There are a number of methods you can use to listen to podcasts.
1. On many podcast sites, you can click a link to listen or download the MP3 file to your computer where you can either listen to it or burn a CD.

2. Using ITunes:
Listening to podcasts has become a lot easier since ITunes started including them in their lineup. Here are some simple instructions to get you started listening today.

Go to the iTunes.com download page at http://www.apple.com/itunes/download/.

Fill in your e-mail address and click the free download button. Select Run. This will install iTunes on your computer.

Open iTunes. On the left-hand navigation panel, you will see a link that says Podcasts. Click that.

On the right hand side of the page that comes up is a list of popular podcasts, and on the left side is a search box where you can look for podcasts by entering keywords. There is also a list of categories that you can browse. For now, choose a title from the list on the right that looks interesting to you and click on it.

You'll now see a screen that describes the podcast and gives you the option to subscribe to it. You can subscribe, listen in iTunes, or download any episode.

To listen in iTunes, doubleclick on any episode listed. Download by clicking on the Get Episode button at the far right of the line. You may have to scroll the screen to see the button. Click this button to download.

To see where you're podcasts are being saved go to Edit\Preferences\Advanced and you will see the directory where you're podcasts are being stored. You can change the location if you choose. However you don't have to bother with that at this point.

Next, on the left-hand pane in iTunes, click on the word Podcasts. Here you will see the episode that you downloaded. Double-click on the episode and it will begin to play. The playback controls are at the upper left-hand corner of your screen.

If you like what you hear, you can subscribe to the podcast by clicking on the subscribe button. Subscribing lets you easily update and download current episodes of the podcast.

Click on the Subscribe button, and you will see a list of previous episodes. You can download any of those by clicking on the Get button.

To return to the main podcast page, click on Music Store. Then on the top of the main panel, click on the word Podcasts.

Once you have downloaded one or more episodes, you can listen in your computer, burn a CD, or transfer to your iPod or MP3 player.

The only disadvantage of using ITunes is that it takes a while for new podcasts to be listed in ITunes.

3. Using an "aggragator" such as IPodder
This requires a some setup, and may be a bit geeky for some of you.
Go to www.ipodder.org and download and install their software. If you know the subscription address of the podcast you wish to subscribe to, click the Subscription tab, then the + sign, and enter the address in the URL field. For example, the subscription address for The Prosperity Show is http://theprosperityshow.com/rss . After entering the address, click Save.

On the Subscription screen, you will see a list of podcast episodes for the subscribed title. Check off those you wish to download, then click the tab with the blue down arrow. ("Check selected feed."). The episodes you checked will download to your hard drive or to your IPod, depending how you set up the Preferences (Edit/Preferences.)

Here's a hint: When you see a small graphic on a site that says RSS, click this. The address in the Location bar of your browser is the subscription address.