Podcast roundup: TWiT on top
Geeks don't listen to the radio. They pop podcasts onto their ipods for the morning commute. So the best Silicon Valley news naturally comes on mp3, not FM. Here's a rundown of three of this week's tech podcasts, all hosted by alpha-geeks from the Bay Area.
This Week in Tech: Episode 40, Yellow Lasers stars Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak, hacker Kevin Mitnick, Wozniak co-worker Alan Fielding, and Call for Help co-host Amber MacArthur, as well as the usual TWIT crew led by Leo Laporte. Mitnick is fairly tolearable throughout — which is a bonus with that guy. But he and the other Twits waste time on small-talk, prompting John C. Dvorak to keep them on the list. Not as fun as the recent show recorded at Macworld, but still worth a listen.
Gillmor Gang: Captain Crunchberry Gang feels like a grandpa's version of TWIT — same subjects, but hella slow. And please, Steve Gillmor, stop doing intros. I feel like I'm playing R. Kelly's "Trapped in the Closet," and it's just so awful that I can't...stop...listening.
Dave Winer's blog, Scripting News, includes sporadic podcasts. Today's is a typical example — Dave putters around and doesn't apologize for leaving all his pauses, verbal commas, and recording mishaps in the finished product. So there's a personal, if aggravating, touch to it. If you really feel like you need Dave Winer talking to you for a half hour, then go ahead. It's kind of impressive to hear him think out loud, especially when he discusses the older blog process of starting each day with a blank web page.
Episode 40, Yellow Lasers [This Week in Tech]
Captain Crunchberry Gang [Gillmor Gang]
Morning Coffee Notes [Scripting News]