FREE AUDIOBOOKS

by Leigh Lundin

Enter "Nick Carter" in the CB search box to the right and you’ll find all the clues: Deborah has been having a love affair with this guy.

Scandalous! But that’s okay: Nick Carter is a noir detective who’s been recreated so many times, only his name remains the same.

Mentioning how Deborah interested me in Nick Carter at the CBHQ birthday party, I told readers about listening to fictional detectives on old time radio broadcasts available on-line. Barnes & Noble and Amazon make it easy to purchase and download audiobooks, but what if you want to sample the wealth of free audiobooks on-line? How do you go about it?

Listen to Radio Mysteries in iTunes or iPod

If you don’t already have iTunes on your computer, download iTunes– it’s free.

Next, you need to find a web site that provides free audiobooks or old time radio clips. One I presently rely upon for its simplicity is Free Old Time Radio. Another source is Free Classic Audio Books.

Following are steps to enjoying a radio mystery, sci-fi story, comedy, or other program. These steps may seem technical, but are straightforward.

Everything to Know about AudioBooks

1. Download and save a radio program clip. It will probably arrive in one of the following audio formats:
   • .m4b audio book format
     • Load and listen! (book-markable)
   • .m4a format
     • Rename the extension to .m4b
   • .mp3 audio format
     • Follow instructions below
   • .m3u audio redirect
     • See special note, follow instructions below
2. Open the audio file in iTunes by dragging it onto the iTunes icon or window.
• Some programs can be ‘trained’ to open files automatically in iTunes.
3. Locate the audio track, probably in the Music section, if .mp3
4. Select the file and do a Get Info. (File menu)
5. Go to the Options tab and, if not already set, select the following:
• Audiobook
• Remember playback position
• Skip when shuffling
6. Click Okay.

You should now find the story under the Books section in your iTunes Library.

Remember playback position ensures when you stop listening, the story will pick up again where you left off, otherwise known as a bookmark.

.m3u Decision

The .m3U file differs from other formats in that it does not store an audio file on your computer. Open the file in TextEdit (Mac), Notepad or Wordpad (Windows), and you’ll see that it contains a URL, an internet address to the real file. When viewed within iTunes, these files have a tiny blue icon that looks like radio waves.

The implications are:

• No storage is used for the file. Instead, iTunes ‘streams’ the data live from the internet.
• Because the audio track isn’t stored on your computer, it’s not playable on an iPod.
• However, you may extract the file address from a word processor (as above), plug that address into your web browser, and download the file itself.

You can play, say, The Red Wind.m3u on your computer as long as you have an internet connection. However, if you want to listen to the story after disconnecting from the internet or on your iPod, open the .m3u file in your word processor and extract the internet address.

http://w2.freeotrshows.com/otr/a/aopm.1947.06.17_Red_Wind_The.mp3

Paste it into your word processor and download it, following the iTunes instructions above.

Enjoy the Programs

I’m only a few programs into listening, but thus far my favorites are the Nero Wolfe stories, surprisingly sophisticated, probably because of Sidney Greenstreet’s considerable talents. I’d like to know what stories you like!