Get Free Podcasts for iPods

Podcasts have risen in popularity with the iPod. The term itself comes from ‘broadcast' and the ‘pod' of iPods. These allow you to subscribe to audio and video content. Once you download a podcast to your iTunes software, the program will automatically search for new content whenever it senses an Internet connection.  Downloaded podcasts can be played on the computer desktop. They are also loaded automatically to your iPod when you access it using iTunes.

There are several podcasts available today. It has become a way for newspapers, websites and bloggers to spread content that is more accessible to their audiences. Podcasts can be about news, TV shows, hobbies or sports. Whatever your preferences or interests are, there is guaranteed to be a podcast for you.

Search for the Podcasts to download

• Web Search. You can conduct an easy search for podcasts using any search engine. Some of the podcasts you find may ask for a subscription fee. There are some people looking to make money by providing you content. You can easily search for free podcasts. Once you download the podcast, you can add it to your iTunes software by simply clicking and dragging it.
• iTunes Store. The iTunes Store is one of the easiest ways to download and subscribe to podcasts. Most podcasts are registered with iTunes so that it is easier to search for them and subscribe to them. All of the podcasts on the iTunes Store are also free.

1. Open iTunes and click on the iTunes Store. Wait for the page to load.
2. Click on the Podcasts option at the upper left side of the page. This will filter the showcased content to show only Podcasts.
3. The iTunes Store will feature several podcasts based on different categories. New Releases and Staff Favorites will be featured, similar to other content offered by the iTunes Store. Available Podcast categories are listed at the left side of the page while top podcasts are listed at the right side.
4. If you do not find the podcast you want from the page, you can do a search for it. Type in a word or phrase on the search field at the upper right hand corner of the iTunes interface. Press Enter or click on the magnifying glass icon at the left side of the field.
5. The search results page will categorize results. Podcasts matching your search will be placed at the left side. All results will also be listed at the lower half of the page.
6. If you are interested in a podcast, click on it to get more information. The details page will list all the podcasts episodes. You can click on a podcast episode to preview it.
7. To subscribe to a Podcast, click on the Subscribe button beside the main picture of the podcast. This will download the most recent podcast and subscribe you to all future episodes.
8. If you want to download previous episodes, you can do so on the episodes list. The subscribe buttons for individual episodes are listed at the right most column of the episodes list.
9. Once the podcasts are downloaded, they appear on the iTunes library.

• Upload the podcasts to your iPod. Once the podcast has already been uploaded to your iTunes, you can load them to your iPod. If the iPod is set-up to automatically sync to your iTunes, this happens once the device is connected.

  If the iPod is configured to manually load data, you can click and drag the podcasts from the Library to the iPod as it is listed under Devices. Once the podcast is already on the iPod, you can see it listed on the Podcasts category.

  All podcast episodes are listed under the main podcast. You can expand or contract the list by clicking on the triangle beside the podcast title.

• Inactive Podcasts. If you do not listen to a podcast for a time, iTunes will automatically stop downloading recent episodes. You can start downloading episodes again by simply clicking on the exclamation point icon beside the podcast title.