A Prairie Home Companion from American Public Media: Help

Help

Technical
• The audio doesn't work.
• I can't find the free Windows Media Player!
• I can't find the free Real Player!

Site Problems
• The type on this site is too small.
• I can't find what I'm looking for on the site.
• What/when is the webcast?
• Something seems broken on the Web site.

General
• How can I contact Garrison Keillor and the show?
• Why don't you have a podcast?
• Why don't you post show archives from before 1996?
• When are you going to make more whole-show audio available from old shows?
• Can I download the show and save it to a CD?
• I'm having a different problem.
• I can't find help on this page!

Having problems with audio?
Our live audio streams require Windows Media player, which you can download for free. This will give you all you need to hear the show.

If the live audio stream stops, try closing Windows Media Player and restarting the audio.

If you continue to experience problems with any of the audio streams, please let us know.

If you are a Mac user, download Windows Media Player 9. Install the application. When you come to the site on Saturday to listen to the stream, you will need to download the .asx file (hold the ctrl buttom down while you click on the audio link), then open Windows Media player, and go to the File menu, and open the .asx file you just downloaded.

All archived shows require RealOne or RealPlayer, which you can download for free. This is different from the premium version, but it gives you all you need to hear the show.

Still having trouble? let us know.

If the type on your screen is too small:

For Internet Explorer: In the "View" menu at the top of the browser window, select "Text Size." Choose a larger setting. Alternatively, if you have a wheel between the right and left buttons of your mouse, you can hold the Ctrl key and turn the wheel to adjust text size.

For Mozilla Firefox 1.0 and higher: In the "View" menu at the top of the browser window, select "Text Size." Choose Increase Text Size. Alternatively, you can hold Ctrl key and hit the "+" and "-" keys to adjust text size.

Having problems finding things on the site?
There are a few ways to easily find things on the Web site. One way is to search, another way is to browse the site map.

Something seems broken
If you're experiencing trouble with the Web site, and you can't find the information here to fix it, please let us know by filling out this form.

To contact Garrison Keillor and the show:

General Contact form
If you have suggestions for musical guests, tour locations, or specific questions about past performances please fill out this form. You can also send email to phc@mpr.org.

Our mailing address is:
Prairie Home Productions, LLC
611 Frontenac Place
St. Paul, MN 55104

Web site help
If you run across any problems with the site, or have questions regarding how to use the Web site or listen to audio, please let us know.

Post to the Host
Use the Post to the Host form to ask GK your most pressing questions—about the writing life, the radio life, Lake Wobegon, Guy Noir, whatever you like. Also, feel free to send feedback about the show. Honest comments and criticism are always welcome!

Press Contact
Doing a story on A Prairie Home Companion or Garrison Keillor? Our Press page may be helpful. Also, consider contacting our Marketing Director, David O'Neill.

Why don't you have a podcast?
Many listeners have been asking us to make A Prairie Home Companion available as a podcast. We do have the monologue, The News from Lake Wobegon available as a podcast through a partnership with Audible.com.

The reason we cannot offer the whole show up for podcast is that we feature many different bands and musicians on our show. As such, their intellectual property is being broadcast to the listening audiences. We would have to get each artists' permission, not only to distribute their music in this way, but they would also have to be comfortable with the fact that it could be shared easily.

There is a podcast of The Writer's Almanac, however.

Why don't you post shows from before 1996?
The short answer is this: We don't have agreements with performers or unions to post any of the earlier shows. There are two shows from 1985 available in the site archives, because they were rebroadcast in September 2001. When rights were secured to rebroadcast those shows, they were simultaneously secured for transmission on the Web.

When are you going to make more whole-show audio available from old shows?
There was a time when we thought we would add links to all the shows in the archives so every one of them would be available for free in its entirety. We recently posted all the 1997 whole-show links. We may add more links at a later date, but for now that project has been stopped.

Can I download the show and save it to a CD?
A Prairie Home Companion is not available for download or sale on a week-to-week basis at this time. Many shows are available through our catalog at http://prairiehome.publicradio.org/shop/

The News From Lake Wobegon segment of the show is available for purchase (1-month or 12-month subscriptions) from Audible.com.

Having other problems with the Web site?
If you run across any problems with the site, or have questions regarding the Web site, please contact us with a detailed description of the difficulty you are having.

If you are reporting audio problem that you were unable to solve with the information on this page, please be sure to answer the following questions in your email to us (We can't help you without it.):

1. What is your operating system?

2. What browser type and version do you use?

3. Which RealPlayer version do you use?

4. Which link(s), and on which pages, gave you the problem? (Please give us URLs.)

Do you need help with something that's not listed?
Sending us an e-mail is the best way to get help, and you may also write to:

Prairie Home Productions, LLC
611 Frontenac Place
St. Paul, MN 55104