Audiobooks discussion
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Where do you get your audio content and what device do you use to listen?
I think 8 GB would be plenty. My 16 GB is more than enough for my audiobooks. I delete them from the player once I've read them so I don't need that much. John, do you have any advice? (It may have been covered earlier in this discussion!)
Chrissie wrote: "The Sansa clip zip sounds good, but I must see one before I buy it.Lynne, I forgot. Was it 8 GB you recommended? I want to be able to download a couple audios before a trip."
I have the 2 gb one and have plenty of space. I put 3-5 audiobooks in there at a time and have never even been closing to using up all the space.
I have a 4GB Clip+ along with an 8Gb micro card. I delete books after listening once also.Audible books take up very little space, and Overdrive ones in WMA format not much more. MP3 books are about twice as large, but even they only average about 1/4 GB each for medium length ones (8 - 10 hours).
Chrissie -- agreed you should see one if possible, although sealed in a box in the store I'm not sure how much that would help?
Thanks John. I have a small MP3 player that is FULL of music. This might be a great way to make my audiobooks mobile too.
Honestly, I got the 8GB card at Target recently as it was priced so low, but I can't say as I really needed it. A device with 4GB internal storage would easily be enough for 10 books or so; for the higher price of a larger device, I'd advise expanding with an SD card. As long as books are either tagged as "audiobook" or placed in a folder called AUDIOBOOKS on the card, the Clip will recognize them as such.
John wrote: "I have a 4GB Clip+ along with an 8Gb micro card. I delete books after listening once also.Audible books take up very little space, and Overdrive ones in WMA format not much more. MP3 books are ab..."
If you recommend a purchase on line I would need to know exactly what to buy and where. Please only recommend if you are sure that this would work with poor vision.
I wouldn't necessarily recommend the Clip+ for someone with limited vision as the screen area is quite small; the clip zip screen is a bit larger. I would suggest you look for video reviews of the Clip Zip online to get a better idea.
Chrissie, the font on my admittedly old clip was tiny
After watching a couple of Clip zip reviews just now, the display seemed significantly larger to me than the clip+; also, the menus are much easier to navigate, although us Clip+ owners have gotten used to ours. The Zip displays the current time, which seems minor, but would be nice. My Sony e-reader does that, and as I don't wear a watch, it's a huge help on plane flights, where I keep my phone turned off.
Lynne and John, this is difficult - choosing an MP3. That is why I am dragging my heels. At the Low Vision Center I was clearly advised to get an Ipod. It is just that they are so pricey. I am wondering where I could find a Clip Zip to test read here in Belgium....Is it possbleto test listen to all books on Audible. I checked out " The Chateau" by Maxwell, that you recommended, but I saw no placewhere I could listen! Do you have to down load something, or can I just listen on my computer by pushing some button. I know, I sound like a two year old with these elementary questions! But heck there may be others in new shoes too.
ChrissieI know how you feel. I usually have trouble with technology. Audible is great for the computer. There are user friendly instructions. I listen to the books on my laptop every morning while I work on the computer.
Shirley, I love the variety available at Audible. However the internet connections do tnot work that well for international users. It was impossible to sign up using the computer. I had to do it by phone. The main thing is that now it functions well. So I am very happy, but of course still learning.
Speaking about the clip + and regarding the small screen and poor eyesight once you have loaded on your book the buttons are easy to use without having to see them.. I was listening to mine at 4.30am this morning (don't ask why!!!) in bed in the dark and managed quite well. managed to move from listening to music to an audio book without opening my eyes.
If you're going to keep Audible books, and maybe podcasts and Librivox books on it, you should get the hang of it fairly quickly. I understand the zip allows you to delete the menu options you won't use (radio, etc.) to make things even simpler.
I always load books on to the media player, load onto the clip listen and then save onto a portable hard drive to listen again later if I want. This way I don't clog up the clip.
I have a problem with this on my iPod Touch. If I exit out of the program to use another app, when I go back it doesn't remember my place. So I have gotten in the habit of bookmarking often. It's a bit of a drag.Danni wrote: "As the audiobooks are separate from the music you can always just go back your audiobook catalog and it will remember where you were even if you have listened to music or radio in between. You can do this with multiple audiobooks too and it remembers your place in all of them.
I have the Ipod nano 6th generation. ..."
Alief wrote: "That is one major downside to audiobooks - speed. I'm a pretty fast reader but when listening to an audiobook, I am limited to the speed of the narrator."If you have an Android device, I highly recommend the App called OSPLAY. It has the capability of up to 2X playback and the voice pitch stays the same. I have been using it for nearly two years.
Since the Nook Color is Android based you can download apps that will playback audiobooks. I have been using a great app called Osplay for nearly two years. It has the capability of up to 2X playback and the voice pitch stays the same.
My state library system recently switched from Overdrive to One Click Digital Media Manager by Recorded Books. I just downloaded my first book from them. It certainly was easy - one click as well. Anyone else used this service?
Lori wrote: "My state library system recently switched from Overdrive to One Click Digital Media Manager by Recorded Books. I just downloaded my first book from them. It certainly was easy - one click as well..."My library has both options. It has not been that easy for me to get audiobooks from One Click for some reason. I downloaded the player they offer and everything and it was a pain in the butt for me.
