29 Sept 2007

Eight Steps to Writing an Outstanding Podcast


Podcasts are on the cutting edge of business communication, allowing you to speak with your own voice directly to your audience. They add variety to your blog or website and prove that you know how to stay ahead of the pack.

But hitting "record" without putting some thought into what you're going to say and how you're going to say it is a fatal mistake. Here are eight steps to follow for creating a podcast that makes your listener want to come back for more.

1. Choose a theme. Pick an issue about wh
ich you feel confident speaking. Try to narrow it down to a particular angle or perspective-think news clip, not university lecture. The best podcasts touch on a specific subject and cover it in depth, rather than attempting to discuss the history of Western Europe in three minutes or less.

2. Consider your audience. How much does your audience know about your subject? What style of reporting will connect with them? The more you put yourself in your listeners' shoes, the better you will be able to speak directly to them. Be sure to include a response to any previous questions or suggestions-your audience doesn't want to feel ignored.

3. Prepare an outline. Expand on your theme by coming up with four or five main elements or topics to discuss. Put the most important and engaging information first; this will hook your listener and entice them to hear out the rest of it. Even if you don't write your script word for word, an outline will help you organize your thoughts into a tidy framework.

4. Think ahead for interviews. If you want to include an interview in your podcast, it's a good idea to plan ahead. Make a list of questions you want to ask for sure, but remember that sometimes the best sound bites happen off-the-cuff. Feel comfortable enough with your interviewee to ask follow-up questions and allow the conversation to travel somewhere more interesting if the opportunity arises.

5. Use simple sentences and language. Keep the tone natural and conversational, as if you are speaking with a listener face-to-face-just as you would for any business writing. Toss any words that would send someone reaching for the dictionary; likewise, avoid long sub-clauses and complex syntax (these things only bury the point). Just because your sentences are short and clear does not mean your language has to be dry. Do not be afraid to use sensory descriptions to put your listener right in the heart of the action.

6. Keep it succinct. The length of your podcast depends on your subject and audience-but no matter how much information you feel is absolutely crucial to your point, listeners will lose interest if it drags. No footnotes or unnecessary diversions here; just the facts, ma'am.

7. Do a practice run. This is especially important if you're working from a basic outline. Read the script for a friend or family member for their (honest!) feedback, or record yourself once and listen to it. Be on the lookout for awkward pauses, confusing sections, and stumbling points. Make notes and do another few run-throughs with the changes incorporated.

8. Print it out. It's much easier to read from a piece of paper than from a computer screen, so print out your script before you record. Enlarging the font helps too. If you're worried about losing your place during recording, highlight a few key words or mark the beginning of different sections to keep you on track.

The more thoroughly you prepare your script, the more confident you will be when it comes down to recording it-and the more effective your podcast will be because of it.



by: Courtland Bovee

About The Author
Courtland L. Bovee, one of America's leading instructors in clear and effective communication, co-authors several leading college-level texts with John V. Thill, a prominent communications consultant and current Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Global Communication Strategies. Their website, Business Communication Headline News, the #1 business communication site on the web, is at http://www.businesscommunicationheadlinenews.com
To make your PC runs faster and many other good tips go here:-
Top 10 Ways To Make A Computer Run Faster



25 Sept 2007

The Mean Kitty Song







22 Sept 2007

AL-FATIHAH...


AL-FATIHAH...

Al-Fatihah for Arwah Nurin and my deepest condolence and sympathy to the parents and family. Have faith that you're strong and get through this rough time...


Should we let this happen again???
Have a heart please!!!


18 Sept 2007

What?!? Women Stand To Pee?!?


The P-Mate is a portable urinating device that allows women to urinate standing up whenever they need to, without losing their dignity and more effectively angle urine samples into testing cups.


16 Sept 2007

The Ultimate Way To Stop Global Warming

The Earth’s surface temperature has risen by about 1 degree Fahrenheit in the past century, with accelerated warming during the past two decades. There is new and stronger evidence that most of the warming over the last 50 years is attributable to human activities. Human activities have altered the chemical composition of the atmosphere through the buildup of greenhouse gases—primarily carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide. The heat-trapping property of these gases is undisputed although uncertainties exist about exactly how earth’s climate responds to them.

Energy from the sun drives the earth’s weather and climate, and heats the earth’s surface; in turn, the earth radiates energy back into space. Atmosp
heric greenhouse gases (water vapor, carbon dioxide, and other gases) trap some of the outgoing energy, retaining heat somewhat like the glass panels of a greenhouse.

