Downloading Books FAQ

The questions in this section are organized into the following categories:

Top Questions

1 I registered as a Bookshare™ Member and received a password via email. Why can't I download copyrighted books?

After the first step of registration you must complete two additional steps before you can download copyrighted materials:

  1. Submit written certification of your print disability. If you have submitted your certification of disability, please allow sufficient time for the form to get to us. Weekends and holidays may delay the receipt of your materials via U.S. mail. You will receive an email from Bookshare once your proof of disability is verified. Learn more about qualifications.
  2. Submit payment for your annual membership. Learn more about Membership.

If you belong to an organization or school that you believe has purchased a Bookshare membership for you, please contact that organization directly to confirm that they have provided your name to Bookshare. If Bookshare has received your name and correct current email address from the organization, you should have already received an email inviting you to take advantage of this membership.

If you represent an organization or a school and would like more information about organizational memberships, visit the Membership Options page. Through an award from the U.S. Department of Education Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP), Bookshare offers free memberships to U.S. schools and qualifying U.S. students. Read more about the OSEP award.

If, after completing all the necessary steps, you are still unable to download copyrighted books from the website, please contact Bookshare via email.

2 The book doesn’t open, even though I’m quite sure I typed my password correctly. What should I do?

Make certain that you are entering your password correctly. Ensure that your caps lock is off. Clear the password field by pressing backspace multiple times. Remember to use the same password you used when you downloaded the book.

If you forget your password, you can obtain a new password. However, the new password will not open books you have already downloaded. You can download the books again, or contact Customer Support to obtain your old password.

Troubleshooting

3 I downloaded books from Bookshare but now I can’t open them. What do I do?

The new library uses standard Zip format for compressing and encrypting books. This makes decompressing the books much easier, since most operating systems can handle .zip files. To “unzip” the book files:

  1. Select the .zip book file.
  2. Choose Extract All from the File menu.
  3. Choose a location for saving the files and enter your password.

4 What about Windows 98 PCs or Macs? Do I need additional software to unzip the books?

Windows XP and above has Zip capability built into the operating system. If your PC operating system is older or if you have a Mac, you may need to download a zip program. Bookshare recommends the following:

Mac users can also use Stuffit, which is not free, but works quite well.

If you have any concerns, please contact Bookshare Support.

5 I still have packed books from the old Bookshare. What do I do?

If you have packed books, you can still use the old Unpack Tool to unpack them. They should work fine with the new reading tools when they are unpacked.

6 I still have my library of unpacked books from the old Bookshare. What do I do?

You don’t have to do anything. Your old already unpacked books should read fine.

7 One of my old unpacked books from the old Bookshare has a problem. What do I do?

If you lose a book, or it has become corrupted, you can simply re-download it from the new site in the new Zip format:

  1. Log in (at the top of this page) and go to My Account.
  2. Select the My Books option, which lists all the books you have downloaded in the past (including those from the old Bookshare site).
  3. Select the book you want and choose Download.

8 Do I need to keep the Unpack Tool?

Not unless you have kept packed books around. You will no longer need this tool and can uninstall it from your computer if you want. If you have books previously saved on your computer that you have not unpacked yet, you can still use the Unpack Tool to unpack them all, or you can download them again and take advantage of the easier Zip format.

9 Do I need to unzip the books?

Yes, most users will need to unzip the books, just like users of the old Bookshare site used to unpack their books. Many hardware and software vendors are working on upgrades that can handle .zip files directly.

To unzip a book:

  1. Select the .zip book file.
  2. Choose Extract All from the File menu.
  3. Choose a location for saving the files and enter your password.

10 How do I read the book in my browser?

You will first need to “unzip” the book file, then you can read the book with the XML file:

  1. Select the .zip book file.
  2. Choose Extract All from the File menu.
  3. Choose a location for saving the files and enter your password.
  4. Select the book file with an XML extension, choose "Open with" from the file menu and select your browser (Firefox, Safari or Internet Explorer).