Can you still download files as one long complete book directly to your hard drive as with Net Library, Heidi? Those I used to transfer with Windows Media Player (after adding cover art).
John wrote: "Can you still download files as one long complete book directly to your hard drive as with Net Library, Heidi? Those I used to transfer with Windows Media Player (after adding cover art)."It is no longer one file when I download them -- it is like 100 little files and I have to unzip them all. I am sure I am not doing something right but luckily I rarely use One Click.
Sounds as bad as ripping from CD's with all those tracks of less than 10 minutes each!
I'm really lucky to have access to three library systems locally. I check out audiobooks on cd all the time, and can usually find what I'm looking for through at least one of them. I also download books and transfer them to my mp3 player (Sansa Clip+ 4Gb).Ok, so I went to one of my library sites to see what they use to download books (I only pay attention to the wvdeli and wv reads logos). Looks like they all use Overdrive. Now I have 5 more books checked out and ready to download :)
With the easy access through my libraries (and the current state of my economy), I rarely buy audiobooks, and then only through my library sales.
I have an Audible account, but to be honest I'm really backed up on my to-listen pile.
John wrote: "Sounds as bad as ripping from CD's with all those tracks of less than 10 minutes each!"Great, inexpensive program for joining mp3 files. I have been using it for almost three years.
http://www.pistonsoft.com/mp3-joiner....
I rip each disc as a single file, but in WMA format, as the software I use doesn't have mp3 as an option.
I tried out a few audiobook websites over the last few months and always go back to audio book mart since they have tons of books. Also they compare all the prices from other online shops so I always get the cheapest one available which is awesome. If I feel like getting inspired I check out the New York Bestsellers list to listen to something new/different. Usually I just download it onto my iPhone and listen to it on my way to work (and sometimes even at work).
I love listening to books via my iPod/iPhone on my commute to/from work. It's a great way to use what would otherwise be 'wasted time' and I don't need to worry about holding an actual book while I'm standing on the train like a sardine! I use www.theaudiobookmart.com too, since they always seem to have a great selection- really good customer service too if you're looking for something in particular.
I have a kindle fire. I downloaded an audio book from the library in MP3 but my kindle says it can't read the file. Can you tell me how you do this?
Cathy wrote: "I have a kindle fire. I downloaded an audio book from the library in MP3 but my kindle says it can't read the file. Can you tell me how you do this?"You might ask in either of the kindle groups on Goodreads. or Ask Amazon
The "Kindle Fire Dept" blog may also have some helpful tips. You can visit their main page here: http://fireapps.blogspot.com/. They also maintain a Facebook fan page. I've had numerous questions (about the Fire and how to do things on it) answered by just posting a question on their Facebook page.
I keep having my audiobooks labeled under a file called "unknown" on my Sansa Clip + but I have no clue why.
You need to have them tagged as "audiobook" (or "audio book"). Audible does this automatically, but for ripped-from-CD and library downloads, you must do this manually.
John wrote: "You need to have them tagged as "audiobook" (or "audio book"). Audible does this automatically, but for ripped-from-CD and library downloads, you must do this manually."I went under properties of the files and named it as audiobook for each one (genre). They show up under audiobooks but in a subfolder called unknown. I am confused because I am really pretty good with computers. They are all there but it is a little annoying!
It seems like there must be a tagging issue somewhere for that to happen. How are you transferring them to your player?
I only have a problem with ones that I rip from CD. I then take the tracks and merge them into longer files. What program do you use to rip a cd as one track? It is a free program? I noticed you said it does WMA which is fine for me.
It's a free program called "jetaudio" from Cowon.
John wrote: "It's a free program called "jetaudio" from Cowon."Thanks I will try it out for future books! :)
Be sure the little box marked "Rip tracks as a single file" is checked before hitting Start.
John, do you know if jetaudio is supported on Macs, and if it isn't do you know of a program that is?
I believe it is -- google "jetaudio" to find out for certain.
I'm having a problem with Overdrive Media Console not playing on my computer. I've tried uninstalling and reinstalling, and nothing's worked. It shows the books, but it won't play them. Anyone else have this problem?
I've had other Overdrive issues in the recent past, but not that one, though I rarely ever try to listen on the computer itself, but transfer them instead. You may need to contact your library at this point.
John, you have such extensive and useful knowledge on Audiobook tech stuff. I think you should be writing a column for Audiofile!
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 helpful in the past.
Damali - I hear you on that, and kind of cringed when I gave you that advice, but Overdrive has a policy of not dealing with the public directly, requiring everything (no matter how routine), be filtered through the member library. I one set my player to go fast with an s-l-o-w reader (an author with his work). Not only did that not really help, but I went to watch a video later, and thought my device was broken as the movie played back all wrong; the setting had carried over to "video", too.Karen - thanks for the compliment! I noticed the other day that you had been recognized yourself by Audiofile in the 2011 year end issue (Delta airline clubs stock that periodical, which I don't read often).
Audiobooks
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Lynne, I forgot. Was it 8 GB you recommended? I want to be able to download a couple audios before a trip.