Podcast I’m Listening to (Winter 2016 Edition)

I pretend that people care what podcast I am listening to.

Last Summer I made list of the podcasts here, where I listed the podcasts I am listening to and pretend the reader really wants to hear about it, I’ve been doing this for some time. This time there have not been a lot of changes. I am still listening to podcasts in Overcast, except when I am using some Android device when I use Pocket Cast. I still separate my podcasts in three lists: the list I subscribe and listen to carefully, that I call Subscribed; the list of podcast I do not subscribe to, but I listen to Occasionally; and the list of podcasts that have ended but I may listen to old episodes to remember or to keep learning from them, called Historic.

The main change this time around is that one of the Historic podcasts have revived! That’s Pragmatic, and I am very happy about it. The other big change is that the Occasional list has grown enormously as I strive to redistribute my podcasts and avoid a glut at the end of the week, when most podcasts are released.

I’m still making, producing, and hosting my podcast in spanish call Robot. You can find weekly episodes of the podcast there or you can subscribe in iTunes or with RSS. You can also watch usto recording live every Thursday at

Let’s get started!

Historic

Only one podcast remains in this list:

1. Hypercritical: John Siracusa talks about whatever he wants with Dan Benjamin. This is the podcast that push me to listen to a bunch of 5by5shows, but John Siracusa is still the best and is at his best in this show. Only 100 episodes. You would assume I had memorized them all by now…

Occasional

I have eliminated a lot from this lists, but ha added a lot too, mostly to shuffle listening times around.

1. a16z: When it’s good, it’s really good, but most of the time it is not. The topics are not solid with a lot of government regulation that I frankly could care less about.
2. Canvas: A new addition to this list. Federico Viticci and Fraser Speirs talk about iPad and iOS with a view towards productivity. The path to stop using that old laptop and use an iPad instead passes though this podcast.
3. Connected: Since I listen to so many relayfm shows and so many of them include Mike Hurley, maybe this is here mostly because of over saturation to one host. But I feel that when the three of them are not there and, in particular, when Federico Vittici misses an episode, I tend to not enjoy the show as much. So far, I have at least started listening to every single episode.
4. EasyApple: A podcast about Apple in Italian. The great thing is that the hosts are technical/scientist types. really enjoy it. Passes to this list mostly because it’s released on Fridays, the busiest podcast day for me.
5. The Ihnatko Almanac: I am listening to this less and less. When the topic is tech I’ve heard it from Andy before and when it’s not I, mostly do not care about them.
6. iMore show: I think I have listen to every single episode. Still, it’s kind of hard to include in my rotation another tech show… But this has a chance.
7. The Incomparable: Another Jason Snell podcast, this one is a bit hit and miss. Some topics I do not care about, others are just wonderful. Now I listen only to the ones I care about.
8. MacBreak Weekly: This is now the best Twit show. it’s not really about Macs, but the guest tend to be better than average.
9. Motorcast: A proper show about cars has to be done in Italian and by Italians. Here because it is released at the end of the week with a lot of competition.
10. One More Show: This is a very irregular show, in Italian. Basically, they put an episode when there is an Apple event. Still, it is fun to listen to the Italian perspective recorded live.
11. The Project Management Podcast: My feeling here is that I learn very little in current episodes, mostly because of how much I learned in the previous ones. Still, I was delaying listening to it, now I only listen when I want.
12. Reconcilable Differences: John Siracusa and Merlin Mann. Released on Thursday and not the best Siracusa showing.
13. Rocket: This is an excellent podcast. But it’s scheduled made it hard for me to listening on one go. Now it’s my first podcast of the week. It is the best tech podcast around. Though they touch some pop culture topics I don’t care about.
14. Science Friday: This is a classic, though sometimes the topics are a bit drag out, it’s still the best way to find out news in science, that the main press won’t reports because they are dummies. Released on Friday (duh!), it was always on the bottom of my listening lists. Now, I downloaded when I have time for it.
15. Security Now: A classic on Computer Security. Steve Gibson is great and entertaining, this is a show that is full of details. It has problems. Leo Laporte appears to be distracted a lot and Steve’s tendency to jump to conclusions that are not sustained by the facts is increasing with age.
16. The Talk Show: The only issue with this show is that it is way too long! So I look for it when I have the time, but I listen to every episode at the end.
17. This Week in Tech: This show has tanked without John C. Dvorak. Sometimes good guests makes it worthy, but even though it comes out Monday morning when there are almost no shows, I am not listening to it happily, so it belongs to this list.
18. Upgrade: Another relayfm show, this one with Jason Snell. It’s informative and interesting, sometimes I feel their opinions are so far away from mine that I almost do not understand them (Mike’s loves Beats 1 radio? really?), but still good. It’s here because I am a bit saturated of the topic and the hosts.
19. Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me: Another classic, the funniest show in NPR after the passing of Car Talk. Sometimes the guests are unknown to me, but the jokes rarely fail to amuse. In this list, so that I listen to it on Mondays, even though it’s released on Saturday.

