I have earlier reported in this blog about using GrageBand, a component of Apple’s iLife 08, to produce Calculus Podcasts. While GarageBand allows the convenient editing of the soundtrack, the quality of graphics that GarageBand supports, is not good enough for Calculus Podcasts.

Incidentally Apple came up with the new very thin laptop, Mac Book Air. I liked very much its add (http://www.apple.com/macbookair/#ad) in which Yael Naim sings about being “A New Soul in this Strange World.” I even then searched for the song in YouTube. In the song (http://youtube.com/watch?v=-YUxbDEPFiM ), after the part which is included in the Mac Book Air ad, she signs that she finds herself “making every possible mistake.”

I feel the same. Clearly GarageCalculus was not going to work.

Now I have learnt to use Keynote and iMovie enough to be able to produce Calculus Podcasts at the rate of 2-4 podcasts on a good day. The way I am doing it is the following.

Algorithm: from PP to mp4:

Input: fairly decent PowerPoint slide show on a mathematical topic with mathematics edited by MathType.

1. Copy the file to a Macintosh, and open the file with Mac PowerPoint. You need to have a copy of MathType as well.

2. Click the MathType formulae included in the slideshow, and close them. After this preparation Keynote will be able to understand all the fonts needed for the formulae.

3. Increase all the font sizes so that the generic font is at least 24 pt. This improves the legibility of the text on small devices like the iPod Touch or the iPhone. 18 pt fonts are also readablee, but not as good as 24 pt fonts on these devices.

4. Next open the saved file with Keynote, and split each page to an individual slideshow.

5. Record each individual slide show with Keynote, and export the recorded slides shows to QuickTime (requires only a couple of clicks).

6. Next in iMovie, create a new project for your movie, and import the recorded and exported Keynote movies to iMovie. Compose your Calculus podcast in iMovie.

7. Use iMovie’s one button publishing feature to upload your work to .Mac.

Yael Naim ends her song: this is a happy end... I guess that I also have a happy end -- but for different reasons than what the song suggests. I have been able to set up a Calculus podcast production line. In the attached picture, you see me working on my production line explaining the secrets of differentiability to my imaginary audience.

For the current results of my podcast production line, see http://web.mac.com/mika.seppala/Site/Calculus_Podcasts/Calculus_Podcasts.... You may notice that I did not always have time to edit my presentation from 18 pt fonts to 24 pt fonts.

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