eCast
CTL Technology Services is proud to offer the eCast Podcasting service to the University of Alberta community. Now faculty, researchers, administrators, and students can take advantage of eCast's simple interface and the expertise of the eLearning team to enter the world of podcasting. This Beta service is in its pilot phase but already has a rich set of features that are easy to use and free of charge. The project will continue to grow over time in response to users' needs and requests so get started today!
Current Features
There are currently two workflows: one each for audio and video podcasts. Both streams upload users' files, convert them to a standard mobile delivery format, and store the content on the streaming server. At present, users can store up to 1GB of material. eCast has an intuitive podcast management toolset that allows you to organize your content into episodes within a series of topic driven podcasts. Syndication and feed aggregation are simple one-click process and users can also control access to their content through CCID authentication.
Future Phases
As we are still in Beta, we are looking forward to feedback for how to improve the system for future versions. Possible enhancements include finer control over the output formats, different syndication options, and iTunes U integration. Let us know what you'd like to see!
Getting Started
If you feel comfortable with podcasting, check out the service now. The interface has built-in help tools that should answer any questions you have.
Launch eCast - https://ecast.srv.ualberta.ca
If you have questions before starting, we have prepared a Podcasting Basics page that provides a brief overview and some useful resources to get you started.
We have developed three short video tutorials introducing the basic operations of eCast. In addition, if you run into any problems using eCast, our helpful User Guide should be able to answer any of your questions. If you still need help, don't hesitate to e-mail the eCast Support - ecast@ualberta.ca.