M-Audio Podcast Factory is a good end-to-end solution for people who want to create high-quality podcasts with a minimum amount of fuss. The hardware—a microphone, a desktop mic stand, a USB audio interface, and cables—is easy to set up, but the included recording and publishing software (which is also free on the Web) may not be appropriate for total beginners. I set this system up in less than five minutes, created a simple podcast, and got it ready for publishing within just a few more minutes, with very good results. But the audio interface (a relabeled M-Audio Fast Track USB) requires some knob tweaking, and newbies have to learn the two completely different included apps—Audacity and Podifier—rather than a single integrated piece of software.