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Book Recording Services for Students, EmployeesBy: Nan Hawthorne
Summary:
When you need book length and other print materials audio recorded for school or work, try these resources. 
Audio Isn't Just on Tape Any More
Is It Already Available? Where Can I Get Custom Recording Add Your Two Kilobytes' Worth Related Links Related Content Share your opinions with eSight Careers Network Audio Isn't Just on Tape Any More It seems like every new audio recording technology that comes along makes getting books recorded easier and faster. The old vinyl LPs (long-playing records) were hard to use. How do you find where you left off, for instance, in a Talking Book on an LP? And they were perhaps the most difficult of all the media to duplicate, so production and reproduction took a long time. Audiocassettes came along next. They could be copied several at a time and at fast speed. That was a huge improvement. Now we are looking at electronic audio files produced via computers. They are sent on disk, easy to duplicate and cheaper than audiocassettes. Via download, electronic audio files are an inexhaustible and economical means of distributing audio materials. Due to the increasingly effective means of recording and distribution, the general public has become a major market for recorded materials. The result has been greater availability and accessibility of commercially produced books and other print materials. But how do you get specific print materials recorded for school or work? Go to Top of Page Is It Already Available? Your teacher, professor, trainer or supervisor has just assigned a book for you to read. What do you do? The first thing you want to check is whether the book you eed is already recorded. With the growing number of sources for audio books, there is a good possibility that, if the material is not too specialized, it may already be available. You can save yourself a lot of time by trying to locate an existing source, and you will help conserve precious resources. One thing to keep in mind is this: The version of a book you find already recorded may not match the book you were assigned to read. Some commercially produced audio books are abridged. Others may be complete but not contain extra material in the edition on your syllabus, may simply be a different translation, or, most likely, be organized differently and have pages numbered differently. Get all the details you can about the book before you contact audio book sources. If you simply cannot find the version a teacher wants you to use (but another is available), see if you can get his permission to use the available copy. Here are the places you may want to contact for locating a copy of the book already in audio format. Your local library Start with your local library. You can call or visit -- or you can use the library's online book catalog, if it has one. Many public libraries now include commercial audio books and books recorded for blind people in their catalogs. If your local library does not have the book you need, you can ask whether it is part of an "interlibrary loan" network, such as the Western Library Network, which links hundreds of libraries so each need not try to include all the books in the world in its small collection. Interlibrary loans are common. The library will probably handle your request for books on audiocassette only if they are commercially produced books in standard formats. Otherwise, they will refer you to a library for the blind, which has special services and collections. Your library may very well provide e-books and books loaded onto MP3 players as well. Ask your contact people about them. My local library will loan you the MP3 player with the book already on it! The potential for these media to save storage and reduce costs may well be attractive enough to encourage their use. If you like a particular format, use it -- that's the best way to ensure a program continues. Library for the Blind All U.S. states participate in the National Library Services (NLS) for the Blind and Physically Handicapped, part of the Library of Congress, and there are similar programs all around the world. Here are some examples:
Books produced by the NLS mostly remain available, so check to see if the book you need is available through your local library for the blind. Be sure you tell the library you need it immediately so you don't just get on the waiting list. Remember that NLS books are in special formats that require special equipment, but you can borrow this equipment from the NLS as well. To locate your regional library for the blind, either call your local city or county library or see the NLS Reference Directories. Other Recording Services for the Blind The following organizations have catalogs of already-recorded books. Contact them directly or use their web sites, which may include catalogs and request forms. Bookstores for Blind Readers Commercial Audio Book Producers
AudioBooks from Random House, which has not provided descriptions for some of the links on this site AudioBooks.com eBooks.com RecordedBooks.com e-Text Books These are books in digital format on the Web which you can download and read with your computer's adaptive software or hardware. Sources of Magazines and Articles on the Web You can find many more simply by using the phrases "electronic book," "electronic text" and "electronic reader" to search Google.com or any other search engine. The New York Public Library provides a nice reading list for "Electronic Readers" -- in this case referring to readers of material available in electronic format. Publishers One tactic that may become increasingly fruitful is contacting publishers directly for a digital copy of a book. Alison Lingane, senior product manager for Bookshare.org reports having missed results, even though several states (including California where Bookshare.org is located) require a publisher to provide a digital copy to a blind or otherwise print-impaired student. "It's mostly not knowing about either the technology or the law rather than being unwilling to provide the digital files," she says. "You may contact one publisher who has no idea how to go about complying and another who has a procedure already set up." Those publishers generally provide the student's school with both a hard copy and the digital file of a textbook for the price of the textbook alone. She points to one disadvantage, however, of publisher files: They are usually text-only without graphics or charts or any description of those graphics. Although right now the typical electronic files that publishers use are generally not suitable for use as e-texts, book companies are considering additions to their offerings, such as audio CDs and CD-ROMs, to be competitive. With states passing laws which require publishers to provide digital copies of print materials, as mentioned above, it may become commonplace to obtain electronic versions of most books. It can't hurt to ask, but this resource may still be too young to be reliable. Go to Top of Page Where Can I Get Custom Recording If a book you need is not already recorded, you will need to find alternative sources. It is important that you plan as far ahead as possible because getting a book recorded can be a lengthy process. The task itself takes a lot of time, and, because many services use volunteer readers and/or are swamped with requests, you need to give as much notice as possible. When you request a recording of a book, you will have to provide one or possibly two copies of the book to the recording service. If you are in school, request your course reading lists from professors as soon as you know what classes you will be taking next semester. Make it your responsibility. The teacher may not refuse; such a refusal is very much against the law in most areas and probably specifically against school policy. If the teacher does say no or drags his feet, contact your school's dean or student advocacy services. Electronic Reading Machines There are a few devices that have been created that can "read" print from a sheet of paper or from a book and translate it into speech or even braille. The Pronto, Galileo, Optacon, the Reading Edge and the Kurzweil Reading Machine are some good examples. They are very expensive, but, if you have access at home, at work, at school or at the library to one of these machines, you can read virtually any typed or printed item in its original form. In many ways, finding and using an electronic reading machine affords the greatest flexibility and independence. School Resources If you are a student, contact your school's disabled student services, or, if you're in high school, ask your counselor to contact the school district. The school district is also a good source of information about available taping services. Vocational Rehabilitation Your vocational rehabilitation counselor will have information about services, too, and may be able to authorize funds to pay a reader. Volunteer Services Some local agencies serving blind people have volunteer recording services. Contact your local United Way, Volunteers of America or community resources line or your mayor's office for a list of organizations serving blind people in your area. Your Employer Your employer is required to make all tools needed for your work accessible to you. He does not have to do it your way, but he does have to do whatever works. He may choose to have a co-worker read to you. He may pay for recording services. He may want you to look into some of these other services mentioned in this article. By-request Reading Services Some local libraries for the blind have taping services. Examples are:
If your teacher or employer needs multiple copies of in-house materials produced in an audio format, another possible resource could be local recording and audio production studios. Be sure to look into copyright law. Go to Top of Page Add Your Two Kilobytes' Worth This is not an exhaustive list. Do you have a recommendation? Please share it by using the "Share your opinions with eSight Careers Network" tool you'll find below. Go to Top of Page Bookmark this article to: 
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