Audiobooks discussion
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Where do you get your audio content and what device do you use to listen?
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Damali wrote: "I prefer the computer because I can speed up the playback and listen to a 10-hour book in under 5 hours. This is seriously messing me up. I haven't contacted my library yet. They've never been help..."Damali, I am fascinated by this. By mistake I set my book on my iTouch to read twice as fast, (was listening to
11/22/63 by Stephen King) and it drove me crazy, I couldn't stand it. I finally figured out how to change it back and I could relax -- I was actually getting agitated with the hyped up reading. But, I can see the advantage of getting through a book twice as fast....
It really depends on the book and how alert you are. When I listened to Magic Bites, I was able to listen to it at 3x faster and got done in 4.5 hours with a 300-page book. Most of the YA, I can listen to at 2x faster. I can listen and comprehend faster than I can read and comprehend. I only read 70 to 100 pages a day. :D The text-to-speech on my Kindle has been a Godsend. (I also increase the speed with that.) If it's something like DUNE where they have music and several narrators, I still increase the speed, but not as fast.I have a laptop, so I'm going to try wandering down to the main library branch to see if I can get some help.
I'm new to the world of audiobooks so I get mine from iTunes and listen to them on my iPhone or through my portable iPod radio if I don't feel like earphones. For the classics I use Librovox and the app audiobooks. I'm looking into using audible.com. This group has great reviews on the site.
Chineka wrote: "I'm new to the world of audiobooks so I get mine from iTunes and listen to them on my iPhone or through my portable iPod radio if I don't feel like earphones. For the classics I use Librovox and th..."As much as I don't want to promote using audible for what amazon has done here to GR it is a huge way to get audio for less but for iPhone users especially because of the ease of using the APP it is a direct download to the iPod/phone without having to anything else. Instant gratification and their prices are so much cheaper than buying from iTunes.
Lady of the Lake wrote: "Chineka wrote: "I'm new to the world of audiobooks so I get mine from iTunes and listen to them on my iPhone or through my portable iPod radio if I don't feel like earphones. For the classics I use..."I just started using the app on my (Android) phone and I am in LOVE. It is great! I love being able to speed it up to 1.25. The only option I have on my ipod when I download them to there is 2x, which is way too fast. The only problem is I'm going to need to buy a second charger for in my car as it eats up the battery way too fast!
Nena wrote: "Our library just made audiobooks available for direct download through some software called Overdrive. I have an MP3 player which is Sanyo Sandisk (the older model that uses a double A battery but..."I've just discovered Overdrive and I think it is nice that you can download ebooks and audiobooks from your library all by using the Overdrive App. I can read or listen to books without having to take a trip to the library.
Lady of the Lake wrote: "Chineka wrote: "I'm new to the world of audiobooks so I get mine from iTunes and listen to them on my iPhone or through my portable iPod radio if I don't feel like earphones. For the classics I use..."Thanks. I have also discovered Overdrive so that is another great option. What are some other good websites to use for audio books that are cheaper than iTunes?
Kelly wrote: "Lady of the Lake wrote: "Chineka wrote: "I'm new to the world of audiobooks so I get mine from iTunes and listen to them on my iPhone or through my portable iPod radio if I don't feel like earphone..."That's so funny! I also love being able to speed up my
Audio as well! I can do 1.5x 2x & 3x (as well as
Slowing it down to half which I have used once or twice with a very fast narrator at points that I wanted to understand what was being said better...) But to be able to speed up the narration is something that I always want to
do when reading for myself. I can't get the words into my head fast enough! When a book is so good and I need to get to the end of a chapter or even the end of the book because I NEED TO KNOW what will happen!!! NEED IT NOW! LOL
Chineka wrote: "Lady of the Lake wrote: "Chineka wrote: "I'm new to the world of audiobooks so I get mine from iTunes and listen to them on my iPhone or through my portable iPod radio if I don't feel like earphone..."Go directly to the publishers ...TANTOR often has content for as
Low as $6.99 but it's not a direct download and I believe theirs is in mp3 format? (others here know much more) also AMBLING books is good especially for their APP that you can get all the free content such as the
Classics in one spot and a cam directly access it through the APP ..thy also sell audio books. I've also used WE READ FOR YOU they have half price sales often. Audio books must have become more popular as of late as there are many more places to get content! With all the smart phones and direct link from iPods/mp3 players to our cars etc... people can get their reading fix anywhere anytime! I am thankful for audio books I can read almost all the time! (my family is even happier since dinner is on time and the housework gets done...everything went to bottom of my to do list if I had a book I couldn't put down!)
