I find the idea of buying two copies of a book just to get the audio is simply absurd. There must be a market though or amazon wouldn't be offering it. If there's one thing I've learned as both a reader and an author it's that amazon serves itself first.
Having said that, I must say I adore the kindle app on my iPhone. It makes me positively dizzy to be able to read almost any book I want at the click of a button. On 12/19/14, Steve Griffiths via Jfw <[email protected]> wrote: > Hi Tim, > > There are two types of audio with Kindle books, synthetic speech and human > narrated, and I think the person you spoke to at Amazon was confusing the > two. > > For reading with synthetic speech, all Kindle eBooks have a text-to-speech > setting within the product details heading on the page about that book. The > setting governs whether they will read with synthetic speech on a kindle > device like the kindle keyboard, and it has two options, "enabled" or "not > enabled". All Kindle eBooks can be read with synthetic speech in software > apps, which means Kindle for PC with accessibility, or the Kindle apps for > iOS and Android, or the Kindle Fire. So long as you have the Kindle for PC > with accessibility version, you should be able to open the app and pick a > book with JAWS, and read the book with the built in speech synthesiser. This > should work for any book you buy from the Kindle Store. > > In the UK this autumn, but maybe earlier in the US, Amazon introduced the > "Whispersync for Voice" feature. This is where a Kindle eBook has an audio > companion. These are two separate purchases, but if you have both, you can > switch between reading the eBook with synthetic speech and the audio book > with human narration. Not all Kindle eBooks have an audio companion, in fact > at the moment in the UK very few do. It sounds to me as if the person you > spoke to was thinking of the Whispersync audio version rather than the > ability to read with synthetic speech, which does not require a separate > button to acquire. > > There are a couple of free books you can use to check out Whispersync for > voice, one of which is Dracula. I found this particularly good for > demonstrating the potential, because it contains a number of words of East > European origin that I was unfamiliar with. I could use the audio version to > hear how a word is pronounced, and then switch to the synthetic speech > version on my iPhone to check its spelling. Very neat. But I don't know if I > would want to buy two versions of a book to get that feature! > > By the way, the RNIB have some good information about eBooks, although their > page on kindle apps doesn't include anything about Whispersync for voice: > http://www.rnib.org.uk/information-everyday-living-reading-ebook-app-reviews/kindle-ebook-apps > > Steve > > > -----Original Message----- > From: Jfw [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Guerra Access > Technology Training via Jfw > Sent: 19 December 2014 06:00 > To: 'Tim Ford'; 'The Jaws for Windows support list.' > Subject: RE: Kindle Books, not all have audio! > > Their was a movement several years ago about a rally against the Authors > Gild since they were mandating that not all authors should be made to make > their books with Audio. Hence this is the result of the authors guild still > not fixing it > > > Respectfully, > > Guerra Access Technology Training LLC > An Authorized state of Minnesota Vendor for Technology Training > > Call Guerra Access Technology Training LLC guerra Access Technology Training > LLC Visit Guerra Access Technology Training on the Web > > -----Original Message----- > From: Jfw [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Tim Ford via > Jfw > Sent: Thursday, December 18, 2014 10:56 PM > To: Adrian Spratt; The Jaws for Windows support list. > Subject: Kindle Books, not all have audio! > > I was very excited when I successfully installed and used the Kindle P PC > software. I read some of the three books that come pre-loaded. I was able > to do that just fine. > > I then bought a Kindle book, a 2014 copyright date. It showed up on my > Kindle software. I went to read it, and got no speech. I called Amazon, > and found that not all Kindle books, even new ones, have the audio. There > is nothing to warn a blind purchaser that they are buying a print only > version. When I called Amazon, they confirmed the book I had purchased had > no audio. The rep said the only way to tell is that when you are in your > shopping cart, there is apparently a separate button to buy the version with > audio included. I told him Amazon should put up a warning, since the > absence of an audio version button would not warn someone like me who > assumed all new Kindle books came with