Broken feed since changing password

[dramatic]

I have my media posted on libsyn and originally I gave the libsyn feed to iTunes. I later put a redirect in Libsyn >> Destinations >> Libsyn Classic Feed: http://media.blubrry.com/dramaticlistening/www.dramaticlistening.com/feed/podcast/ and the Redirect URL 1: http://media.blubrry.com/dramaticlistening in PowerPress. iTunes was then drawing from the www.dramaticlistening.com/feed/podcast/ feed. However, after changing my BluBrry password, the feed broke. Now the www.dramaticlistening.com/feed/podcast/ feed doesn't even include any .mp3 files. If I remove the redirect, the libsyn feed is still intact. But I think iTunes is drawing from www.dramaticlistening.com/feed/podcast/ now.
Last night, I re-input the information in Libsyn and re-input my new password in the PowerPress plugin. The www.dramaticlistening.com/feed/podcast/ feed then drew from the Libsyn feed including the .mp3 files and my latest episode, DL034. I went to bed happy. However, this morning, I'm back to square one with the broken www.dramaticlistening.com/feed/podcast/ feed again. Why does it not keep the data I input?

Postscript: I just logged out of blubrry >> manage account. I refreshed my open browser tab for my www.dramaticlistening.com/feed/podcast/ feed and it was broken again. It seems that signing out of blubrry might have caused the break.

[dramatic]

I went through the process again of resetting my password in Blubrry and PowerPress, and got the feed working again. I logged out of my account on Blubrry and checked the feed. It wasn't broken. I still had my WordPress Dramatic Listening admin site open (www.dramaticlistening.com). I logged out and then checked the feed again. This time it was broken. Could the problem be a bug in PowerPress?

I tried resetting the password in Firefox (on Blubrry and in PowerPress), but the feed remained broken.
I tried resetting the password in Safari (on Blubrry and in PowerPress), but the feed remained broken.
I tried Opera and didn't need to reset. Although other browsers were giving me a broken feed, Opera found the working feed and let me subscribe in Opera Mail. I was able to see and play the mp3 for my most recent episode.

I am using a Macbook Pro with OS X Lion 10.7.5, WordPress version 4.0 hosted on Site5, and Google Chrome is up to date, version 38.0.2125.111, Opera 12.16, Safari 6.1.6, and FireFox 31.0.

[mgdell]

Ok.. The problem is, you are putting the stats redirect in front of your feed address.. That's not where it goes.  It goes before your media files.

Your feed http://www.dramaticlistening.com/feed/podcast/ is working fine.

In your wordpress dashboard, go to 'PowerPress Settings', navigate to "Services and Stats", then click the button "Click here to configure Blubrry Statistics and Hosting Services." Enter your account email, password and, if prompted, select the appropriate program from the list. For detailed instructions, visit the Blubrry Services and Statistics help page (link: http://create.blubrry.com/resources/powerpress/powerpress-settings/services-stats/).  This will automatically put your redirect for stats in the correct place when you post an episode.  (Which it looks like you have already done)

-Mike

[dramatic]

Mike, thanks for your help, but I still have a few questions. You think the feed is working, but it is only working if I have reset the password in PowerPress and have not closed my WordPress admin site.

Last night, I had WP open as I was working on new show notes. When I closed it, I checked my iPod and my feed had indeed updated; I had episode DL034 (published Oct 25). However, the episode I was working on last night (DL035) was scheduled to publish at 6:30 a.m today GMT+8 (Taiwan) (Nov 7). It published successfully on my WP site (www.dramaticlistening.com) and in Libsyn, but the feed did not update for this episode on my iPod. I checked my feed this morning in the browser and found that it was unformatted and did not include any .mp3 files in it.

Then, I logged into my WP admin site and reset the password in PowerPress. I updated the post as well. I checked my feed and I saw that it was now formatted correctly, and included the .mp3 files.

I logged out of WP admin site and refreshed the browser tab for the feed and saw that it was broken once again. So it still seems to be getting picked up by iTunes only while I have a reset password and WP admin still open in my browser.

Libsyn disagrees with me putting the redirect in my Libsyn account, but it has been there for about 11 months now. You helped me with that last November and it has been working until this recent break that I noticed when my Oct 24 (rescheduled for Oct 25) episode did not get into the feed.

Libsyn Classic Feed Redirect (in Libsyn account >> Destinations >> Libsyn Classic Feed >> Advanced Options >> Redirect Feed to this Web address [Filling in this setting will enable a redirect that will bounce your Libsyn feed to the feed that is designated here. Users attempting to access your Libsyn feed will be redirected to the feed url in this setting.]): http://media.blubrry.com/dramaticlistening/www.dramaticlistening.com/feed/podcast/

In PowerPress, I have this Redirect URL 1: http://media.blubrry.com/dramaticlistening/


Libsyn says this is wrong. I got this email from them a few days ago:

I understand what the Blubrry prepend is. However, the redirect you entered is incorrect for that purpose. That redirect is *only* used if you are moving away from our service, changing the feed URL iTunes is pulling from.

If you simply want to apply their stats to your podcast episodes, they provide you with a URL prepend (sometimes called a redirect) which in your case is likely:

http://media.blubrry.com/dramaticlistening

We can apply that to your show so that all episodes prepend that to the file URLs. You don't want to do that to your Libsyn feed, particularly if iTunes is pulling from your Libsyn feed. Doing so will break your iTunes submission - which is what has happened and why I was asking for what you wanted the end result to be.

iTunes is not updating and working properly because you entered an incorrect redirect. I would recommend first removing that redirect from our system. Then go into Blubrry and see if they have an option for redirection on their end. If so, redirect them back to your Libsyn feed (don't try implementing any Blubrry stats yet, just get the feed iTunes is pulling from straightened out first).