Lady of the Lake wrote: "Chineka wrote: "Lady of the Lake wrote: "Chineka wrote: "I'm new to the world of audiobooks so I get mine from iTunes and listen to them on my iPhone or through my portable iPod radio if I don't fe..."So true, Lady of the Lake. I've been involved with Iambik audiobooks and, although we're small, we offer our books direct from our site for $6.99 each or you can purchase a collection (by genre) for several of the books at a discount. This is true for many of the audiobook sites if you check them out. http://iambik.com
Claire wrote: "Lady of the Lake wrote: "Chineka wrote: "Lady of the Lake wrote: "Chineka wrote: "I'm new to the world of audiobooks so I get mine from iTunes and listen to them on my iPhone or through my portable..."I have many audio books from Lambik great
Info here to buy direct from them! I will definitely get my Lambik books direct from now on! FANTASTIC thanks! I found that Lambik puts out a terrific product for affordable prices!
I am rather fond of Iambik myself -- many of their books are available either via Audible, or Overdrive.
John wrote: "I am rather fond of Iambik myself -- many of their books are available either via Audible, or Overdrive."John, we do make them available via Audible and Overdrive and I believe some are also on iTunes. However, unless you're using credits on Audible, I've noticed that sometimes it's cheaper to buy them directly from Iambik. Audible varies their prices on our books so just remember not to pay over $6.99. :)
Lady of the Lake wrote: "Claire wrote: "Lady of the Lake wrote: "Chineka wrote: "Lady of the Lake wrote: "Chineka wrote: "I'm new to the world of audiobooks so I get mine from iTunes and listen to them on my iPhone or thro..."You're welcome. :)
I used my recent $10 Audible credit to get two $4.95 Iambik books, although there are some for more than $6.99 that interested me.
Claire wrote: "Lady of the Lake wrote: "Chineka wrote: "Lady of the Lake wrote: "Chineka wrote: "I'm new to the world of audiobooks so I get mine from iTunes and listen to them on my iPhone or through my portable..."I have an Ipod. Does that mean I should buy the M4B format of the audiobook? I am very new with using this equipment. I have signed up since I found several interesting audios. Now I have to figure out hos to do it!
And John, I have a question....at Audible, must I always make sure I am buying the correct format? I have not thought about this before, just chose the audiobook and bought it and it worked on my Ipod after download! Are some books at Audible not usable on Ipods? Have I just been lucky not to buy the wrong thing? Sorry for all these beginner questions!
Chrissie wrote: "And John, I have a question....at Audible, must I always make sure I am buying the correct format? I have not thought about this before, just chose the audiobook and bought it and it worked on my I..."Ill jump in here if I may and say JUST CHOOSE ANY AUDIBLE book.... all books are ready to play on your "iPod". If you DO have an IPOD you can use their APP I believe (if you have wifi that is) the choice you have is to download in STANDARD OR HIGH quality (high takes up more space but I prefer It ....its just a personal choice) Would this info be right John?
Lady of the Lake wrote: "Chrissie wrote: "And John, I have a question....at Audible, must I always make sure I am buying the correct format? I have not thought about this before, just chose the audiobook and bought it and ..."Thank you! Unfortunately I do not have wifi. I plug the Ipod into the computer. It IS nice to know that I do not have to choose a particular format at Audible.
Yes audible does make it very easy! Enjoy!
Lady of the Lake wrote: "Yes audible does make it very easy! Enjoy!"IF I ever have to choose at another site, do you know what format I should pick given that I listen on an Ipod?
Well I don't recall ever having toCHOOSE a format ......I Don't remember having to choose per se its always seems that each particular site offers what they offer as I recall...
Here is a link to something that can explain much better than I can and
I'm sure when John sees your post he can give you a direct answer! He is very knowledgable about all things audio book related!
http://www.pchelpforum.com/windows-tu...
