It can be hard to keep up with the rapid pace of change in technology.  Time is often (if not always) at a premium.   I have found that listening to Podcasts is a great way to stay up-to-date without being a time suck.  It lets me learn what others are doing with virtualization and gain perspective from other individuals in the field.

I typically travel one or two days a week and can listen in the car. The nice thing is that you can listen anywhere – mowing the yard, working out or at work!

Here is a list of the podcasts that help me stay current (in no particular order):

The VMware Communities podcast features VMware experts that discuss virtualization live every Wednesday at noon (pacific). Virtualization news and tech mixed with a “Late Night at VMworld” informality.  You can join in live at TalkShoe, or subscribe with iTunes and Android.

The Virtually Speaking podcast is dedicated to discussing VMware topics that center around Storage and Availability.  They usually have a subject matter expert on the show and quite often go pretty deep.  You can subscribe to the podcast on iTunes and Android.

vBrownBag is mostly video. This is a nice contrast to the rest which are audio.  This does force me to find screen time; but it is so worth it.   The thing I like most about this podcast is it’s community of presenters.  It isn’t the same two or 3 people all the time.  Many episodes are part of a series.  A lot of these focus on preparing for a tech certification (VCAP,VCDX, CCNA, and Amazon).  The individual episodes cover a large variety of topics.  You can even watch live as they are recorded – and they record in multiple GEOs.  If you want to add them to your device – check them out on iTunes and Android.

Datanauts covers the spectrum.   One week you will be learning about leaf-spline networks.  The next, you will cover data modeling or scripting.  There is a lot of top-notch technical content here.  They broadcast live while recording.  You can also subscribe to the podcast on iTunes or Android.  Their site also allows you to download episodes.

The Geek Whisperers was the first podcast I found a few years ago when I was struggling a-bit with my work-life balance.  They usually bring in a guest from the high-tech arena for an episode and interview them on a topic – which generally revolves around careers, culture, and life.  The guests are from a variety of jobs and companies.   The discussion is lively and fun, and quite often I come away with my profound thought for the day. You can subscribe with iTunes and Android.

In Tech We Trust is a weekly discussion of tech industry news.  The hosts all work for big-name Tech companies and have a lot of fun reviewing the news, ranting about On-premise or On-Premises, and telling you What is Hot, and What is NOT.   It is a fun listen and I even learn new things at the same time!   You can subscribe with iTunes and Android.