Previously if you added a podcast feed to the newswire within Epicyon [1] episodes would appear in the right column as links back to the original site. This is fine for most purposes, but it has to be admitted that especially on many podcast websites *the user experience is absolute garbage*. That means that you may need to search around hunting for an mp3 link or enabling javascript so that you can have a struggle session with some archaic embedded audio player which hasn't been updated for years. Often the bespoke embedded players are broken or just not accessible.
But now Epicyon does a better job of handling podcasts. Podcast episodes in the newswire now link to a podcast screen which includes the web browser's built-in audio player, a direct link to the audio and any relevant hashtags.
This removes a lot of the inconsistency and guesswork when playing podcasts, and should make for a better user experience.
The reason why many podcast sites are such trash has a lot to do with the now familiar reasons of getting people to click on ads and be tracked everywhere they go around the web. Really on the open web we ought to be aiming for something better than trash, which actually serves the user's interests first and foremost.
