Q: "Can't download episodes from your feed" error message

Within each episode in a feed there has to be an 'enclosure' tag containing the URL of the media file for the episode. Yours reads:

<enclosure url="http://whathappending.blogspot.com/2016/01/episode-2-felicity.html" length="0" type="text/html" />

This URL is for a web page: that won't work. You must provide a direct link to the media file - .mp3 or whatever - and the file must play directly in a browser when you enter the URL in the address bar, not force a download. If you submit a suitable file to Blogger it should construct the feed properly. The allowable file types are .mp3, .m4a, .m4v, .mov or .mp4 file (not Windows Media, RealMedia, Flash, or any sort of embedded player).

Your media file is hosted on SoundCloud so you will need to find out how to access the file directly. There is a setting for downloading and you need to disable that.

I have the same error to come up but my file will play directly in the browser. I have published it on Google Play and everything is fine. With iTunes I continue to get an error.

Here is my RSS feed: http://feeds.feedburner.com/SatchpoThePodcast

Please help. I use Google Drive to host the episodes and use Blogger as the source for my feed. I manipulated the url of the file on Google Drive so that when you click the episode it will play right from the browser. It works perfectly when I go to the up feed.

The URL of your top media file is

http://googledrive.com/host/0B0Z85NYs2MokOElrV2Fpd0ZtY2s

As it does not have an extension, e.g. .mp3, iTunes has no way of knowing that it's a media file and so treats the episode as not having one. Google Drive has caused numerous problems with podcast media and to be brutally frank I would advise you to find somewhere else to host your media files. In any event you will have to provide a URL with the extension and I don't know whether Google Drive can do even that.

Thank you!

You are right, I don't think there is a way to get a .mp3 extension from Google Drive. Making it playable in the browser is the best I can do. I will have to look for another hosting site. Any suggestions that work really well with Apple?

Here is Apples list of featured providers that work with iTunes:

https://itunespartner.apple.com/en/podcasts/partnersearch

Libsyn is the largest podcast hosts of those listed and for full disclosure the company I work for. 

If you have questions about libsyn please email me.

rob at libsyn dot com

Rob W

libsyn

You can host your feed and media files on any ordinary webspace server provided it handles 'byte range requests' and it will allow you sufficient bandwidth/usage if your show becomes popular. This assumes you have a method of constructing your feed. If you use a 'featured provider' you may get more assistance with the actual creation of the podcast, in many cases actually making the feed for you. You will have to pay for this; people have got some of the free services to work (Google Drive being an exception) but of course you get no support.