The future of libraries – With Audiobooks

Imagine a time being able to get any audiobook you want to read from the library without having to physically visit the library to lend the audiobooks.

Well, imagine no more because it is now possible.

Public libraries from New York City to Alameda, California are now leading the packs of libraries that have begun allowing members to download audio books, which they can listen to on their Personal Computers or portal audiobook players such as PDAs -- all from the comfort of their homes or offices.

From Tom Clancy's techno-thrillers, Arabic, Spanish, French tutorials to as many titles as possible, librarians can now enjoy the best of audiobooks without having to leave their homes or offices.

What better way for libraries to stay needed and relevant in the new digital age than this?

With the Internet, many people are beginning to lose interest in the libraries, but this move will help the libraries to retain their memberships.

When asked what prompted this development, Barbara Nichols Randal, the director of the Guilderland Public Library in suburban Albany, explained that they took the needs of their younger readers and other people that were too busy to visit the library into consideration before coming up with this move.

Specifically, she said, "This is a way for us to have library access 24/7".

For example, the Madison Public Library has access to a subscription database of audiobook content. It provides this service for people who want to access this information from the comfort of their homes or offices, without having to physically visit the library.

The name of this subscription database of audiobook content is OverDrive.

Anyone that has a LINK library card and access to the Internet can benefit from using OverDrive.

Note that while some of the libraries allow you to download and even copy their audiobooks into your PC and/or other portable CD or MP3 players, others don't.

With those that do not allow downloading or burning of their audiobooks, you will only be able to read them on your computer... while being connected to the Internet.

Whichever service or library you prefer, the point is that you can benefit from the audiobook without leaving the comfort of your home or office.
Take the time to search for the particular library that you prefer and register with them. Some of them offer free registration for particular periods of time, while others charge a token fee to access their database of audiobooks.

Download Audiobooks

How to burn a downloadable audiobook to CD

Of course, not everyone wishes to have their audiobook on an MP3 player, so to those of you who prefer to use CD, please see the guide below.

When it comes to burning (or copying/writing) a downloadable audiobook to CD, you must be sure that it isn't for commercial purpose, but strictly for personal use. Violating this law can get you into serious copyright infringement problems.

Downloadable audiobooks are still under copyright, even after paying to download them.

The only instance where they are no longer under copyright is when the authors or translators have died over 70 years ago. There are certain publications by government that are not under copyright.

But the rule of "only for personal use" is still ultimate when it comes to burning any downloadable audiobook to CD or any other such formats.

You won't believe it, but there are even certain audiobook publishers that won't allow their audio books to be copied to CD. Audiobook publishers can easily disable the ability to burn the files to CD.

To be sure that your audiobook publishers allows this, do check it out before going ahead to buy.

It will not be beneficial for you to buy it with the primary purpose of burning it to CD to listen with your CD player, only to find that you can't burn it to CD.

Also, when it comes to burning audiobooks to CD, you might certainly need more than one CD for an audiobook. For example, an audiobook of about 10 hours can take as many as 7 CDs. However, if you have a CD player that reads MP3 format, you can usually fit whole audiobooks on one CD if you copy it over as an MP3.

That being said below are the steps to take to burn (or copy) any downloadable audiobook onto CD:

NOTE: The below instructions are based on Windows Media Player Version 10. If you are using an older version, you can download the latest version from Microsoft's website. Here's the exact link -

http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia/download

1) The computer you want to use to burn the audiobook to CD must be equipped with a recordable CD drive and CD-burning software.

In other words, it is this CD-burning software that can burn the audiobook to the CD. And it is the recordable CD drive that can be used for this purpose.

2) Play the audiobook on Windows Media Player. Ensure that you choose "Full Mode" when doing this, not "Skin Mode".

3) You will notice the "now playing" information displayed on the right-hand side of your Windows Media Player. If it isn't displayed, you should click the "Restore the Video and Visualization Pane" button to display it.

4) You can now click the "Library" tab. You will notice the "Start Burn" button displayed.

5) At this point, insert the blank CD into the recordable CD drive.

6) Click the "Start Burn" button. Your Windows Media Player will begin burning the audiobook to the CD you have inserted.

Lastly, if the audiobook is larger than the CD (most always are), Windows Media Player will prompt you that it requires a new CD. You can remove the one inside and insert another blank CD.

When the entire burning process is finished, it will display the status as "Complete".

All that is left now is to enjoy your new audiobook!

Download Audiobooks