Without this natural “greenhouse effect,” temperatures would be much lower than they are now, and life as known today would not be possible. Instead, thanks to greenhouse gases, the earth’s average temperature is a more hospitable 60°F. However, problems may arise when the atmospheric concentration of greenhouse gases increases.

Since the beginning of the industrial revolution, atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide have increased nearly 30%, methane concentrations have more than doubled, and nitrous oxide
concentrations have risen by about 15%. These increases have enhanced the heat-trapping capability of the earth’s atmosphere. Consequently, the temperature of the planet earth is rising.

Fossil fuels burned to run cars and trucks, heat homes and businesses, and power factories are responsible for about 98% of world carbon dioxide emissions, 24% of methane emissions, and 18% of nitrous oxide emissions. Increased agriculture, deforestation, landfills, industrial production, and mining also contribute a significant share of emissions. All these have dramatically reduce the lifespan of living earth.

The quest for efficient energy affects every country on the planet. Worldwide there is an increasing interest in developing clean, reliable alternatives to petroleum fuels. Many smart, safe, and clean alternative power sources are available in the market.

People can easily install these clean power sources at their home as alternative energy to help reducing carbon dioxide emission as well as reducing their utilities bill.

In recent year, people has come up with alternative power sources run their cars in order to reduce the spending on petrol gas and of course, reduce the carbon dioxide emission.

Please play your part on global warming. It is easy and at the same time, you could save money!

About The Author
Jessica Brown
has successfully installed alternative power source on her car. She never pumps gas ever since. Recently, she sold her 10 year-old car to a company.


12 Sept 2007

HAPPY FASTING...


HAPPY FASTING
TO
ALL
MUSLIMINS
AND
MUSLIMATS

IN

MALAYSIA

AND

ALL OVER THE WORL
D

10 Sept 2007

IBM JOINS OPENOFFICE.ORG COMMUNITY

IBM joins the OpenOffice.org community to develop and promote
OpenOffice.org technology

10 September 2007 - The OpenOffice.org community today announced that IBM will be joining the community to collaborate on the development of OpenOffice.org software. IBM will be making initial code contributions that it has been developing as part of its Lotus Notes product, including accessibility enhancements, and will be making ongoing contributions to the feature richness and code quality of OpenOffice.org. Besides working with the community on the free productivity suite's software, IBM will also leverage OpenOffice.org technology in its products.

"In the seven years since Sun founded the project, OpenOffice.org has fueled and filled the need for document data and productivity tools that are open and free. Open source software and ODF are having a profound impact around the world, with numerous communities and organizations coming together to support these initiatives and governments, and corporations and schools standardizing on the software. We look forward to working with IBM and the other members of OpenOffice.org to ensure that this momentum continues. We invite others to join us in the community and participate in building the future as OpenOffice.org and ODF continue to gain popularity across the planet,” said Rich Green, Executive Vice President, Software at Sun Microsystems, Inc. read more...


9 Sept 2007

Bloggers Held Under New Thailand Computer Crime Law

Online writers posted comments 'insulting to the monarchy'
If you thought Germany's new computer crime laws were strict, try posting an offensive comment on the Web in Thailand. (See Hacking Germany's New Computer Crime Law.)

According to the independent newspaper Prachatai, at least one person is being detained in the Bangkok Remand Prison for crimes against the new Computer Crime Act, which went into effect in July. The new legislation, which was initially positioned as a crackdown on online pornography, outlaws the posting of "offensive" material.

O
ver the weekend, the Financial Times quoted a high-level Thai official as saying that in the past couple of weeks, authorities have arrested and detained two Thais who posted comments "insulting to the monarchy" on Web bulletin boards. Other media have tried to get government officials to confirm this report and give details, without success.

Today, however, Prachathai s
aid that "a reliable source" has confirmed that the Thai government is holding a 36-year-old computer programmer who posted comments on Web boards using a well-known alias. According to the source, the person was detained for six days at the Police Crime Suppression Division office before being transferred to the remand prison on August 30. He has yet to see his family members or consult a lawyer, according to the source.

Several media proponents, including Reporters Without Borders and Thailand's Fah Deaw Kan publishing house, have expressed concern over the reports and called for the Thai government to provide details and give the detainee (or detainees) their rig
hts. At this posting, the Thai government had not responded publicly.


6 Sept 2007

Still in the MERDEKA mood!!!

Click To Enlarge
Don't know what tank is this, Suzuki or Toyota or maybe Chevy..? Hmmm...Good camouflage!!!


Jets!


I wanted to shoot the face suddenly the horse (the rider?) turned his butt
on me!!! Camera shy...


Hmmm so sweet!!! I mean the helmet...

Damn cool!!! Yeah! Cool bike!


Parade...


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