Podcaster Interview:
Tim Verpoorten
The Mac ReviewCast
Like many people, I find Tim’s podcast to be quite helpful. Finding useful software is always great, but finding the time to discover titles is another story. The Mac ReviewCast has been going strong for a few years. Combining his own notices of software updates with input from a cast of regulars, the podcast is a weekly update for the shareware/freeware fans who use a Mac.
Q: Thanks for taking time to answer a few questions. Why undertake the burden of a podcast? Did the podcast grow out of your desire (or is it addiction) to get the next great app?
When I started podcasting in April of 2005, there were not a lot of other podcasters in the field. I heard some of the early ones and it just hit me that I wanted to podcast about Macs. I was a switcher and I fell in love with the software that was available for Mac and I just thought it was unique and very functional and just looked great. So I bought the domain name, macreviewcast.com and started working on my first podcast.
It didn’t take long before I ran into my first problem, I didn’t know a thing about audio production. The idea of recording casually and presenting my podcast in that same type of format was not what I wanted. From listening to other podcasts, I realized that if I was going to do this, I had to learn how to record and edit audio and present a podcast that sounded as professional as I could get it. So I contacted the best in the business, Paul Figgiani from the Point Podcast and he was also doing work with Doug Kaye’s ITC. Paul helped me purchase what I needed for hardware and software and explained over hours of emails and phone calls, how to do proper post production work. To this day he still helps me fine tune my skills and critiques me when I need it.
It took me a good 20 or 30 episodes to finally settle in the format that was comfortable for me, and, at the time, somewhat unique. I was always impressed by the fact that the good Mac developers gave back to the community with freeware apps along with the shareware. The freeware was quality software and I wanted to share it with other Mac listeners. I also found that friends in the Mac community wanted to help with reviews of software and hardware and found it easier to contribute to my podcast then to start one of their own. So I’ve always asked for and shared recorded reviews from listeners. Many have become regulars on the podcast.
Q: Can you talk a bit about your computer background?
I started on PC’s back in the early 1990’s. I loved building them from scratch and ended up learning HTML myself and started building Web sites for local businesses. Then I started hosting Web sites and the next thing I knew, I had a small ISP in town. In 2003 I fell in love with the Mac and became an ardent blogger about Mac software and then in April of 2005 I started the podcast. Since that time I’ve learn to do post production for Audio and Video with the Final Cut Pro Studio apps and I enjoy the process editing as much as I enjoy podcasting itself. Everything I learned about computers was self taught and I think that the most fun you can have with a Mac is to grab a new application and teach yourself how to use it to its fullest.
Q: I would guess you follow Version Tracker. Can you suggest any resources for readers seeking new software?
There are three good sources for Mac software: Versiontracker, MacUpdate.com and the Mac Aggregate Tracker.
Q: Can a Mac user actually work with all freeware in place of shareware and commercial applications?
I think you can. There is so much quality freeware out there today that almost every application that you have on your Mac right now can be substituted with a freeware replacement. As an over all statement, you will find that shareware applications for the Mac will be more unique and imaginative as a whole, but I am finding that if you use commercial software, there is a freeware application that will do the same job. In fact, we will be starting a new segment in the podcast that will look at freeware replacements for commercial applications on the Mac. For example, replacing Photoshop with freeware, or Word, or iTunes with freeware. Even if you do not want to switch to freeware, I think it’s important for all Mac users out there to know what freeware is available and how to find it.
Plus, I want to make certain that the Mac users out there appreciate all the efforts and hard work that shareware developers put into creating their software and users need to support the developers to keep these great Mac applications coming.
Q: Please name a few apps that you find to be indispensable to your Mac use?
For freeware I love and use, Evernote, Quicksilver, Bean, iStat menus, Perian, Adium, Skype, Meteorologist, Soundsource, and Firefox. For shareware I love SuperDuper, VisualHub, Skitch, Acorn, Transmit, and Marsedit. I have nearly 150 applications in my Application Folder, so as you can tell, I love Mac software.
Q: Do you use app removal software? If so, which ones?
Yes, I use Appzapper. But there is a freeware one that does a good job called Apptrap and then there’s a free one called Application Annihilator. If I don’t use a removal tool, I’ll have plist files all over my Mac. 
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To find Tim’s latest podcast, visit his web site <www.macreviewcast.com> or subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. Even if subscribed, be sure to check in at his site to view notes from each show.
Tags: interview, mac reviewcast, podcast, verpoorten
August 8, 2008 at 5:12 am
Great job, Dave!