Lady of the Lake wrote: "That's so funny! I also love being able to speed up my Audio as well! I can do 1.5x 2x & 3x (as well as Slowing it down to half which I have used once or twice with a very fast narrator at points that I wanted to understand what was being said better...) But to be able to speed up the narration is something that I always want to do when reading for myself. I can't get the words into my head fast enough! When a book is so good and I need to get to the end of a chapter or even the end of the book because I NEED TO KNOW what will happen!!! NEED IT NOW! LOL "Oh man, this made me laugh. And you're so right! There's times where I'm on the edge of my seat when I know there's something big coming. I just can't understand them when it gets 2x or above, so I just have to wait in agony. :) This is another reason why audio books are generally better for me. If I'm actually reading the book I will skip ahead to read the good stuff and sometimes not go back to read the stuff leading up to it. Very bad habit!!
Kelly wrote: "Lady of the Lake wrote: "That's so funny! I also love being able to speed up my Audio as well! I can do 1.5x 2x & 3x (as well as Slowing it down to half which I have used once or twice with a very ..."I am tempted at times to skip ahead in paper form but I don't so I just read as fast as I can and get aggregated that I can't read fast enough!!!
My daughter laughs at me there have actually been times ive had the earbuds on AND I'm reading a book! There is just so little time to get through EVERYTHING I want to read!!!! There MUST BE A BETTER WAY!!!!! Ahhhh! (yes you think we have a bit of an addiction??? LOL!!! I feel that i NEED to be able to absorb the words through my skin!!!
Thanks for the compliment, Lady!The correct format is selected once, as a default. I think most devices these days use Format 4? My three devices are: Creative Zen Nano Plus - uses 3, but it's a very small, simple, older device that I rarely use for Audible stuff; Cowon D2, that uses Format 4; and Sansa Clip that uses either 4 or Enhanced - the latter are huge files - I tried one once, and didn't notice any real difference. Using Apps may be different, but like Chrissie I download them and transfer by USB cord. I guess "High" must be Enhanced-sized files.
Chrissie wrote: "Claire wrote: "Lady of the Lake wrote: "Chineka wrote: "Lady of the Lake wrote: "Chineka wrote: "I'm new to the world of audiobooks so I get mine from iTunes and listen to them on my iPhone or thro..."Chrissie, I've never owned an iPod, all of my MP3 players have been Sansas and I download the MP3 files and transfer using a USB cord. I just drag and drop the files.
I am still confused. At Iambik I must choose between MP3 or M4B. Which should I pick if I have an Ipod? John, you say that new devices use format 4. By this are you saying I should pcik M4B? None of this stuff do I really understand. I just learn the code word! I do not know what the differences are.
The term Format 4 is Audible-specific, for that site only. If your Audible books are working okay now, then your computer is set to the correct Audible format and you can forget about that entirely.As I understand it, M4B is the correct format for iPods, and MP3 is to be selected for all other devices.
John,Can you tell me again how you organize your Clip? I know you've talked about this before but I'm just too lazy to try to find it. I find that mine defaults to Music unless I change the path to Audiobook. Several of the ones I loaded as Music are fine but the rest loaded the parts in reverse order.
Janet -- before I reply in full, are you talking about ripped-from-CD, Overdrive downloads, or both?
I have two audible 3 month gifts to give away before the 29 of Feb. if anyone here Has been wanting to give Audible a try and would like to try free for 3 months here is a great no commitment chance... I like that thu realky make it a gift and require no credit card to use this! Send me a message here through the goodreads message link and I will either give to two who reply or if more than two reply randomly choose from a hat so to speak. (I am putting this up on another group or two I am a member of as well to give a chance perhaps to someone who may not be hooked on audio yet as we all are! ) This is the official blurb from Audible... as follows...Your recipient will receive a 3-month Gift Membership to Audible, which includes:
• Their choice of 1 audiobook per month from any of our 100,000+ titles
• 24/7 concierge service in case they need help getting set up or finding their first great listen
• All the benefits of Audible Membership for 3 months
They will never be asked for a credit card, and there is no obligation to stay an Audible member. It's just our way of saying thanks and enabling you to share your love of audiobooks.
You must have ever had an audible account in the past as I understand it..this if for new customers.
Existing customers will have three credits in their account immediately from this offer; they will never expire, with purchased (expiring) credits being used up ahead of them.
John wrote: "Janet -- before I reply in full, are you talking about ripped-from-CD, Overdrive downloads, or both?"They're all from Overdrive.