Subscribed

Finally, the real thing. The podcasts I listen to.

1. 99% Invisible: Jeff Chen, CEO of Joyride, recommended this podcast to me and it has quickly become one of my favorites. A talk about the design within a very well produced podcast.
2. Accidental Tech Podcast: John Siracusa is here, Marco Arment contributes, and “Who the hell is” Casey Liss makes this a trio with a nice chemistry. I don’t know if I would listen without John, but Marco’s perspective has been interesting and being the creator of Overcast helps. Some of the topic and some of the inside jokes have become legendary.
3. Bonanza!: Without a doubt my favorite relayfm show, I sometimes avoid listen to it in public because I laugh so hard while listening. Even though is fairly irregular it’s still in this list and I listen to it the moment I get it.
4. Causality: A new addition. Form the creator of Pragmatic. Stories about engineering failure looking at the causes. Great podcast.
5. Clockwise: Another relayfm show. This one is short and sweet, so it doesn’t matter that it is (mostly) about tech.
6. Cordkillers: Tom Merritt, even though I am not as much as a fan as I used to, is still one of the best podcasters there is. A show about avoiding (cable) TV but still watching TV shows. I like it. Specially the Spoiler in Time episodes.
7. Daily Tech News Show: This is no longer my favorite show. It seems to me that it has gotten a little stale. I don’t think Tom is researching stuff like he used to. I also think it needs a regular daily co-host. Some of his opinions not only I do not share are plain wrong and never corrected. Still, I need a daily tech news show… or do I?
8. Exponent: Ben Thompson is just so intelligent that makes this podcast works even if the pacing and production are all wrong.
9. In Our Time: British people talking science, history, literature, and culture. What’s not to like?
10. The Infinite Monkey Cage: Such a wonderful show! I wish they did it more frequently. British comedy and science. Just great.
11. Material: A relayfm show about Google and Android. Still starting, the first episodes where good, the last one so so. We shall see.
12. Muteados: A very funny new show in Spanish. Very irregular.
13. Planet Money: Even when it’s bad, this show is fairly good. Real quality of topics, well researched. A lot of reruns.
14. Pragmatic: This is a great podcast about how things work, very detailed. I’m very glad it has returned.
15. Radiolab: Everybody likes Radiolab
16. The Rebound: Surprisingly, this may be one of my favorites tech podcasts and the real secret inspiration to my own podcast Robot. Sounds like old time. Funny people talk about current tech. I really like Dan Moren, Lex Friedman, John Moltz and when one of them is missing Guy English shows up. All in all, very good.
17. Reply All: The best Gimlet Media show. Much better that Startup…
18. Robot or Not?: So short you almost have no time to laugh. John Siracusa is in it.
19. Top Four: Marco and Tiffany make lists, sometimes with guests. Even though it is very irregular and Marco is incapable of making a lists, I still listen.

That’s it! See you in about six months.