OverDrive Media Console Issues

May 7, 2013 at 1:56 pm | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

I’ve been using the OverDrive Media Console without issues for years, and it just took me an hour to figure out why I couldn’t load WMA files with it on my new laptop.  There are pieces to the solution out there (80% coming from the brilliant mind of Jon Gallant), but it took me several tries with several sources to figure it out.  I thought I’d summarize here.

1. If you use Windows 8, there are two options: the old desktop version and a new version for Windows 8.  The Windows 8 version claims it won’t play WMA files.  As far as I know, this is true, so the trusty old version is preferable if you use this file type.  If you download both, like I did, you’ll have to fuss with making sure the Windows 8 version is not the default, or just uninstall it.

2. If you just downloaded the old desktop version, when you attempt to download an audio book from your library, you will see this error message, beginning “Unable to acquire a license to play the selected title”:

image.

3. Click Tools > Windows Media Player Security Upgrade.  Surprise!  Another error message: “Your Windows Media Player requires a security upgrade to play protected content.”

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4. Discover a grayed-out “Upgrade” button.

5. Learn the hard way that you can only use Internet Explorer to download the security upgrade.  This should resolve the grayed-out button issue so that you can actually click it.

6. A fresh level of Hell.  ”Windows Media Player encountered a problem while playing the file.”:

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7. Discover that you don’t even have Windows Media Player loaded onto your laptop.

8. Install Windows Media Player and poke around in the Help files.  Discover nothing at all about media acquisition, which you have been researching for some time.

9. Discover this link:

http://blog.jongallant.com/2012/11/windows-media-player-overdrive-error.html#.UYli1rWG18F (I snagged all the screen shots from here, realizing after I had resolved the problem that I could not duplicate them on my own system).

10. Follow his steps 1, 2, and 3, failing to achieve the dialogue box in step 4. (Right-click the Internet Explorer icon and right-click again on the pop-up menu that appears.  Select “Run as Administrator.”  Choose the Security tab, second from the left, and uncheck the “Enable Protected Mode” checkbox at the bottom.  Click “Apply.”  Then click “OK” on the warning box that results).

11. Realize that you must start again at the beginning, following my steps 1-5. (Open the OverDrive Media Console. Click Tools and choose Windows Media Player Security Upgrade.  Press F1 and copy the URL into Internet Explorer.  Click the Upgrade button).  THIS time the following dialog box should appear:

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12. Click “Upgrade” and watch as what should have been a 30-second fix magically works the way it was supposed to.

I find it disgraceful that this security upgrade issue has been resulting in complaints since 2009, and yet neither the OverDrive site nor any of the library sites includes comprehensive directions to resolve it.  Then again, I’ve used it on two desktops and my iPhone with no hassle, and it’s pretty ungrateful to complain about free software that enables me to download free library books.

Hopefully this post will help at least one other person.

Booktopia Santa Cruz, Day Two

May 6, 2013 at 6:34 pm | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

From the wayback machine, my account of Booktopia Santa Cruz as of last October.  Ya never know, someone trying to decide whether to attend Booktopia 2013 may find these notes interesting.

Saturday was the day of small group author sessions.  These were indeed all small enough that everyone could hear and there was plenty of time for everyone to ask questions.

I started my day with Cara Black at the Center Street Grill.  She brought her agent and it was fascinating to see what a close connection the two of them had.  It was a real insight into the level of involvement a good agent can have in the development of a book or series.  It was also nice to see someone with whom I had had a personal conversation performing in a professional capacity.

After lunch I attended Ann Packer’s discussion of Swim Back to Me.  I hadn’t read the book, though I knew it by reputation.  Being in that situation drew my attention to the sorts of things that make an impression on readers.  Predictably, there were a lot of questions about “where ideas come from” and the nature of the writing process.

