How do you read

iBeScotty · Post by **iBeScotty** » March 19th, 2017, 10:18 am

This an interesting topic. There are so many ways to do it. I have always read everything here on a tablet, either directly from the source or downloaded to the Kindle app. I haven't read any novels yet, though, where one might need more notes. A couple of short stories had a few characters that I described beforehand in a notes app and kept open in a tab that I could easily refer to when needed.

I also record standing up, except for a couple of poems that I experimented lying down on the floor, haha. I use a cheapo, flimsy floor stand with boom arm to raise the mic up to eye level and position the tablet (just below and behind the mic) on a selfie stick kind of thing with an attached table-top tripod on a really small (15 x 20 inch) kitchen cart in the closet. I used to have the mic plugged into a portable recorder and take the files to edit on a desktop computer but now use my kids' little, low-end netbook to record; it works well and is quiet, the only real con is the screen isn't very good but it is nice to be able to edit as I go along for longer recordings and is much easier to punch in corrections than with the portable recorder method.

Post by **philchenevert** » March 19th, 2017, 10:23 am

We LOVE pedants, lurcherlover. They do such great work because they take such pains to do it right.

Others of us, on the other hand .......

lurcherlover · Post by **lurcherlover** » March 19th, 2017, 12:03 pm

I'm probably more neurotic than pedantic - in the last three or four weeks I've used 4 different mic's. In one short story, not yet uploaded, I heard today a difference half way through and my notes told me I used a different mic at that point.

My early recordings last November/December,of voice, were rather bad, with far too much reverb. Now I have a pretty dry room and close miked (with a new Rode mic) - it sounds better and much clearer. My ribbon mic was wonderful but caused too much hum (even though it was slight) so now a much cheaper Large Diaphragm Capacitor mic works well.

I must try the "lying on my back" technique - I can play with my Lurcher at the same time then ... but she may hate my "studio," as it is devoid of any comforts.

johnb2 · Post by **johnb2** » March 19th, 2017, 12:41 pm

Hi and thanks for all the replies. I originally posed the question last year, since then I have tried reading off my Chromebook which works well enough but I have concluded paper is "my way" to go too. It works best for me when keeping notes and reviewing that chapter as I get done. I write notes, pronunciations and times on the paper. I was printing 2 sided but find it easier continuity not flipping the paper. So I figure I will use the backs for another chapter. Call me old fashioned and frugal but I am happy to see I am not alone.

john

sjmarky · Post by **sjmarky** » March 20th, 2017, 9:17 am

For reading, I download the text to my iPad in ePub format, and then set it to scroll rather than page. I like white-on-black; easier on the eyes. Before the iPad I used to print everything out, which in itself got rather costly, in that it took almost entire black cartridge to print a 100k-word book. I record to a laptop.

Post by **philchenevert** » March 20th, 2017, 10:16 am

I just memorize the text in chunks of 15,000 words or so then take my yacht out to a secluded bayou and dictate while sipping a .... oh wait, that's not true at all. Don't have a yacht any more. (I really just read the text off my PC screen).

johnb2 · Post by **johnb2** » March 20th, 2017, 12:48 pm

Hi Mark

For reading, I download the text to my iPad in ePub format..... I might try that with the Chromebook. However, the fact that I have 2 mouses in front of me - confuses my old brain. "which one does what". I have not read a whole book - I am working up to that! Thanks for the epub tip. I have been using the top one on the list - and whichever one works.

I also tried using the puter screen like Phil but got so confused, I just gave up and printed.

I am an old dog trying to learn new tricks.
john

sjmarky · Post by **sjmarky** » March 20th, 2017, 1:18 pm

I choose the ePub version w/o images. Fortunately I have zero mouses.

lurcherlover · Post by **lurcherlover** » March 20th, 2017, 1:52 pm

philchenevert wrote:I just memorize the text in chunks of 15,000 words or so then take my yacht out to a secluded bayou and dictate while sipping a .... oh wait, that's not true at all. Don't have a yacht any more.

It's funny but I tried that too, and it was fine until I got to the 14,001 word and then I just dried up and couldn't remember another word. So just I gave up...

Post by **philchenevert** » March 20th, 2017, 2:36 pm

lurcherlover wrote:
philchenevert wrote:I just memorize the text in chunks of 15,000 words or so then take my yacht out to a secluded bayou and dictate while sipping a .... oh wait, that's not true at all. Don't have a yacht any more.
It's funny but I tried that too, and it was fine until I got to the 14,001 word and then I just dried up and couldn't remember another word. So just I gave up...

Yes! me too. no problems till that 14,001st word darn it.

Jan_M · Post by **Jan_M** » March 21st, 2017, 6:26 am

johnb2 wrote:Hi and thanks for all the replies. I originally posed the question last year, since then I have tried reading off my Chromebook which works well enough but I have concluded paper is "my way" to go too. It works best for me when keeping notes and reviewing that chapter as I get done. I write notes, pronunciations and times on the paper. I was printing 2 sided but find it easier continuity not flipping the paper. So I figure I will use the backs for another chapter. Call me old fashioned and frugal but I am happy to see I am not alone.

john

Now I feel better ... old-fashioned paper printouts work best for me, too.

StarFire · Post by **StarFire** » March 21st, 2017, 1:13 pm

I copy mine to LibreOffice and add in the intro and outro stuff I need, so it's all there and I don't worry about missing something.

Post by **philchenevert** » March 21st, 2017, 2:03 pm

Isn't it wonderful how each of us finds the way for themselves? We all end up in the same place, making recordings, but our personalities and proclivities lead us to the way that works for us as people. Gotta love it, and gotta love LibriVox for giving us this opportunity to be so unique and productive.

lurcherlover · Post by **lurcherlover** » March 27th, 2017, 2:28 pm

In the last few days I've tried other methods, including iPad (quite good) and back to paper. My biggest problem is that I'm a dreadful reader and I mess up about every second sentence, so I have to do a huge amount of editing. I'm pretty fast at editing so maybe I make up time there. Even so, i find it hard to do much more than 15 minutes of finished, edited material a day. I could do more, but I have to take out my four legged girlfriend for about four hours a day - and this may go up now summer is just about here.

barbara2 · Post by **barbara2** » March 28th, 2017, 12:58 am

StarFire wrote:I copy mine to LibreOffice and add in the intro and outro stuff I need, so it's all there and I don't worry about missing something.

I record in front of a PC and I've found copying and pasting text into a word processor invaluable for recording works that benefit from formatting - facsimiles of old editions, pronunciations, translations [Ancient Greek!], the stresses in puzzling sentences or lines of verse, cutting and pasting footnotes into the right place ...

That says something about the sort of texts I have been reading I guess.

Best,

Barbara