OK, Janet, here goes ...I go into the folders for the books, located at My Documents --> My Media, selecting all of the downloaded parts, and changing the genre to "audiobook" before transferring them to my Clip, which then puts them in the Audiobook listing; it doesn't matter where on the device they go as long as that tagging "takes" correctly.
The other option, if one doesn't want to deal with fiddling with tagging, is to create an empty folder on the device in its Audiobook section, and then using the Advanced feature button of the Overdrive manager software to direct the book specifically there.
I've never had an Overdrive book display out-of-order (ripped-from-CD, yes).
John wrote: "OK, Janet, here goes ...I go into the folders for the books, located at My Documents --> My Media, selecting all of the downloaded parts, and changing the genre to "audiobook" before transferring..."
Ahhh, so you don't download directly from the Overdrive console? That's what I do and it defaults to the Music folder unless I remember to go into the advanced options and change the folder to Audiobooks. Works beautifully if I can remember to do it right.
For books on the Clip, I do use the Overdrive console, after changing the underlying genre to "audiobook" first.
In my console, I'm not seeing a "genre" identifier.
I change the genre first by going into the underlying file at My Documents, and after that I transfer the file via the Overdrive console. 1) go to My Documents
2) go to My Media
3) go into the folder of the book
4) select all of the parts
5) at the bottom of the screen, change the existing genre (mystery, fiction, etc.) to "audiobook" and be sure to hit SAVE in the lower right. Doublecheck to be sure before exiting the book.
Now you can transfer the book and it'll be recognized as an audiobook no matter where on the Clip it goes.
The other option is to use the Advanced feature of the console to send the book specifically to a created folder in the Audiobook section of the Clip.
If one does neither, the Clip will think they are music files, and while the resume feature will work (as long as you stay in the same book), the bookmarking feature will not. Nor will the "music" files appear in the list of available audiobooks. Ugh.
Ugh is right. But I think my method is easier 1)From the Overdrive Console, click on Transfer
2)With the Clip connected to the computer, select all parts and click on Advanced Options
3)Where it says Player Folder, change Music to Audiobook
4)Click Next and wait for audiobook to download to Clip
Am I losing anything by doing it this way?
Yes, that is easier of the two. I do it the other way, changing the tagging as soon as the book downloads to my hard drive, in case I'm using Windows Media Player later (where there's no way to select a destination, everything defaulting to Music). Using the Overdrive console as you do, I create a destination folder on the Clip's Audiobook section (before transfer) rather than having loose files (of often more than one book) lying around.
I know I've seen people comment on the software they use to compress audio books into mp3 format but I can't find the information.What (free, hopefully) software are you using to compress audio books into mp3 format? I don't want to use iTunes, they are too controlling. A friend let me borrow a bunch but they aren't compressed...
Lady of the Lake wrote: "I have two audible 3 month gifts to give away before the 29 of Feb. if anyone here Has been wanting to give Audible a try and would like to try free for 3 months here is a great no commitment chanc..."I would like one of your gifts!
I get my audio content from one of my local libraries and I use Overdrive to transfer the files to either my Sansa Clip or my Zune mp3 player.
Ancient thread I know, but..Just wanted to pop this somewhere. I'm having the usual 'mare with goodreads' awful-and-never-improving search, so will add it to a couple of threads in case anyone's interested.
Taken from my local library's website:
Information for customers using OneClick Digital and Zinio
From the 27 June 2017 OneClick Digital and Zinio are rebranding to RB Digital. From the RB Digital app you will be able to access both eMagazines and eAudiobooks.
If you use OneClick Digital you will be prompted to update your app to the RB Digital app.
If you use Zinio you will asked to download the RB Digital app.
If you have accounts for both services your accounts will have merged. You can log into the RB Digital app using either account. If this does not happen or you need help accessing the app please contact RBDigital@wfhowes.co.uk
^..^
Audiobooks
Books mentioned in this topic
11/22/63 (other topics)The Notebook / The Wedding (other topics)
The Passage (other topics)
Faceless Killers (other topics)
A Prayer for Owen Meany (other topics)
Thanks, John, it was so nice to be recognized again!
You can get their email newsletter, I think, without being a subscriber. They send reviews once or twice a week. Here's the link to their website, the email signup is at the very bottom.
http://www.audiofilemagazine.com/