[Nfb-history] Proposal and Ideas for Archiving NFB Audio Content

[Robert Jaquiss]

Hello:

     I would suggest the use of DAISY format for materials. Eventually everyone will have an NLS player and can easily use the materials. If we want our site usable by the general public, we might want to set up our books as web pages. In this way, anyone could open one and use a table of contents type page to select the desired portion. 

Regards,

Robert

  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Tina Hansen 
  To: Nfb-history at nfbnet.org 
  Sent: Saturday, June 26, 2010 1:40 PM
  Subject: [Nfb-history] Proposal and Ideas for Archiving NFB Audio Content


  I am pleased to see that we're finally beginning to offer some of our literature as online audio. Yet there is one problem: the inability to find a speech of interest within these large documents. I recognize that if we're going to allow better access, some way needs to be done to find an individual article within these larger documents. I have a few ideas on what can be done about this, based on what I've seen in the general audio book market. I want to list the pros and cons of what I've seen and get the group's ideas.

   

  Option 1: User Downloads Large Segments: This is what's being used now for the two books on the site: Walking Alone and Marching Together and the book on Dr. Jernigan.

   

  Pros: Each part is a single file, making it somewhat easier to download.

   

  Cons: Can't find an individual speech or article. For instance, I may want to discuss a speech or article with others, but unless I was able to find it and set a bookmark, I'd not be able to do so.

   

  Option 2: Split the material into small files. I've seen this approach used by at least one audio book company when offering their titles for download.

   

  Pros: Easier to find an individual speech of interest. For instance, I may wish to find a speech by Dr. Jernigan that I want to discuss with others, and for the discussion, I could use it apart from the larger book.

   

  Cons: More files to download, manage and organize.

   

  Option 3: Zip File. Whichever option we go with, use of a zip archive could work. I know that we're doing this for each issue of the Monitor.

   

  Pros: Whether the archive is a book like Walking Alone or one of the kernel books, the whole thing can be downloaded at once.

   

  This way, if I was to download the material, I could set it to download, go do something else, and only check back periodically. Dial-up users could get the download started before they go to bed, but those who are broadband users would be able to work on it while doing something else.

   

  Cons: Not everyone knows how to unzip archive files.

   

  Option 4: DAISY

   

  There's been a great deal of interest in DAISY access, and I'm surprised we've not explored this option, at least, to the extent that we could.

   

  Pros: Parts don't need to be split up into small files, thus the whole thing could be packaged as a zip file for download. Markup could be done by someone who knows about DAISY.

   

  Cons: Even though DAISY players are becoming more common, they're not in the mainstream. Many in the blind community still don't have these players.



  What do others think of these comments? Thanks.



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