New Hampshire Downloadable Audio Books program
What are downloadable audio books?
These are computer files in DRM (digital rights management)-protected WMA
format available through the vendor, OverDrive. The New Hampshire State
Library contracts with OverDrive for the service, and selects and purchases the
files for the consortium--the group of member libraries--that pays an annual
fee for access. These files will play on a computer with a Windows operating
system using free Windows Media Player software, or they can be transferred
from a computer to a MP-3 player that supports WMA DRM at 32 kbps files.
Some of the titles can be burned to a CD.
What do I need to do to get started?



On a computer connected to the internet, go to the New Hampshire
Downloadable Audio Books website: http://nh.lib.overdrive.com.
Find detailed instructions by clicking on the “New to Downloadable
Audio Books?” text at the right of the homepage.
Read and follow the instructions carefully. Basically, you need to:
1. Download and install the OverDrive Media Console software.
2. Make sure you have Windows Media Player installed on your
computer. Go to
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia/download/ to
download or update your Windows Media Player software.
3. Activate the Windows Media Player Security Upgrade in the OverDrive
Media Console. The first time you download a book, you will be
prompted to do this. You can also find this prompt by clicking
“Tools” at the top of the program page. For detailed instructions, see
http://nh.lib.overdrive.com/Help.htm.
Activate
Windows
Media Player
Security
Upgrade
How do I download an audio book?
Search
Browse



Search for a specific title by using the search box on the left side of the
New Hampshire Downloadable Audio Books homepage.
Browse through titles using the links in the left sidebar.
Select a title to checkout by clicking Add to Cart or Place a Hold at the
right side of the page.
Add to Cart
Place a
Hold
Checking Out a Title
After you’ve added a title to your cart, a new window titled “My Cart”
appears.
 Click on “Proceed to Checkout.” A “Sign In” window appears next.
 Select “Madison Library” by clicking the arrow to the right of the first
box and scrolling to find “Madison Library” from the alphabetical list.
 In the second “Library card number” box, put in the numerals 4393
followed by your library card number to make a 7- or 8-digit number.
Click the “Sign In” box.
 In the next window, click the “Confirm Checkout” box.
 In the next window, click the “Download Book” box. The OverDrive
Media Console software will automatically open.
 If this is your first time using the program, you will be prompted to do a
Windows Media Player Security Upgrade.
 You will be asked what folder to put the audio book file in. It is best not
to change the location and let the file go to the “My Media” default
folder. Click “OK.”
 A “Download Part(s)” dialog box appears showing the audio book files.
Each part is sized to fit on a CD. You can download all of the parts at
once or select parts to download.
 Click “OK” to start downloading. How long this takes depends on your
internet speed and the number of parts.
 When the book is finished downloading, it shows up in the “OverDrive
Media Console” window.
Placing a Hold
 After clicking “Place a Hold,” a “Sign In” window appears.
 Select “Madison Library” by clicking the arrow to the right of the first
box and scrolling to find “Madison Library” from the alphabetical list.
 In the second “Library card number” box, put in the numerals 4393
followed by your library card number to make a 7- or 8-digit number.
Click the “Sign In” box.
 You will be prompted to put in your email address.
 When the title becomes available, you will get an email with instructions
on how to access and download the file.
Listening to Titles
 To listen on your computer, select the title you want to play by clicking
on it, then click the “Play” green triangle icon. A control window will
come up with play options.
 To transfer the file to an MP-3 player, first have your MP-3 player
plugged into the computer. Click the “transfer” icon. The OverDrive
Media Transfer Wizard will open. Follow the prompt to find your MP-3
player. Follow the prompts to transfer the file to your player. If your
player is not found, it may not be compatible with the WMA DRM 32 kbps
format. Check the OverDrive Help page’s Troubleshooting link at
http://nh.lib.overdrive.com/Help-Tech-Format25.htm to see if there is
a solution listed. Check your device’s documentation to see if your
device supports the WMA DRM 32 kbps file format. See if your device has
a firmware update available online that may enable it to play this type
of file. A list of MP-3 players compatible with OverDrive is available at
http://www.overdrive.com/resources/drc/.
Listen on
computer
Transfer
to MP-3
player
Make CD

Select
“Burn”
Find title
from
playlist
Click “start
burn”
To burn a CD, click the “Burn” icon. Only titles that showed the icon “
(burn to CD allowed)” when you selected the title can be burned to CD.
Windows Media Player will open and start playing the file. Select “Burn”
from the top menu bar, then find the title in your playlist. Make sure
there is a blank CD in your CD drive, then click “Start Burn.”
But I have an iPod!
At the present time, due to issues with copyright protection and digital rights
management, the downloadable audio books will not work on Macs or iPods.
OverDrive has recently announced that they will start offering audio books in
MP-3 format which can be played on iPods this summer (2008). A Mac version of
the OverDrive Media Console is also in the works. The New Hampshire State
Library plans to purchase MP-3 audio books for the OverDrive program when
they become available, but they point out that, initially, people should expect
the number of MP-3 titles to grow slowly.
Known compatible devices
Partial list, more at http://www.overdrive.com/resources/drc/#compatible.
Creative Muvo T100
List Price: $39.99 USD
Memory: 2 GB
Creative Muvo V100
List Price: $59.99 USD, $79.99 USD
Memory: 1GB, 2GB
Creative ZEN Nano Plus
List Price: $49.99 USD
Memory: 512 MB
Creative ZEN Stone
List Price: $39.99 USD
Memory: 1 GB
Creative ZEN Stone Plus
List Price: $59.99 USD
Memory: 2 GB
SanDisk Sansa c140
List Price: $79.99 USD
Memory: 1 GB
SanDisk Sansa e130
List Price: $59.99 USD
Memory: 512 MB
SanDisk Sansa Clip
List Price: $39.99 USD, $59.99 USD
Memory: 1 GB, 2 GB
SanDisk Sansa Express
List Price: $59.99 USD, $79.99 USD
Memory: 1 GB, 2 GB