In the afternoon, I attended the session on audiobook narration with Grover Gardner and Simon Vance.  I thought the voices were familiar, and it turns out I’ve heard Grover Gardner narrate The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy as well as My Antonia.  Simon Vance is currently reading Bring Up the Bodies on my iPhone.  Like many people, I harbor a secret desire to record audiobooks for a living.  The reality of this job, as relayed by these two successful narrators, is that it is very demanding, highly competitive, and beset on all sides by amateurs who deluge anyone in the industry with mediocre demo tapes.  In my case, I know full well that nobody would pay to listen to my voice!

There was a three-hour break between the end of the last session and the beginning of the evening’s Celebration of Authors.  I spent the time browsing for books and eating at Cafe Gratitude.  Santa Cruz is a great boutique town.

Bookshop Santa Cruz is one of my top five favorite bookstores.  It was packed for the Celebration of Authors, and I was very glad I had come early to claim a seat.  I’ll give just thumbnail impressions of each of the authors.

Terry Jones made a great comment about e-reader hysteria: “The Kindle is going to come and drown us in our bathtubs.”  ”Art has a mind of its own.

Lynn Cox wrote South with the Sun.  She swam the English Channel.  While she is a riveting speaker and an accomplished athlete, what surprised me the most was that in regular clothing she could be a person of average fitness.  You would never guess.

Grover Gardner spoke about his career recording audiobooks.  I had heard him speak earlier in the day, but still it blew my mind that he has recorded over 800 books.

Ann Packer: “What is it about story that’s so gripping and so powerful?”

Adam Johnson was an absolute laugh riot.  He told a story about meeting a homeless gentleman “and he was working on his novel too.”  We can laugh about how everyone is writing a book, but in North Korea people haven’t been allowed to write books for 60 years.  The only book he was shown in the library there was a 1995 copy of an English language guide to Windows.  Gone With the Wind is basically the only book in translation in English.  Even Solzhenitsyn got to write from the Gulag.

Sarah McCoy wrote her first book in kindergarten and designed the cover herself, with tulips and a house.  She keeps a Moleskine journal.

Tupelo Hassman was the winner of the Santa Cruz Literary Death Match.  For those of us who didn’t know there was such a thing, now we do!

Simon Vance first read Winnie the Pooh into a tape recorder as a young boy.  Now he has read over 400 audio books professionally.

Cara Black’s dad asked her if she ever read any P.D. James.  When she first went to France she knocked on the door of the winner of the Prix Goncourt and he invited her in and gave her her first espresso and her first cigar.

Matthew Dicks was another hilarious speaker.  ”I don’t want an introduction.  Just play “Born to Run.”"  He recommended that anyone who was planning to buy his book buy a copy of anything by William Shakespeare instead.  He said he would sign Shakespeare’s books and that he had made it a habit to sign other authors’ books.

This was a very fun literary weekend and something I would definitely do again.

Booktopia Santa Cruz, Day One

October 20, 2012 at 12:43 pm | Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment

I’m writing up notes from yesterday during today’s lunch break. It’s been non-stop fun since I got here! Due to last minute cancellations I was able to get a friend into the event with me.

The weather in Santa Cruz is often a bit gloomy, but most of Friday was beautifully sunny and warm. This made it nice for walking between venues. Not that event organizers can control the weather, at least I don’t think they can, but it’s something to appreciate.

The first two modules were Bookseller Speed Dating and a Yankee Swap.

In Bookseller Speed Dating, we divided into four groups and visited stations in different areas of Bookshop Santa Cruz. Three long-time employees presented a half-dozen books each, describing why they loved them. Employee recommendations are possibly the best, most enticing feature of indie bookstores, and this was a great way to get a closer look at the personalities behind the little handwritten shelf cards we love so much.

The highlight, though, was the Espresso printing machine. We got to watch one of the souvenir books for the event as it was printed, bound, and cut. When it came out, it was still warm. (Yes, I sniffed it too). The sides of the machine are transparent. We were crouching on the floor and turning our heads from side to side to get a better look. Imagine having one of these in your living room! Alas, Bookshop has one of the only three in California, and 81 in the world.

