I've been waiting years for software like the tool we have today.

I just found Artisteer at artisteer.com which is a phenomenal software that allows you to create a wordpress theme from scratch. I am completely blown away. If you'd like to see a quick overview I jsut did a quick video at http://www.weeklywebtools.com

You can download a trial version at  artisteer.com there are two version starting at $49 (home version). The "standard" version is $150 and right now is on sale for $99 (you get more graphics and effects). I am amazed at the control you have when creating a wordpress theme, and how easy it is to master.

Listener Questions
Q: Dave I don't see my album art when the podcast downloads and I play it.

A: There are two places to use your album art. One shows up in the iTunes podcast directory, and then each episode has the album art "inside" the mp3 file in the ID3 tags. If you don't tag your file, it won't show up (it only takes a couple of minutes).

Q: Is wordpress.com a good solution for podcasting?
A: Wordpress.com is like buying a "starter home." It's a good place to live at first, but as soon as you grow you will more than likely want to move. The last time I checked moving is always a pain in the rear end.

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Today's show spotlights a cool new theme for Wordpress with built in SEO, and easy to customize the site. I asked the author of the theme what it did for SEO and he answered,

"Thesis also features the most advanced, semantically-correct HTML markup structure on the market. There are lots of situations where using default WordPress settings will result in a sub-optimal markup structure, and Thesis recognizes these situations and issues the proper markup instead. <h1> and <h2> tags are handled to perfection on every page of the theme, and you even have the ability to control nofollows and noindex attributes on an alarming number of theme elements and core pages (tag archive pages, for instance).

Also, Thesis is built for the future of SEO because it contains a ton of microformatted content served up in a meaningful way. In the years to come, search engines are going to use microformats to pull specific pieces of information from sites. In theory, this information is more "rich" because the markup contains additional data about the information, and in my opinion, SEs are going to leverage this in their results. Oh, and even if microformats do not become a meaningful piece of the SEO puzzle, they're still a HUGE piece of the accessibility puzzle, so you're going to win on that front no matter what."

I love the flexibility. If you dig in real deep you are going to need to have a little bit of code knowledge, but their forums are very active with people who can supply the answers you need. If I had one suggestion it would be to take that group of users and get them to put together some sort of wikki manual.

Check it out at www.thesis4wordpress.com

If you are looking to start a podcast, and avoid all the pitfalls and confusion, come sign up and learn to podcast at the School of Podcasting www.schoolofpodcasting.com

This show originates at www.schoolofpodcasting.com where you can Learn to Podcast.

Blubrry PowerPress Reviewed
Today I talk about the Blubrry Powerpress Audio Player for Wordpress.
I like the Podpress player, except that when the latest version of Wordpress came out it was not compatible. Then Blurry released the PowerPress plugin for Wordpress.

I never used half of the features of Podpress, and Powerpress has all the features (and a few new ones) that I really like.

iTunes tags
Redirects for advertising networks
It separates the whole RSS and the Podcast RSS so you can submit the podcast RSS to iTunes (I recommend putting both feeds into Feedburner).
It takes the information entered by Podpress and uses it so you don't have to edit all your old posts (COOL!)
Allows people to stream, play in new window, or download episode.

The only thing it doesn't do is allow me to chagne the look of the player. The good news its not a bad looking player. Check it out at http://www.blubrry.com/powerpress/

Keeping Everyone On the Same Page
I answer a question about www.premiumcast.com and some of its features from Kenn from www.blackmanwithagun.com he asked why I didn't use Premiumcast for my membership site. The biggest reason is when I started the School of Podcasting in 2005, Premiumcast didn't exist.

The other feature I was asked about is "keeping everyone on the same page." For example if you have a fitness podcast, you may want people to listen to every podcast from start to finish. Unfortunately, if they sign up in iTunes they will "jump in" wherever your last episode is. Using Premiumcast, you can make start at episode one, and then time released your episodes (for example once a week). It's a great feature used by authors to time release their chapters of their books. Check it out at www.premiumcast.com

If you're ready to start podcasting, if you don't want the technology to get in your way then  learn how to podcast at www.schoolofpodcasitng.com

 is the company I used to get my business cards. This show originates at www.schoolofpodcasting.com

Key Ingredients of a Podcast

1. It will help the audience, or teach them (like this podcast)
2. It will entertain the audience (laughter, music, etc).
3. A unique persepctive (like a stay at home Dad, a solder in Iragq).
4. The ability to move the audience (taps in to the eomotions of the audience).

How Many Downloads Can You Expect on Your First Show?

I've released the first episode of the Dates From Hell Show. We are not listed anywhere (iTunes, Podcast Alley, etc). We had a whole 19 downloads. This may seem poor, but you have to keep in mind that I've done very little publicity for this show (so don't get discouraged).

A New Kind of Business Card

As the Dates From Hell Show may have a wider appeal than many of my podcasts I wanted a different type of business card that was geared more toward driving traffic to my website instead of contacting me. It explains its an "Internet Radio Show." It explains that you can listen online. The great thing is if you order 500 cards, they are only 6 cents each.

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