It’s easy podcasting on a PC, but it’s a cinch using Mac’s GarageBand, Version 3+. Apple has made it ridiculously easy to record voice; add chapters, image, web links (or a video for a vodcast) for an enhanced podcast; and lay down background music with a great feature called “ducking” which automatically lowers the background music volume when the predominant voice audio is featured.

Now before you get started, make sure your microphone is connected to the microphone-in connection on your computer (or, alternatively, an internal microphone). A set of headphones is also a good idea. Connect them to the headphone jack of your Mac so that you’ll be able to hear the audio as it will sound in your finished podcast.

To record a podcast episode using GarageBand, just follow these steps:

1. Open GarageBand. Versions 3.0+ allow you to choose “New Podcast Episode.” Select that. In the “Save As” dialog box, name your podcast episode.
2. On the top-left is a series of five track bars where you’ll record and mix your tracks. The bottom-left is a timeline of what you’re creating, or the “loop browser.” Click the icon next to either “Male Voice” or “Female Voice.” Your selection will be confirmed under “Track” below.
3. Make sure your audio settings are adjusted properly by speaking into the microphone. Watch the green bars that appear next to the “Voice” you selected. If they bounce into the red or don’t expand fully, adjust your voice volume or the GarageBand settings. You may also need to adjust your computer’s sound and speech levels inside your System Preferences.
4. Begin recording by clicking the red button and speaking clearly into your microphone. To stop recording, click the red button again or press the space bar. You will see your voice recording displayed in the “Timeline” area.
5. Now add some music or sound effects by clicking on the Loop browser (eye shaped icon in the middle-left of your screen) from the Control menu and click “Jingles.” Click on a selection to listen to the track; click again to stop. Once you find something that you like, drag the sound clip to the “Jingles” or “Radio Sounds” track. A green plus (+) sign indicates that you can add it to the track. If you want to add another track, select “New Track” from the Track menu.
6. Now it’s time to mix the the tracks using GarageBand’s “ducking” feature. Each track has two triangular arrows in the right hand portion of the shaded area to the left of the track. When you click the top (yellow) arrow, that track will be featured at full volume while other tracks play under it. If you click the bottom (blue) arrow, the track will will be “ducked” or reduced in volume when the featured track is playing.
7. To listen to the recording, drag the playhead to the beginning of the track or click one of the backward arrow buttons, then click the forward arrow.
8. To add photos or video to the podcast, select Media Browser from the Control menu, then choose a file from under “Photos” or “Movies.” To add album art, drag an image to the “Episode Artwork” box in the lower left. To add podcast metadata, select “Podcast Track”. If the “Episode Info” box isn’t visible (in the bottom right), select Show Track Info from the Track menu. In the “Episode Info” box, add “Title”, “Artist”, and “Parental Advisory”, and enter a “Description.”
9. To export the project as a podcast file, select “Send to iTunes” from the Share menu. iTunes will open and prepare your podcast for playback. Create and edit your ID3 tags and select your bit and sample rates. Please note that your saved file in iTunes may need to be converted into MP3 format. Click on the “Advanced” tab in iTunes and select “Convert selection to MP3.” Highlight your new track in iTunes and click “Convert selection to MP3.”

And you’re done! For more information on podcasting with GarageBand on your Mac, take a look at the following two videos. The first is a demo by Steve Jobs himself!