I hadn’t brought a book for the Yankee Swap. Well, I had, but I had 100 pages to go, so I bought a new book.

“The Burning House”

It was the first thing that captured my attention. In fact, the cashier asked to take a picture of it to show to a friend later. I came back later and bought a second copy for myself.

The Yankee Swap is like a White Elephant party. All the participants pile their wrapped books in the center of the room. Each player gets a playing card drawn at random, and takes turns choosing a book. After unwrapping it, you can decide whether to keep it or trade it for one that’s already been unwrapped. Meanwhile, the person who brought it stands up and explains why that book was chosen. I wound up with Back When We Were Grownups, which is funny because the last book I finished was also by Anne Tyler. My book went to a person who had contributed a copy of Atlas Shrugged. One book was signed by the author, but dedicated to someone named Karen. The recipient elected to swap it. The lady who gave up her book for it said, “That’s fine because my name is Karen!” There was a lot of laughter and a lot of contention for the single copy of Cloud Atlas. The venue, Art du Jour, had an absolutely charming bricked patio and a fat, smiling Amazon parrot sunning itself on an open birdcage.

We had a bit of time to kill before the final event of the evening. I went around the corner to Game-a-Lot, looking for a copy of Cards Against Humanity. They didn’t have it but they did have Super Big Boggle! It’s still in the wrapper at this time but I look forward to rattling it like a maraca at the first opportunity.

Finally we went to Center Street Grill for the welcome reception. Let me tell you, dedicated readers are a very nice group of folks as a rule. I’ve been to other types of conventions for various reasons, and it’s interesting to people watch and guess who is affiliated with the event or not. Sci fi and comic cons, Apple conventions, multi level marketing, business seminars – all have certain characteristics that tend to make attendees recognizable. The reading crowd tends to be 3/4 or more female. We tend to dress sensibly. I’m not sure I can quite put a finger on why, but I’m pretty sure we can recognize one another when we meet. It was really easy to strike up a conversation with anyone. The authors were all there, and they mingled between tables. We were deep in conversation with Cara Black when I realized I was running late for a dinner date.

I got a chance to see a young friend of mine who is attending UC Santa Cruz. She’s busy but she found time for me. Then I spent the evening playing Super Scrabble with some dear friends. We stayed up until 2:30 playing Jotto, a word game we can play over email if you want me to teach you.

Now it’s time to head back to the event. I’ll have a break later in the day when I can record today’s impressions.

“Popular Crime”

September 4, 2012 at 3:56 pm | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

If you read as much true crime as I have, you may also feel like it’s a dirty little secret.  I picked up Popular Crime and blasted through it, almost without intending to, when I was supposed to be reading something else.

Product Details

The subtitle to Bill James’s book Popular Crime is “Reflections on the Celebration of Violence.”  It could justifiably be called any of a number of other things, such as “A Second Look at Many Famous Crimes,” or “How Media Attention Educates the Public about Jurisprudence,” or “A Book That Should Have Been a Blog.”  (Bill James has a website, which at first glance I thought was entirely about baseball.  It includes some crime pieces, but requires a paid subscription).

This book is casual (written over 25 years with no notes or bibliography), irreverent, sometimes maddening, but almost unfailingly fascinating.  It’s mostly a chronologically ordered catalog of famous crimes, interspersed with reasons these cases were important.  James proposes that popular crime brings important legal and procedural issues to the public’s attention.  He also has theses about why we have as much crime as we do and how to tackle it.  These are important points, but the manner of delivery and the author’s lack of relevant expertise unfortunately make them unlikely to be taken seriously until they are brought up by someone else in another forum.

The best reason to read the book is to hear James out on his alternative theories and opinions on crimes you may already have studied.  (It can be frustrating to read about the less familiar crimes, similar to the experience of reading a review of a movie you haven’t seen).  He got my attention with his account of the JFK assassination, changed my mind about the JonBenet Ramsey case, and had me pacing the floor in an imaginary argument about the Lizzie Borden case.

