If you are reading this entry, then you probably have some questions about this new feature of our website. This page has been designed to answer your questions and help you subscribe to our podcast feed. (Note: All programs mentioned here can be downloaded and used for free though we can not provide support for them. Support, if needed, can be obtained from their web sites.)

What is a feed?
A feed is a type of web language that, once subscribed to, will inform you about updates to a web site. If you read blogs, most of them have RSS feeds that will automatically update when a new post is made.

So then what is a podcast?
A podcast is like a blog, but instead of reading the new entry, you listen to it. A podcasts feed, instead of notifying you of a new update to the website, automatically downloads the new “episode” to your computer so you can listen to it whenever you want. Each “episode” of our podcast will be our Sunday night talks from youth group. So if you ever miss a night and still want to hear what Steve or Elizabeth had to say, or something caught you and you want to hear it again, or if you want to get your friends to see what we do on Sunday nights, then all you have to do is download our podcast. It’s as easy as that.

Do I need an iPod?
No! The term podcast is derived from the word iPod, but it doesn’t mean you have to have an iPod to listen to it. If you have a computer you can listen to our episodes. You play them with Windows Media Player, WinAmp, iTunes or any portable MP3 player.

Ok, so how do I do it?
To subscribe to our podcast feed, you will need a feed reader. Feed readers look for our feed, and when it sees that it has been updated, it automatically downloads the new “episode” to your hard drive or even your portable MP3 player if you set it that way. (Note: More detailed instructions on how to set up the different feed readers can be found at the website you download them from.) If you don’t want to use a feed reader, you will always be able to download our individual episodes from the website.
Feed Readers: Juice | iTunes

I’ve got a feed reader, now how do I subscribe to the feed?
Simply click here to subscribe no matter what feed reader you are using. You will be given the option to select which reader you are using on the page that loads.

What about FireFox’s Live Bookmarks?
The Mozilla FireFox web browser has a feed reader built in. If you use FireFox, click on the Live Bookmark button () found in the address bar and save the bookmark. You will notice a new bookmark called The Skylight | Blog and when you click on it a listing of our current episodes and blog posts will appear. This will automatically update when a new post is made. (Note: This will not automatically download new episodes to your computer.)

For more information…
Check out the article “About Syndication, RSS, and Other Web-Altering Chemicals” on the FeedBurner website. There is also a more complete list of available feed readers as well as web services, like My Yahoo, that allow blog and podcast feed subscriptions on a website.