recording. I am forced to use the front 4 pin FireWire input for what should normally be a transparent sound recording.

Sony Sound Forge 8 [link] audio editor. This is the software that I record the shows into. I have been using Sound Forge for the last 7 years. When I got my first computer in 1999 at age 25 I learned how to use it by working with Steinberg's WaveLab (another great audio editor) but late in that year switched to Sound Forge. WaveLab had a lot of great features but they never compared the bundle of plug-ins that came with or for Sound Forge. WaveLab relied on the VST model and Sound Forge on Direct-X which meant that there were also more plug-ins to choose from. The killer plug-in was the Noise Reduction tool that prior to version 7 (maybe 6) wasn't bundled with the license. It is the best noise reduction tool on the market. I've heard most of the rest first hand, even the ones used in million dollar studios and would still choose the one in Sound Forge. I don't use Noise Reduction on our show but when doing post on audio recorded out of the studio I use it about 90% of the time.

Waves L2 Ultramaximizer [link] mastering compressor. Yep, I already ran the audio signal through an amazing compressor in the 6176 but the L2 puts the finishing touches on the wav file before I close out Sound Forge. This plug-in is the secret in my sauce. I have used it for about four years and find it's sound brighter, more open and louder than any other including Ozone 2 or 3 (which is an attempt to recreate the sound at a lower cost).

Sony Vegas 6 [link] multitrack video editor. Video? Did Kris just say, video? I sure did. When this product was first developed by Sonic Foundry it started out as a multitrack audio mastering suite that was supposed to be an upgrade from their Acid line of software. That didn't quite work out and they released a second version for video. With two competing versions on the market they made the wise decision to morph them together into Vegas Video, Sonic Foundry was bought by Sony and the rest is history. I use Vegas basically the same way that I use Dreamweaver for coding pages, as a template. All i have to do for Croncast is plug in each new recording on the timeline and poof there is a fully mastered show.

Xing MP3 encoder (included in Vegas) all shows are encoded to Joint Stereo, 96 Kbps at 44.1. This lowest quality that I will encode my own work to or for that of a client. This range is somewhat higher than many podcasters will recommend for a speech driven show but I find that anything less sound hollow and purely focuses on midrange sounds. Blah. At a bit rate lower than 96 Kbps most audio encoders, like this one, won't allow for a sample rate of 44.1 KHz. I used to encode the shows to a lower value two years ago when we first started but then iTunes came to town and studios started cranking out CD quality audio files. Once that bar was raised I figured it was okay for me to join that party.

MP3 Tag Tools [link] to edit ID3 tags. It is open source and the best ID3 tag editor that I have found. It will allow you to make changes to version 1 and 2 tags that will cover most of the popular media players like WinAmp, Windows Media Player and iTunes. It'll even let you add up to 18 images per file in the album art that can be displayed in iTunes.

iTunes for adding iTunes specific data to the ID3 tag. Didn't you already do this? Sort of. iTunes uses on the variances of the ID3 V2 tag standard to display meta data that is included with the MP3.

That is it friends. Once all that crap has happened it is time to upload the show to the server, fire up Castlock, start adding show notes and then make the show available for download.

Tags: MXL 2003 Universal Audio 6176 PreSonus Firepod Waves L2 Ultramaximizer Sony VGC-RB62G

Tuesdays are a wash

Tue, 05 Dec 2006 21:51:20 -0600
Feeling good while feeling ill is my motto for the night. I have one more NFL podcast for Joe Jurevicius to produce tonight and then it is a wrap on them 'til next Tuesday.

Next up is a Croncast for tomorrow but it might be a short show . . . Gigi woke up and daddy is still dragging (see feeling ill from the first sentence).

I think this was supposed to be a yipee/jump for joy post. Yes, yes it was . . . I mean it is.

Tags: feeling ill joe jurevicius alltel circle podcast Gigi

Routing synapses: Portable Media Expo thoughts

Thu, 05 Oct 2006 10:46:55 -0500
It has taken me nearly a week to find some time to sit down and write about this year's Portable Media Expo. My brain takes so long to process situations that when you stack about 200 new situations right on top of one another my synapses begin to flutter a bit like a dancer dropping it likes it's hot. If you missed that analogy just turn on MTV and watch any rap video to see things dropping and gyrating.

So as this stuff has shaken out in my thought process I keep seeing the faces of those I shared some words and grub with . . . Nicole Simon, Garrick Van Buren, Greg Cangialosi, Mark Chernesky, Rick Klau, Eric Olson, Paul Figgiani (Paul got a hug), Tim Bourquin, Scott Fletcher, David Lawrence, Frank Barnako, Holland Cooke, Giovanni Gullacci, John and Erin Paxton and Craig Patchett (he told us not to drive Slowsky).

On the social side there was Evo and Sheila, Dave Slusher for 3 mintues on the way to his seesion (I think the best session of the Expo) . . . damn, that is the end. I should have hung out more!

