As my wife will tell you (“he’s always got bloody headphones in his ears”), I am a voracious podcast listener. The only thing that keeps my sane on my commute, doing the dishes, cleaning the house, or any other number of chores is listening to podcasts. One of the first things I had to do when switching to android is find a decent podcast app: Pocket Casts. I used to use (and loved) Downcast on the iPhone. Though if I were still running IOS I might give Pocket Casts a try on IOS, as the speed it takes to refresh your list of podcasts is truly amazing (they cache all the feeds on their servers so it takes milliseconds update your list of podcasts, which downcast could take up to 10 minutes to do).

Several people have asked me what podcasts I subscribe to, so here is my current list of podcasts (and you can find my OPML file here) with a little description and perhaps why I listen to it:

Tech Podcasts

Daily Tech News Show - I used to listen to Buzz Out Loud years ago, and then followed Tom Merrit to Tech News Today. When he was let go last month I switched to his new podcast, the temporarily (one hopes) named Daily Tech News Show.

The News - 5 minutes of tech news daily. Fast, sometimes reports something I missed.

Windows Weekly (MP3) - Paul Thurrott is so frequently wrong and yet I kind of can’t stop listening to him. Mary Jo Foley probably knows more about Microsoft than any non-techy I know. I find the show interesting, and it is kind of a chronicle of Microsofts downfall.

What The Tech - More Paul Thorrott, because I can’t seem to get enough.

This Week in Startups - Audio - Jason Calacanis is a divisive figure, some people love him, lots of people hate him. A tireless self-promoter who frequently has a lot of insight into the entrepreneurial world and often has excellent guests. His sometimes weekly round tables with silicon valley reports has replaced This Week in Tech(which has truly become a snoozefest) as my weekly wrap of Tech Events.

This Developer’s Life - Seems this show has gone semi-annual, but it is a fantastic show when they actually get around to producing one. Stories about Developers similar to this American Life and the way it does shows about Americans (North Americans? Westerners?) A product of Scott Hansleman and Rob Connery it is highly recommended.

The Web Ahead - In depth show on Web Technologies from a designers standpoint.

.NET Rocks! - I was (and I guess still am) a C# developer for years and this is the show for the Microsoft Developer. I frequently skip episodes now, depending on the guest and the subject matter, but frequently they have some truly great interviews. Don’t miss their Geek Out Shows when they discuss basic Geek Out things like Self Driving Cars or Solar Energy or BBQ.

The Tablet Show - The sister show to .NET Rocks, but all about Mobile devices (Phones and Tablets). Much less Microsoft based, but still with a bit of a Microsoft bias.

The Changelog - Interviews with Open Source project leaders and developers. Can be fascinating, can be boring (really depends upon the guest).

Javascript Jabber - Javscript is where I do most of my work these days, and this is best podcast about Javascript I have found.

Herding Code - Initially a Microsoft podcast it has branched out a bit (though it appears to have been basically taken over by Jon Galloway who does work at Microsoft, and though I would hardly call him a Microsoft Shill it does tend to focus on Microsoft technologies more often than not.

Hanselminutes - Another Microsoftie Scott Hanselman has been doing a podcast since long before he joined Microsoft. His podcast features interviews with people all over the map, from Microsoft employees he works with,

Security Now (MP3) - Security news, information and a lot of filler. There is some interesting in depth looks into the security issues of the day, but frequently this is a show I skip or at least kind of flip through rather than listening from end to end.

Developing Perspective - 15 minutes about developing IOS applications from an IOS developer.

News and Politics Podcasts

Slate’s Political Gabfest - I admit to being an america Politics junkie and this is one of my sources for information about the American political scene.

New Yorker: The Political Scene - Another interesting podcast covering American politics.

NPR: Planet Money Podcast - I never realized how interesting economics and stories about finance could be until I listened to Planet Money. Highly recomended…

Common Sense with Dan Carlin - I absolutely loved listening to Hardcore History (see below) so I gave Common Sense a try and I actually found it some of the most sensible thinking and speaking about politics that I have heard in a long time. Maybe in the wake of Snowden what would have seemed like paranoia has become, well, common sense.

Culture

This American Life - An institution in radio and podcasting. A fantastic show that highlights the best of what a podcast or audio can be.

The Nerdist - I am a geek, I admit it. And hearing more candid interviews with geek celebrities is frequently interesting.

The Bugle - John Oliver (who until recently was at the Daily Show and now has his own show on HBO) and Andy Zaltzman deliver a weekly combination of news, satire, and horrible punning with a British Slant. You’ll either like it or hate it, probably depending upon your feelings of dry English humor.

The Alton Browncast - I loved Good Eats and still love Mr. Browns science first approach to food. He has interesting guests on his podcast, and though it is no replacement for Good Eats, it fills in some of the Alton Void.

Freakonomics Radio - The books Freakconimcs and Superfreakonomics are books that I found interesting and enjoyable to read. Although not as good as Planet Money, the podcast is generally an interesting spirited romp through various issues looking through the lens of economics.

Dan Carlin’s Hardcore History - In depth looks (the series on the Roman Empire runs 13+ hours for example) at history from an amateur historian. If you love history you will love this podcast, if you don’t love history, give it a try you might find that you like history a little more than you thought…