Why is the podcast section slow?

Question

I know this is probably not a new thread, but I'm getting sick and tired of continued releases of iTunes 11 being released for Windows and nothing being done to actually fix the Podcast section of the program. Whether it's related to the podcast art or not, I'm not sure, but regardless, loading the section and each subsequent click takes between 3 and 10 seconds each time. Add to that the lack of alphabetised listing, fewer settings for podcasts in general, and I wish I didn't have to be so reliant upon iTunes for my podcasting needs.
Come on Apple, please provide a fix soon?

Answer 1

Podcasts are not "stored" in the iTunes Store, so - and I'm guessing here...
when a song is purchased in the iTunes Store, that download comes from the store itself and it's reasonable to assume that the list of songs is held by Apple in the store. The store will have an up-to-date list of the songs available, ready to give you at any time.
but since Podcasts are downloaded directly to your iTunes Library from the Podcast producer's host site (and not from the store), it's reasonable to assume that the iTunes Store obtains a list of the Podcast episodes only when you ask for it. That's how it's kept up-to-date. So the store has to "look outside" the store (to another computer, located who-knows-where) at the time you ask for the list of contents. That takes time, albeit a very short time.
So this almost certainly why it takes iTunes a while to display the list of Podcasts when you are searching in-store.
As for the artwork for Podcasts; again, this is the responsiblity of the Podcaster, not the iTunes Store. Artwork for commercially produced music albums is an established and accepted fact. The musicians and companies that produce the music are well versed in it. But Podcasts are completely controlled by the originator of the Podcast and are simply listed by the Store. Podcasts are often produced by individuals, or simply by people who either don't see the need for artwork, or don't have the resources to work out how to put the artwork on to their episodes. It's not that easy, believe it or not.
Apple/the iTunes Store does not "trade" the Podcasts (it doesn't "sell" them), and the store has almost no control over them.
Look on the bright side: Apple (The iTunes Store) provides you with a list of Podcasts and gives you a facility to download them into your iTunes Library and onto your iPod etc, for absolutely no cost to you. iTunes, the programme also does a fair bit of work to manage Podcasts, such as:
marking them as Skip when shuffling so thay don't play while listening to music in shuffle mode (a podcast is simply another audio file, just like your music Library);
organising them in your iTunes Library (well, in the List view, they are orgainsed. No idea what Apple had in mind with the other views!);
marks a Podcast episode as Remember playback position - incredibly useful for long speech Podcasts;
has a visual indicator to remind you when you have part-listened to a Podcast episode or fully heard it. This feature is also available on some iPods.
And before anyone says it, no, I do not think iTunes is perfect, particularly in Podcasts.
Downloaded episodes and other available (but not yet downloaded) episodes are now indistinguishable from one another. Mad!
Total unplayed episodes count now includes episodes that are not downloaded into my Library. Utter madness!
My Stations. I just don't get it!
The Podcasts App for iDevices. Well, I think my thoughts on that are best left unsaid. (The last time I looked, it still wasn't possible to create a Playlist of Podcast episodes.)