New train of thought, thinking of my sessions I wanted to thank everyone who attended especially the 40 or so people who showed up for the one on Saturday at the Portable Media Expo. There I met some great people with podcast consulting and production motivations like myself. It was fun to share how you too can loose a client like MTV Networks and how you can gain a client like Alltel and produce for NFL players.

The take aways from the Expo are varied for me. It was a great time to meet and hangout with other podcasters and listeners (Tom Davies you rock). The meet-upability of the Expo is hands down the biggest reason for attending if you have been podcasting for some time. If you are new to the community then I would guess that the Expo was probably extremely overwhelming as the sessions popped off and the social component took hold.

I can't say that I was really disappointed by things but did have some low moments:

1) Pink spandex at the Marriott and the wood inside
2) Being told repeatedly that no one in podcasting is making any money (Ahem, because you're not doesn't mean that others aren't)
3) Rehashing the same discussions that have been going on since the beginning

Now that I have my memories in some semblance of real activity and spared you the personal details of many of those interactions I want to say thank you to Tim, Emile and the PME staff for producing this event and allowing podcasters to be themselves . . . pink spandex shorts and all.

Tags: Portable media Expo PME pink spandex Alltel

Betsy and her husband Kris Sep 18, 2006

Mon, 18 Sep 2006 07:02:35 -0500
Croncast - 2006-09-18.mp3
Show: #275
Length: 36:28
Size: 25.0 mb
Format: mp3

Betsy and her husband Kris September 18, 2006
0% September 11th drama around here
Kris says I'm not dealing with it
His usual process it takes him a week to ge it
Last week was the NFL podcast launch
Special Note: You will only be able to see the podcast pages not the other areas of the sites.
Larry Fitzgerald
Joe Jurevicius
Joe Horn
Steve Smith
Betsy could hold it down
Except when she sees money coming in and then slows her ebay stuff
Betsy's Hebrew Green Eggs and Ham
Kris thinks it is the score of the century . . . better than 1st edition Torah
Where's Waldo in French
Things not to do: Tree trimming 9:30 at night in the dark
The family is oout doin it up
Trimming the night before dries out the branches
The dog is even with us
Zeus starts to spaz out
Running in loops
He starts a run at Gigi like a crazed horse
He hits her and she does a flip and lands on her head and back
Betsy saves her dog with a shout
Kris gets to Gigi and her mouth is bleeding
She made out great with only the little cut
Kris goes on about his lack of responisibility when it comes to safety from the dog
I had to restrain myself
Betsy got the lecture about "Next Time"
Please let me finish
For some reason Betsy doesn't understand Elliot's lack of love for the dog . . . hmmm
Betsy tried to leave her sister for hobos
The chili cook-off and Kris telling the neighbor he is not social
Betsy came to my rescue as usual
My new 14 ft saw
Not replacing Slowsky . . . supplementing
6 years, 1 month worth of ebay stuff still in Betsy's stash

1) Fill out the appropriate form for you - *New* Listener or Get a Handle (current listener)
2) Verify your email address (Activates and qualifies those with a "Handle")
3) *New* listeners get activated and qualified by using their special RSS feed
4) 300th new listener and the person whose Handle they use win iPods AND
5) A drawing for 2 more iPods from everyone who entered!

Tags: tree trimming NFL podcasts Hebrew Green Eggs and Ham Zeus Croncast

Alltel Racing Podcast Gets It Right

Mon, 24 Jul 2006 19:23:09 -0500

Steve Kaminski from the Grand Rapids Press has a review of the Alltel Racing Podast that shouldn't be missed by anyone interested in business podcasting, "Alltel's NASCAR podcast proves insightful". Kaminski comes to the podcast as a skeptic and leaves a believer in the power of podcasting.
" 'Yippee' is what I thought when I opened up my e-mail and read that Alltel has introduced the Alltel Racing Podcast this season.

Can you say "infomercial?"

On second thought, don't say it.

You would be wrong.

This is not scripted and rehearsed. With Borland, you get shoot-from-the-hip, no holds barred, opinionated talk.

I talked to Alltel executives last week, and they said they wanted to give fans a behind-the-scene look at their race team. That they deliver."
What Alltel has done is simply to follow rule one in podcasting to have successful show. What is that rule? Honesty. Just be honest. Be human.
Take a listen at www.alltelracingpodcast.com.

Tags: Alltel Racing Podcast NASCAR Matt Borland Ryan Newman Steve Kaminski

For those on the nerd tip, FeedBurner Report

Tue, 18 Apr 2006 13:11:53 -0500

A friend of the show and myself, Rick Klau, has posted some amazing data in a report released today by FeedBurner titled, "Expanding Universe: Podcasting Market Update". The report covers many aspects of podcasting thanks to Rick's keen eye on the community and his participation in it.
This report is a must read not only because it highlights one of the podcasts that I produce but because it will open your eyes to how many of your fellow humanity are subscribing and producing podcasts.
Way to go Rick! And kudos to FeedBurner for putting a report like this out with REAL, up-to-date statistics that aren't 9 months old at the time of publication!

Tags: Rick Klau FeedBurner Podcast Market Update Alltel Racing Podcast