Site Builder is a podcast publishing system for the web. It's a lot like a traditional podcast player app in that it reads RSS files and plays audio files directly from your podcast's server. But Site Builder also allows you to add a layer of annotations to your audio – timestamped elements like chapters, pull-quotes, web links and images.
Included in the system:
Note: Site Builder doesn't check your RSS feed on every play. It stores the URL of the audio file, but periodically checks your feed for updates to the file location, like Apple Podcasts / iTunes Store does. As long as the GUID of the episode stays the same, the URL will be automatically updated in the Site Builder database. You can force a refresh of your RSS data in the Site Builder admin dashboard if you need an immediate update to the URL too.
For now, yes. Eventually Site Builder will offer a hosting service so you can keep everything under one roof and not worry about RSS feeds.
All annotations data is available as XML, in Synesthesia XML. The XML is available at a public URL, like the XML in your RSS feed. You are free to use it in any way you would like, such having your own apps display the annotations without using the Site Builder player.
If you'd prefer to have your annotation XML private – like for example if you want to use your annotations as a paid subscription incentive – please email hello@soundpage.fm and we'll get it set up.
You can export all of your data if you ever want to stop using Site Builder entirely.
You can skip Site Builder's editor tool altogether and input your own XML. Please email hello@soundpage.fm for XML specification and to have this advanced feature enabled on your account.
The episode is then no longer viewable for the public via Site Builder (this includes the embed player). If you've added annotations to that episode, you can still access your work via the admin area, so you never accidentally lose the work you do within the Site Builder editor.
The layout of the player is done with standard HTML and CSS. You can add "alt" attributes to images using the visual editor in the admin interface. All text is displayed using standard HTML elements, so it is readable by text-to-voice software, resizable by web browsers and modifiable by colour inverters, etc. Synched transcript support coming soon. Let us know if you want us to fast-track that feature: hello@soundpage.fm.
Site Builder uses Bootstrap to respond to all screen sizes. This is the case for the embed player and the standard player.
No. Site Builder doesn't download, store or modify your audio. Audio is downloaded directly by the end user's web browser right from your server. What you post for all podcast apps to play is what the Site Builder system plays.
Not yet. But if you need this, we'd be interested in working with you on it. For now, to access the annotation data, your app can parse the XML. But eventually we'll be making a proper API so that your app can modify your Site Builder account and not just read data from it.
