October 17, 2004
My Podcasting AppleScripts
I have been doing my podcasts on my PowerBook. At first, I couldn’t seem to get a reliable setup working. Sometimes the mic just wouldn’t pick up. I finally figured out a startup and shutdown process and decided to script them. I learned some AppleScript and hacked out 2 scripts that help me start and stop my podcasts. Now, the scripts are working perfectly for me and my podcasts are becoming much more standardized.
The startup script does the following:
- Change audio output source to Soundflower.
- Starts Audacity.
- Starts iTunes.
- Starts GarageBand. Deletes the intial track. Adds a new basic track. Changes instrument to the last in the list. Turns on the monitor for the instrument.
- Starts recording in Audacity.
- Begins playing a configured track in iTunes for a configured number of seconds and then it fades the volume to 0% and stops the track.
I use the shudown script when I am ready to end the broadcast. I say goodbye and then run the script. The shutdown script does the following:
- Raise iTunes volume to 100%.
- Begins playing a configured track in iTunes. Once the track playes for a configured number of seconds, the iTunes volume starts fading to 0%.
- The recording is stopped in Audacity.
- iTunes and GarageBand are closed.
- The System Preferences sound output is changed back to External Speakers.
You may use these scripts if you like to help with your podcasts. Due to the fact that everyone has different podcasting setups, it is likely that these scripts will not work out of the box for you. You will need to learn how to hack them to do what you want to. I am posting them as a reference point for others that want to do something like this. Maybe we can build a robust libray of scripts over time that makes podcasting as easy as it should be.
Since these scripts are tailored to my setup, let me explain what I am doing. It is very similar to Hugo’s setup documentation. For starters, I am using a Plantronics USB headset for audio. I use GarageBand to record the mic. I use Audacity as the final recorder of the mix.
Here are the scripts. Feel free to download and modify for your use. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE do not mail me and ask me how to make these work for your setup because you are doing “something different”. It is all you. However, if you make modifications that you think are generally good and applicable to lots of people, send them my way and I will update these scripts.
Podcast away!