The other thing he did was to compare Ted Bundy to Barack Obama.

Popular Crime is not a perfect book, but it’s tremendously engaging.  This book changed my perspective on a number of things and will affect my future reading on the subject.  True crime fans should make a point of checking it out.

“Area 51″

August 27, 2012 at 4:31 pm | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Area 51, enigma and legend: Will the book that bears your name appeal to conspiracy theorists, or drive them around the bend?

When I saw this book I made it my business to pick it up and read it as quickly as possible.  In fact, Area 51 is a potboiler, despite its heft.  Annie Jacobsen is a terrific, engaging writer, and she appears to be an extremely thorough researcher.

Product Details

This book addresses UFO sightings and government cover-ups.  It will tell you all you want to know about Roswell.  You may be as surprised as I was, though, to find that this is maybe 10% of the story.  This is another of those “I have a history degree and I had no idea about any of this stuff” sorts of stories.  There are so many revelations never before published that I lost count.

Area 51 is an important, intriguing, creepy book.  One of the stunning things about it is that it made it into print.

“Habibi”

August 22, 2012 at 10:45 pm | Posted in Uncategorized | Leave a comment

Craig Thompson has the rare talent of writing and drawing graphic novels in such different styles that they could have been created by different artists.  His stunning book “Habibi” is a masterpiece.

Product Details

Everything about this book is impressive.  I was most impressed by the effort Thompson appears to have made to learn Arabic script.  I was just blown away by “Habibi” and I can’t wait to see what Craig Thompson is working on next.

Knock Knock

August 3, 2012 at 12:49 pm | Posted in Uncategorized | 1 Comment

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The Thrill That Had Gone

August 2, 2012 at 10:37 pm | Posted in Uncategorized | 5 Comments

I was just thinking about my poor, neglected blog, and how few books I’ve read since trying to write my own novel. The mojo seemed to have gone. The new Stephen King that I pre-ordered languishes unread on my shelf.

Then we went to Oakland. I took Sweetie Junior to a great bookstore called Diesel, fifteen minutes before closing. In that short time I saw that new titles by several terrific authors had been released without my noticing. Gold by Chris Cleave; Shadow of Night by Deborah Harkness; A Hologram for the King by Dave Eggers; Are You My Mother? by Alison Bechdel; and several others caught my eye. You know how it is at an indie bookstore. Every shelf has a handwritten tag pointing out an obscure yet fantastic book. Many of them I had read when they first came out in hardcover. I started feeling the mojo.

We left at closing and walked up the street to Pegasus & Pendragon. They keep later hours and that’s all I really ask.

And THEN – [cue violins] – I SAW IT.

Broken Harbor by TANA fricking FRENCH.

See, I’m a frugalite and I don’t typically… buy books. Especially not in hardcover. But I tucked this one under my arm and paid for it without batting an eye.

(Sweetie Junior is truly the child of my spirit. I offered to buy her a book but she declined. Instead she noted down The Night Circus and *gasp* The Magicians in her iPhone for later. It is very weird that she is old enough to read it now. Thanks for asking).

Now Broken Harbor is sitting in my lap. If Tana French were here she could sit in my lap too.

I’m back.

“Iceland by Bus and Backpack”

July 27, 2012 at 12:45 pm | Posted in Uncategorized | 5 Comments

I’m reviewing my own book!

Product Details

Iceland by Bus and Backpack is a short, digital travel guide.  You can download it onto your phone or laptop and bring it with you to Iceland, a big improvement on the large paperback travel guide we brought on our trip.  It’s also inexpensive.  You can have your very own copy for less than the price of a magazine, although you can’t really write phone numbers on it or use it to smack a hornet.

We spent three weeks in Iceland, traveling by bus and staying in camp sites.  Surprisingly, very few people seemed to be doing this.  Icelanders seemed impressed.  It was easy and relatively inexpensive – as low as 10% the cost of staying in a moderately priced guest house.  We found our travel guide totally useless for the purposes of camping, however, and I hit upon the idea of making our own.