Once iTunes is properly pulling from us and all your metadata and episodes have fully appeared in the store and for subscribers, then we can assist you setting up your Blubrry stats with our system.

If Blubrry cannot redirect your feed to us, I can contact iTunes on your behalf to have them manually update the feed they pull from. However, doing so will cause you to loose all subscribers, so that should be used only as a last result.

Are you and Libsyn both saying I should remove the redirect in Libsyn and only use the Redirect URL 1: http://media.blubrry.com/dramaticlistening/ in PowerPress?

I am also wondering what feed iTunes is drawing from. Is it still the Libsyn Classic Feed that I gave them when I started podcasting Oct 2013, or is it now www.dramaticlistening.com/feed/podcast/. I'm just hoping I won't have to lose subscribers to fix this.

Thanks for your patience and your help,

Wendy at Dramatic Listening

[mgdell]

It looks like you are getitng a couple things confused.   

The Stats Redirect (or whatever libsyn calls it) is indeed; http://media.blubrry.com/dramaticlistening   

IF your iTunes listing is pulling libsyn's feed, then let them put the redirect in their system where it ieeds to go.   The setting in libsyn where you put the redirect to your powerpress feed isn't needed there.

IF your iTunes listing is pulling your own feed (via powerpress) then you need to do this:   First, take out the address in the redirect 1 slot.  Blank that out.  Then In your wordpress dashboard, go to 'PowerPress Settings', navigate to "Services and Stats", then click the button "Click here to configure Blubrry Statistics and Hosting Services." Enter your account email, password and, if prompted, select the appropriate program from the list. For detailed instructions, visit the Blubrry Services and Statistics help page (link: http://create.blubrry.com/resources/powerpress/powerpress-settings/services-stats/).   

In either case, your feed address does NOT get the stats redirect.  It goes in front of each mp3 file.  In powerpress, if you do as I said above, it will happen automatically.  If you are using libsyn's feed, It will be automatic on their end once they put the redirect where it needs to go in their system.

I guess we need to find out which feed is being pulled by iTunes.. What is your itunes listing URL? 

-Mike

[dramatic]

Thanks so much for your help, Mike. It means a lot to me to get this working right. My iTunes URL is  itunes.apple.com/tw/podcast/dramatic-listening/id719081343, but I don't know how to find which feed they are drawing from.
Thanks again,

Wendy

[mgdell]

The feed itunes is pulling is http://www.dramaticlistening.com/feed/podcast/   So that's good.

To get the stats working in wordpress In your wordpress dashboard, go to 'PowerPress Settings', navigate to "Services and Stats", then click the button "Click here to configure Blubrry Statistics and Hosting Services." Enter your account email, password and, if prompted, select the appropriate program from the list. For detailed instructions, visit the Blubrry Services and Statistics help page (link: http://create.blubrry.com/resources/powerpress/powerpress-settings/services-stats/).

-Mike

[dramatic]

Mike, that part has already been done, but what I'm wondering is, do I keep this redirect in my Libsyn account?
http://media.blubrry.com/dramaticlistening/www.dramaticlistening.com/feed/podcast/

If I change this (as Libsyn thinks I should), will iTunes still draw from www.dramaticlistening.com/feed/podcast/, or will my feed break?

And in PowerPress, do I keep this Redirect URL 1: http://media.blubrry.com/dramaticlistening/

Thanks again for your help,
Wendy

[mgdell]

Yes, remove that redirect from Libsyn. (as they say to)

Yes, iTunes will pull your feed from your website.

You don't have to  keep the redirect URL 1 setting if you are linked in the services and stats area of powerpress. 

-Mike

[dramatic]

Thanks, Mike. I have deleted the redirect from Libsyn. The Redirect URL 1 in PowerPress will not delete. Is there any reason for that?

Mike, how do I check for myself to see which feed iTunes is drawing from? Now that I remove the redirect from Libsyn, if I type the www.dramaticlistening.com/feed/podcast/ url in Chrome, I once again get an unformatted feed with no mp3 files in it. To me, this looks broken.

[mgdell]

If you type www.dramaticlistening.com/feed/podcast/ into FIREFOX, it does show up correctly.  Chrome isn't the best way to look at feeds. Firefox does the best job.

Your feed is fine.  There isn't an easy way for you to find out which feed itunes is pulling.  We have an internal tool here at Blubrry that we can use.  I checked yours and itunes is pulling www.dramaticlistening.com/feed/podcast/

Don't worry about the redirect URL1 thing.   The way to check that everything is OK with the blubrry stats is hover over the download link in your post.  At the bottom of your browser you will see the path to the mp3.   "http://media.blubrry.com/dramaticlistening/traffic.libsyn.com/dramaticlistening/DL-2014-11-07-you_died_last_night-03.mp3" Is what I see on your last episode.  The "http://media.blubrry.com/dramaticlistening" is the stats tracking URL. 

Everything is working perfectly on your feed. 

Happy Podcasting!

-Mike

[dramatic]

Mike, thanks so much! I had trouble checking in FireFox before as it just wanted me to subscribe to the feed. For anyone else reading this thread, I'll explain. You have to put 'view-source: ' in front of your feed to check it in FF.
Thanks again, Mike. You've gotten back to me regularly within a day each time, and that's even though I'm in Asia. Great service and great help!