the audio included. > > So, excitement is all gone. Amazon did of course refund my money, and said > to check back every couple of weeks to see if the seller had responded yet > to Amazon's request to add an audio version. Oh well. > > Tim Ford > > > -----Original Message----- > From: Adrian Spratt via Jfw > Sent: Thursday, December 18, 2014 7:59 PM > To: The Jaws for Windows support list. > Subject: RE: Accessible method of converting Kindle book? > > Thanks for posting this useful information, but it leaves a question. If > this Kindle comes with its own two voices, why is JAWS needed? Or put > another way, are you saying we can ignore Amazon's voices and work just with > JAWS? That's what I'd want. > > -----Original Message----- > From: Jfw [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Andre Jarreau > via Jfw > Sent: Thursday, December 18, 2014 9:11 PM > To: 'Nicole Massey'; 'The Jaws for Windows support list.' > Subject: RE: Accessible method of converting Kindle book? > > Yes there is a Kindle version with built in JAWS accessibility. It's called > Kindle_for_PC with JAWS screenreader plug-in already installed in it. > JAWS works pretty well with it. Call Amazon Cust Support and ask for the > Kindle_for_PC with JAWS screenreader plug-in download. They will assist > with getting everything onto your computer and stay with you until you get > it up and running. > > Be ware the Kindle speech synthesizer has only two voices, Male and > female. > Neither is very good and understanding what is written sometimes takes a > little time. But overall it does work fairly well with JAWS. > > -----Original Message----- > From: Jfw [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Nicole Massey > via Jfw > Sent: Thursday, December 18, 2014 7:49 PM > To: 'Tim Ford'; 'The Jaws for Windows support list.' > Subject: RE: Accessible method of converting Kindle book? > > Well, the Kindle player for Windows should let you access it, though I don't > know how accessible that application is. Anyone got any experience with it? > >> -----Original Message----- >> From: Jfw [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Tim Ford >> via Jfw >> Sent: Thursday, December 18, 2014 6:46 PM >> To: The Jaws for Windows support list. >> Subject: Accessible method of converting Kindle book? >> >> I want to read a book that so far as I can tell, is available only in >> print or Kindle. It is a 2014 copyright date. Is there any method, >> accessible with JAWS, by which I can purchase the Kindle version, and >> convert it to some file I can access? >> >> Tim Ford >> -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was >> scrubbed... >> URL: <http://lists.the-jdh.com/pipermail/jfw_lists.the- >> jdh.com/attachments/20141218/9504746f/attachment.html> >> _______________________________________________ >> Jfw mailing list >> [email protected] >> http://lists.the-jdh.com/mailman/listinfo/jfw_lists.the-jdh.com > > > _______________________________________________ > Jfw mailing list > [email protected] > http://lists.the-jdh.com/mailman/listinfo/jfw_lists.the-jdh.com > > > _______________________________________________ > Jfw mailing list > [email protected] > http://lists.the-jdh.com/mailman/listinfo/jfw_lists.the-jdh.com > > _______________________________________________ > Jfw mailing list > [email protected] > http://lists.the-jdh.com/mailman/listinfo/jfw_lists.the-jdh.com > > > _______________________________________________ > Jfw mailing list > [email protected] > http://lists.the-jdh.com/mailman/listinfo/jfw_lists.the-jdh.com > > > _______________________________________________ > Jfw mailing list > [email protected] > http://lists.the-jdh.com/mailman/listinfo/jfw_lists.the-jdh.com > > Don't miss Text Santa: Friday 19 December, 8.00pm on ITV1. > A galaxy of stars will entertain viewers in a three-hour extravaganza. > Guide Dogs is one of six beneficiary charities and our amazing work will be > showcased by famous > faces, involving viewers with our vital services. Find out more at > www.guidedogs.org.uk/textsanta > > The Guide Dogs for the Blind Association > Registered Office: Hillfields, Burghfield Common, Reading, Berkshire, RG7 > 3YG. A company limited by > guarantee registered in England and Wales (291646) and a charity registered > in England and Wales > (209617) and Scotland (SC038979). > > Tel: 0118 9835555 > Website: www.guidedogs.org.uk > Email: [email protected] > > > _______________________________________________ > Jfw mailing list > [email protected] > http://lists.the-jdh.com/mailman/listinfo/jfw_lists.the-jdh.com > -- Kimberly _______________________________________________ Jfw mailing list [email protected] http://lists.the-jdh.com/mailman/listinfo/jfw_lists.the-jdh.com