The other reason I wrote this book is that I follow an alternative diet, and it took about a week for me to figure out how to find satisfactory food.  There is no reason for other alternative eaters to have to scrounge around the way I did.  So there is information for vegans, vegetarians, the gluten intolerant, and even low carb dieters.

I intend to put together similar travel guides whenever I go to a new country.

You should buy this book if you are planning to go to Iceland.  You should also buy it to impress me or to help fund my website.  You can even justify buying it just because you want to look at my many glorious photographs of Iceland.  Best of all, you can have bragging rights after I am famous, and tell everyone you were reading my stuff before it was hip.

Posting My First Book on Amazon via Kindle Direct Publishing

July 25, 2012 at 10:40 pm | Posted in Uncategorized | 2 Comments

My first book is available on Amazon.com!  Here it is: Iceland by Bus and Backpack.

I’m still emotional about finishing my first novel and putting it out for the world to see.  I thought I would break the ice by posting a project I could feel “done with” and learning about the self-publishing process.  This was a great way to satisfy my curiosity and build my confidence.  Also, I had a great deal to say about backpacking and camping in Iceland and I felt my book would help other travelers.

Some unexpected issues surfaced in the uploading process.  First, Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) is promoting a book lending program, KDP Select.  I hadn’t heard of it and had to evaluate it in the middle of trying to publish my book.  Second, my book wouldn’t load, and due to my lack of familiarity with the process it took me two days to resolve the issue.  I will discuss those topics in greater detail after a cursory explanation of the process.

Amazon offers a free guide to the self-publishing process on KDP.  I found it helpful and easy to understand.  It recommends some formatting conventions, many of which I use routinely, and I was glad to find out that the formatting and conversion process was less complicated than I thought.  Don’t use tabs or indent paragraphs; use page breaks between chapters; center images.  Avoid page numbering.

Designing a book cover deserves real attention.  In retrospect it would have been nice if I had thought about a book cover while I was still in the act of taking photographs.  It would have been very simple to frame a few shots with the cover in mind, and then choose the best one.  In reality I must have spent two hours poring over thousands of images.  The KDP guide gave helpful advice on image dimensions.

Uploading a book involves two pages of forms.  The first page includes finding the files for the text and the book cover, and it can take a minute.  It’s possible to continue to the second page and complete it while waiting for the book to load, although it shouldn’t take that long.

Where I ran into trouble was that the book wouldn’t load, and I had no expectation of how long I needed to wait.  Two days later it still hadn’t loaded.  An error message that suggests trying to attach the file again would have been very helpful.  I contacted tech support and they didn’t suggest that simple approach either.  Finally my husband came in and did what was obvious to him – browse for the file and click Save again – and it was done in seconds.  I share this story because an extensive Google search failed to turn up any similar issues, but I doubt I’ll be the only poor sap in this situation.

The other issue I promised to mention was the KDP Select program that Amazon is promoting.  My book hasn’t been on the market long enough for me to compare whether I would make more money through KDP Select than I will by selling it.  So far I have sold a whopping TWO COPIES.  The way the KDP Select program works is that you make your book available exclusively through the program for at least 90 days.  Any time a Kindle reader chooses your book, you get a portion of the pool of money that subscribers pay.  The amount varies depending on how many authors/books are in the pool and how many subscribers are paying.  I got a newsletter that said the current payment per read was about $2.04.  That’s very close to what I think I will net per sale, so for me the question is whether KDP Select could garner more readers for my work.  I may write other travel guides in the future, but most of my planned works are not of this type, so name recognition may not be of much use to me at this stage.

What I really need is a reviewer!  I’ll be reviewing my own book tomorrow in the hope of attracting a traveler who can speak to my book’s accuracy, usefulness, and amusement value.  In the meantime, the fact that my book costs less than a magazine is not enough to appease wary purchasers of travel guidebooks.

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