Well, here it is, of sorts. My very own shoutcaster dedicated site. That is not entirely true, its mainly for shoutcast stuff and because, well, I am fed up with hearing crappy shoutcasters and rather than moan at them for a job they do for free and are at least trying, I thought I would set up some kind of neutral sanctuary for anyone who wants to give it a go. A place where perhaps they can get help, rather than ridicule and a place where they can chat with other shoutcasters of varying skill, ambition and experience.
When I started doing this job properly (in 2004) I was lucky. I had several people around me at Radio iTG that gave me help, offered advice and generally guided me through the sometimes horrible abuse. It wasnt all bad of course and there were many who enjoyed my work, but the trick was and still is, to ignore those who are just ranting (like I do sometimes) and take on board those who offer valid, constructive criticism.
It isnt, as you may expect, all that difficult to learn the basics, the problem is, so few actually bother, instead heading out on to the internet, completely blind, unsupported (in the true sense) and totally naive. The mini book I have put together isnt the be all and end all of shoutcasting and really only touches the top of the iceberg, but I know from my inbox that a huge number of people have appreciated it over the last 12 months when they have asked for help. Hopefully then, it can help others by making it public.
Regardless of my random rantings here, I will try as best I can to offer advice, facts and help and support to anyone who has a modicum of talent and wants to give this a go, at whatever level, be it from their bedroom on an audio stream, right up to help getting in to television, if they have the talent.
The first steps of this are to publish the mini book, which I have been writing for seemingly ages and although it isn’t finished, I think now would be a good time to stick it out there on the internet, so expect a big article coming soon and a PDF version if you are lazy and want to download it.
I dont really care if this site gets used or not and its hardly for personal fame or glory that I put it up, instead its a way of helping nurture and grow our tiny, tiny industry by introducing a new set of people to shoutcasting. And lets face it, we really dont have many shoutcasters out there any more and I dont see where the next djWHEAT, TosspoT or ReDeYe is coming from either.
Its worth noting that I am a keen photographer and I snap a fair few esport shots throughout the year, so dont be surprised if a few of them turn up on this site too.
