Comments on: Review: Audiobook Builder 1.0

By: Helen Trombley

Helen Trombley — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 00:37:55 +0000

Why isn’t there going to be an audiobook builder for us PC users?
Do you think someone will come up with one eventually?

By: Alderete

Alderete — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 16:30:48 +0000

@Paul S: Yes, absolutely, that will work with no problem. AAC files are completely cross-platform. Indeed, my wife and I used to swap audiobooks between my Mac and her PC all the time, until she switched to a Mac herself.

By: Paul S.

Paul S. — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 10:44:02 +0000

I have access to an iMac and am wondering if i could create a file on the Mac using ABB and transfer it to my windows machine to import into iTunes. BTW i want to use it for some language learning CD’s i have – I think it should still work?

By: Alderete

Alderete — Thu, 05 Jun 2008 02:52:42 +0000

@Samov: No need to Google for it, I’ve got a link and description for it in the post How to join multiple tracks into a single audiobook file, which covers several such options. The MP3 to iPod Audiobook Converter tool appears to be quite good, but it does have limitations. Review the description on the linked-to page for more details.

By: samov

samov — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 20:09:05 +0000

For Windows you can use “MP3 to iPod Audio Book Converter”. Google for it. Works perfectly. :) happy listening.

By: Alderete

Alderete — Mon, 07 Jan 2008 03:34:32 +0000

@Emily: Sorry to hear you’re having troubles. I’ve imported several dozen books with Audiobook Builder, without any problem like you’ve described. Nor has my wife had any problems, when using it on her computer. And other correspondents have been quite excited to learn of and use the tool.

Indeed, this is the first I’ve heard of the specific issue you describe. So, with respect, perhaps the problem is not Audiobook Builder, but some other issue with your computer, or your technique…? In any event, the Splasm discussion boards are probably the place to take the question. Good luck!

By: EmilyS

EmilyS — Mon, 07 Jan 2008 03:21:20 +0000

What a disappointing application. I have produced several AudioBooks and each one skips at about one hour, or if I try to fast forward. Now I read that this is a common problem, which Splasm blames on Apple.. which is darn stupid, since it’s an application that supposed to work on Apple IPods. Splasm never responded to my email

It’s cheap, but it doesnt work. I’m going to go back to having my audiobooks be “music” tracks. Though that’s stupid (stupid of Apple not to have a real bookmarking feature on iPods, unlike EVERY OTHER Mp3 player), at least I know it will behave consistently.

By: Gayle

Gayle — Tue, 25 Sep 2007 16:54:18 +0000

Thanks for the recommendation of Audiobook builder. It’s a great program that makes ripping audiobooks (from the library and Kitabe) so much easier. Now my new iPod nano contains a relatively short list of books rather than hundreds of individual files. Your blog contains so much information about using audiobooks that isn’t available anywhere else. Thanks again!

By: Jeanie

Jeanie — Tue, 25 Sep 2007 12:37:29 +0000

Love your info on audiobooks! Thank you so much. I use them extensively with several of my kids who have struggled with reading assignments over the years. Ipod and audiobooks keep learning cool, if you know what I mean.

My question: I have several audiobooks that we would like to burn to cds for the car. Do you know if there is a way to break up some of the longer tracks so they will fit onto a standard cd? I appreciate any advice you can offer.

By: Alderete

Alderete — Mon, 20 Aug 2007 04:01:39 +0000

@Frank Higgins: Once I’ve finished building a new audiobook, and I’ve verified that it has imported into iTunes, I simply delete the entire Audiobook Builder document that was created for the book. There’s no point in keeping it around, unless you want to go back and fiddle with settings, chapters, or other stuff, and then re-build the book. And if that’s the case, then you don’t want to delete the .m4b files inside the document, because that’s what Audiobook Builder uses to build the book tracks.

By: Frank Higgins

Frank Higgins — Mon, 20 Aug 2007 02:40:57 +0000

On your recommendation, I’ve invested in ABB. It is an awesomely simple and straightforward. I purchased the family edition so I might share with my family. Need to convert the lot to Mac first!

One question, am I safe in deleting the *m4b files left in the ABB folder? They appear to be duplicates of what is in iTunes.

BTW, I successfully imported and converted the 47 discs of “The Fiery Cross” by Diana Gabaldon. As I got this book on Inter-Library Loan, it would have been impossible to read the discs otherwise. Now, I easily pick up right where I left off, and no schlepping of the mountain of cd’s.

One other apparent benefit to converting cd’s into audiobook files – no skips! Either the disks have just been so good, or the conversion process filters these out, I don’t know. The end result is a smooth listening experience.

Best regards,

Frank

By: Alderete

Alderete — Wed, 08 Aug 2007 16:37:18 +0000

@Nay: I have seen that tool, which is called “MP3 to iPod Audio Book Converter.” I’ve been meaning to test it out, and post a review, like I did for Audiobook Builder, but time has been short (my “Honey Do” list is pretty long…). My initial impression is that it’s a terrific tool for Windows users, and will do a number of things that are currently cumbersome on Windows. When I update my instructions, I’ll probably include it in the Windows version.

However, it does appear to do less than Audiobook Builder, so for those who truly want to go nuts on making the perfect audiobooks, that’s still the better option. Things Audiobook Builder can do that other tools do not: Merge tracks into proper chapters, instead of just discs; Add chapter marks on the chapter boundaries; Add album and chapter artwork; Import CDs directly.

By: Nay

Nay — Wed, 08 Aug 2007 01:34:23 +0000

Thanks for all the info! I’ve got a ton of audiobooks on CDs and I’m just about to buy an iPod so I was doing a bit of research to make sure it would all work well together. I’ve got a [Windows system], so I won’t be able to use Audiobook Builder. However, I found the following website and was wondering if you’ve seen it before or have any quick thoughts about it: http://www.freeipodsoftware.com/

By: Alderete

Alderete — Wed, 04 Jul 2007 17:06:39 +0000

@Rossy: I’m sorry you found the review unclear on this point, but yes, Audiobook Builder takes care of every detail. You need no other tools, other than iTunes to load your iPod.

By: Rossy

Rossy — Tue, 03 Jul 2007 20:37:59 +0000

Thanks for the review! I’ve used your manual process to download by audiobooks with great success.

One question though, do you still need to use the “make bookmarkable” AppleScript with this software or does it take care of that issue as well?