Last night I was listening to some Chris Pirillo podcasts and something he said several times really grated on me. The idea is that the only way to listen to a podcast is by using an iPod. But, that's not required, and my proof is that I'm not using an iPod to listen to podcasts.

It's very easy to listen to podcasts with nothing more than your computer. One of Pirillo's guests opined about how obviously podcast listeners were well off, because they could afford to spend the $300 it takes to buy an iPod. He's confused, really. All one needs is a computer ... and the right software. For example, I use iTunes. The jPodder software also works, and is also free. For that matter the software requirements to listen to a podcast are modest, as the software simply needs to retrieve RSS files, download the audio files, and to be able to play them.

So, how does it work? I'll explain it with iTunes.

First thing is finding podcasts. Apple makes this simple with iTunes, because they offer a directory listing of jillions of podcasts. Simply click on the "music store" choice, then under "Inside the Music Store" select "podcasts" on the media menu. Once there you're shown a summary of the podcasts such as the most popuplar in various genre. You can also search the available podcasts for topics you're interested in.

As you search the podcast directory buttons will appear allowing you to "subscribe" to the podcast. Clicking on the subscribe button adds this list to another section of iTunes, the "podcasts" section.

In the "podcasts" section is listed the podcast sources you're subscribed to. Every so often iTunes will automatically check your podcast subscriptions, and if it detects new content it will do an automatically download. Hence, if you leave iTunes running constantly, it will automatically keep you up-to-date.

Once a podcast is downloaded to your computer, double clicking on the podcast lets you listen to it. No iPod required, just speakers connected to your computer.

There, that's it.