Local Podcast Server (macOS Menu Bar App)

A completely self-contained macOS Menu Bar application built in Python that hosts a local folder of .m4a files as an RSS feed. Perfect for listening to local audio archives via the Apple Podcasts app on iOS and macOS, without needing cloud hosting or an active internet connection!

Features

• Multi-Podcast Support: Host multiple different podcast folders simultaneously. Each gets its own generated RSS feed and isolated audio server on the same port!
• Native macOS Interface: Runs quietly in the status bar using rumps.
• Zero Config Setup: Uses native AppleScript dialogs to choose your podcast directories.
• Lightning Fast Scanning: Uses multi-threading (concurrent.futures) to instantly scan thousands of audio files to extract titles, descriptions, and dates.
• Customizable: Assign your own podcast series titles and a custom localhost networking port.
• Copy & Paste Simplicity: One-click "Copy RSS Link" per podcast straight to your macOS clipboard.
• Graceful Execution: The FastAPI server runs as an isolated background process to prevent any UI freezing or thread locking.

Prerequisites

• macOS
• Python 3.9+ (already built into modern macOS)

Beginner's Quick Start Guide

Not a programmer? No problem! Here is the 101 guide to getting this running.

1. Download & Extract: Once you download the PodcastApp-Source.zip file, double-click it to extract the folder. Move this folder to a permanent home (like your Documents or Applications folder).
2. Open Terminal: Press Cmd + Space (Spotlight), type Terminal, and hit Enter.
3. Navigate to the Folder: Type cd (with a space at the end). Then, click and drag the extracted folder from Finder directly into the Terminal window and press Enter.
4. Install Requirements: Copy and paste this exact command into the Terminal, and press Enter:

   pip3 install -r requirements.txt

5. Launch the App: Once the installation is done, run the app by pasting this command:

   python3 app.py

   Note: A small red dot (🔴) will appear in the top-right of your screen, next to your WiFi/battery icons.
6. Configure & Start:
   • Click the 🔴 icon.
   • Click Directory and point to a folder containing .m4a audio files.
   • Click Start Server (the icon will turn 🟢).
   • Click Copy RSS Link.
7. Listen: Open the Apple Podcasts app on your Mac or iPhone. Go to File > Add a Show by URL..., paste the link, and hit Subscribe!

---

Installation for Development

1. Clone this repository:

   git clone https://github.com/yourusername/PodcastApp.git
   cd PodcastApp

2. Install requirements:

   pip install -r requirements.txt

3. Run the raw Python app:

   python3 app.py

Building the Standalone macOS App (.app)

If you want to create a portable .app bundle that you can put in your /Applications folder (or distribute to others):

1. Install py2app:

   pip install py2app

2. Build the bundle:

   python3 setup.py py2app

   Note: Using py2app -A creates an Alias build for quick local testing. Run standard py2app for a fully self-contained distribution.

3. Your standalone macOS application will be created in the dist/ folder as PodcastApp.app.

Usage

1. Click the 🔴 icon in your macOS status bar.
2. Select Directory to point the app to a folder containing .m4a audio files.
3. (Optional) Customize the Name and the networking Port.
4. Click Start Server. The icon will turn 🟢.
5. Click Copy RSS Link and paste it directly into your podcast player of choice (e.g., Apple Podcasts: Library > Edit > Add a Show by URL...).