The network is continuing along with some wonderful Patrons supporting it and I’ve been thinking about ways that I can give people that want to support the shows more options to choose from. I haven’t done anything with the segregation of Tiers since the network began in late 2015 so I think it’s time to refine it a bit more.
To address the recognition aspects, there is now a level for those that want a named thank you on the network home page. Beyond the existing audio bonus episodes (available for all Patrons) I’ve added another new option for those that have been asking for it. There is now an option for ad-free episodes and there are two dimensions to this:
Because of the way Patreon audio feeds work with tiering, it’s not sensible to have two sets of episodes, one with ads but pre-released, and one without, show up in the same feed across multiple tiers. For this reason I’ve separated out this ad-free option and will no longer be offering early releases of the public episodes (with ads). Hopefully that makes sense.
The truth is that early-releasing podcast episodes that are identical to their public released audio is somewhat odd given that podcasting is effectively popular because its nature is time-shifted and most people choose to listen at their convenience. I suspect mainly because of this fact, time-shifting alone was not very appealing and based on downloads and feedback, very few patrons found early-release (on its own) to be very compelling. Hence the change to an ad-free option instead.
There have been several episodes recently that were sponsor-advertising free, so when I say ad-free in those cases, I intend to strip out all self-promotion as well. If you’re a Patron listening to the ad-free version, you already know where to find the network Patreon, and what the other shows are, so I don’t need to tell you about all of that! Episodes will just…start…with brief introductions and they’ll end…quickly. Tighter. Focused. More inline with the original intent.
There’s one more thing.
I’ve been asked to cover some very interesting topics over the years, but one thing I’ve also been asked for every now and then is to produce a behind the scenes or a making of the show, video documentary of sorts. Whilst I remain somewhat skeptical that it would be very interesting I put myself in your hands. If you’d like that, let me know. Now you can. The concept is that every month there is at least one person interested in that I’ll release a video segment exclusively for those supporters. If there’s enough interest I’ll cover:
It will be released in 1080p if there’s any interest, and if not, that’s totally fine.
Show Updates
Causality recently had its first 3,000 downloads episode and continues to gain popularity. I’ve just kicked off a multi-episode arc that looks at my own wheelhouse: Control System Engineering root causes for major disasters. At the end of the arc there will be a special episode that brings it all together. And there’s lots more to come with Causality.
Analytical continues to be my place for ideas that don’t fit elsewhere and it’s a quick and fun show to make so I’m going to keep making it. I’ve had some great feedback about certain episodes and it’s good to be able to dig into more philosophical and management of people related issues. Lots more still to come.
Pragmatic remains the most popular show on the network and I’ll be bringing on more guest hosts in coming months. I have plans for some episodes on Tesla, Elon Musk’s ventures and a long-awaited revisit to the battery problem where we’ll dive into the changing landscape of offline storage and ask the question: has the battery problem been solved? So much great stuff in the pipeline for the show. It’s far from done.
Finally I’d like to wrap by once again thanking the supporters of the network, as well as the listeners, for your continued support. I will keep making more episodes as long as I am able and backed by such great people.
Thanks and take care, John Chidgey