I imagine a pipeline between Calibre-Web[0] and audiobookshelf[1] going through Abogen, where Calibre-Web supplies the books, Abogen generates the audio version of it, and Audiobookshelf serves them. Great solution for the hearing impaired.
Abogen – Generate audiobooks from EPUBs, PDFs and text
61–70 of 85 posts
Re: Abogen – Generate audiobooks from EPUBs, PDFs and text
#62Nice! As an aside, while this tool can be used to create an audiobook from a book you have in text format, for your private consumption, having an author employ something like this to create files for distribution is extremely risky, even if they acknowledge its use and intend those files to only be available on their website. Indie authors struggle a lot to promote their works, and the new normal is that potential r…
> and the new normal is that potential readers, the polite ones[^1], use the slightest hint of AI usage to discard their title and move on...
Is that the new normal?
My impression is that when it comes to reading text, nobody cares as long as the final product is good.
People don't want AI-written books, but people have been comfortably listening to AI voices reading text for a long time now. Text-to-speech isn't really a controversial thing for listening to articles or books.
(Which is very different from voice acting, for example, which requires acting not just reading.)
Re: Abogen – Generate audiobooks from EPUBs, PDFs and text
#63Does it turn it into spoken word or an audiobook? Because good audiobooks often have voice actors that read the characters with different emphasis and dialects. I imagine tools like chatgpt could do this for a few sentences but what about an 8-20 hour audiobook? I think there are still basic hurdles to take before we can go epub to audiobook in a quality that can compete with current state of the art. Or am I missing…
> Because good audiobooks often have voice actors that read the characters with different emphasis and dialects. I actually hate this. I like quotes to be read with the tone and inflection implied by the context but I don't like the different voices.
I'm with you. It's as if a book decided to use a different font for each character's speech. It's distracting, not helpful.
Re: Abogen – Generate audiobooks from EPUBs, PDFs and text
#64I love audiobooks, but I'm a stickler for good narration. I've stopped listening to plenty of audiobooks because I didn't like the narrator. I guess it will be a long time before I can use something like this.
> I've stopped listening to plenty of audiobooks because I didn't like the narrator.
I'm with you on this, but my reaction is the opposite -- I'm wondering if there are some books I couldn't stand to listen to, that now I could with a nice neutral narration voice? Instead of the weird untrained voice with weird vocal tics that was the official narration?
Re: Abogen – Generate audiobooks from EPUBs, PDFs and text
#65DAISY would be a desirable output format.
Re: Abogen – Generate audiobooks from EPUBs, PDFs and text
#66Earlier quoted context omitted.
I am big time user of Amazon’s WhisperSync feature. With that feature I can simultaneously read the book and listen to it. This is especially helpful when you’re on the go but still want to have a visual now and then or highlight text for later. The problem is that many books don’t offer that feature. There is a built-in read function now in the kindle app, but it’s crap. So, if you ask me, I’d prefer a good human-wr…
I'm obsessed with "simultaneously read the book and listen to it". Thats why I built WithAudio. You can checkout the demo here: https://desktop.with.audio/reader-demo I'd love to hear any feedback you have. "prefer a good human-written book with an additional AI voice on top to enable that feature for me" is exactly what I prefer when it comes to reading.
Very surprising that you're offering this without subscription. Huge selling point. Next time the need arises, I'll come back for WithAudio.
Re: Abogen – Generate audiobooks from EPUBs, PDFs and text
#67You will want to reconsider the name if you plan to have a presence in Australia or New Zealand. "Abo" is an ethnic slur similar in offensiveness to the N-word.
Don't worry. Australia will probably ban it for some reason anyway. Better to be free.
Btw, Don't look into the name of a famous python formatter or you might be offended.
Re: Abogen – Generate audiobooks from EPUBs, PDFs and text
#68Earlier quoted context omitted.
I'm obsessed with "simultaneously read the book and listen to it". Thats why I built WithAudio. You can checkout the demo here: https://desktop.with.audio/reader-demo I'd love to hear any feedback you have. "prefer a good human-written book with an additional AI voice on top to enable that feature for me" is exactly what I prefer when it comes to reading.
Very surprising that you're offering this without subscription. Huge selling point. Next time the need arises, I'll come back for WithAudio.
[deleted]
Re: Abogen – Generate audiobooks from EPUBs, PDFs and text
#69You will want to reconsider the name if you plan to have a presence in Australia or New Zealand. "Abo" is an ethnic slur similar in offensiveness to the N-word.
Everyone has a gimmick these days. If abos are that sensitive, let them not have access to solutions—no need to worry about them.
Having zero cultural sensitivity like this is incredibly embarrassing
Re: Abogen – Generate audiobooks from EPUBs, PDFs and text
#70You will want to reconsider the name if you plan to have a presence in Australia or New Zealand. "Abo" is an ethnic slur similar in offensiveness to the N-word.
Don't worry. Australia will probably ban it for some reason anyway. Better to be free. Btw, Don't look into the name of a famous python formatter or you might be offended.
"Abo" carries the same cultural impact as "Paki" in the UK, and isn't a word in its own right, let alone a very commonly used one. Completely different kettle of fish. Seeing as you want to derail this into some free speech rant - it's just distasteful. You really think anybody who wants legislative control over freedom of speech in Australia gives a damn about Aboriginals getting offended?