11 I used to use the Unpack Tool to save the book as HTML. How do I do that today?

For the major browsers, you can just unzip the file and open the XML file as described “How do I read the book in my browser?” above. Your browser will use a CSS style sheet to make the text look nice, quite similar to the old HTML extension files. But if your application or device doesn’t work with XML files, you can simply rename the XML file to an HTML extension instead of the XML extension (this is what the old Unpack Tool used to do!).

12 Do I need to upgrade my portable DAISY player or Braille reader?

The following vendors are preparing upgrades to their hardware/software to work with the Zip format. Some upgrades are already available:

Product Vendor Contact
Victor Reader Stream
BrailleNote		 Humanware 1-800-722-3393
Open Book Freedom Scientific 1-727-803-8600
Ikon Levelstar 1-800-315-2305 #1
Dynavox Dynavox 1-866-DYNAVOX
Kurzweil 1000 Kurzweil 1-888-995-9905
Kurzweil 3000 Kurzweil 1-800-894-5374

13 How do I open compressed books automatically with Victor Reader Soft Bookshare Edition?

Members using Victor Reader Soft Bookshare Edition can open compressed books directly by downloading the books as .bks2 files instead of .zip files. To set this preference:

  1. Log in to Bookshare and go to My Account.
  2. Select the Preferences option.
  3. Under “Please download BKS2 Format,” choose Yes.

When you download books as.bks2 files, you can open them directly with Victor Reader Soft Bookshare Edition by doing one of the following:

  • If you are using Firefox: download a book, select “Open with”, choose Victor Reader Soft Bookshare Edition.
  • If you are using Internet Explorer: download a book and select “Open.”
  • Select a .bks2 file and press Enter (or double-click on the file).

A .bks2 file is simply a zipped file with a different extension. Victor Reader Soft knows that if you select a .bks2 file, you want to open it with Victor Reader Soft. Zip files get opened for extraction, since there are many other reasons people use zipped files.

14 My BrailleNote is not working with the new Bookshare website, how can I download and read books?

HumanWare has released an update that will fix this problem. Please read the release announcement and follow the directions to upgrade.

15 What if my old book still doesn’t work?

Your issue will probably be solved by downloading a new copy of the book. Log in, go to My Account, select the My Book History option and download the book again. If you have further problems, please contact Bookshare Technical Support.

16 Should I open or save a book?

When you download a book, Bookshare recommends saving it rather than opening it directly. When you choose the open option, it’s easy to lose track of your books. Bookshare recommends that you create a folder just for books and always save books to that folder.

17 Where do I find my downloaded books?

Saving Books with Internet Explorer

Internet Explorer asks you for a location each time you download a file, so you can choose where you want to store your books. Bookshare recommends that you create a folder just for books and always save books to that folder.

Saving Books with Mozilla Firefox

With Firefox the default location for downloaded files depends on the operating system:

  • Windows XP saves downloaded files to the Desktop.
  • Windows Vista saves downloaded files in a Downloads folder in your user folder (e.g. Joe Smith > Downloads).

To change the download settings in Firefox, go to the Tools menu and choose Options. You can specify a different download location or you can have Firefox ask you for a location each time you download a file.

Saving books with Safari on a Macintosh

Safari saves downloaded files to the Downloads folder in your user folder. Once you download a Bookshare “.zip” book file, you will then need to open and save the file using Unarchiver or Stuffit so you can read the book using your Safari browser.

When you install Unarchiver or Stuffit, you are asked where you want to save “unzipped” files.

Formats

18 What formats does Bookshare use?

Bookshare uses the following formats:

  • DAISY (Digital Accessible Information System) is the digital talking book standard. The ANSI/NISO Z39.86 Specifications for the Digital Talking Book enable text-based navigation to levels such as chapters, pages, and paragraphs. All Bookshare books are made available in the DAISY format. Presently, Bookshare DAISY files contain only text, no audio.

    Once delivered to the user's PC, the electronic text in the DAISY file can be spoken to the user using synthetic speech: a computer-generated voice that speaks the text aloud. This can be done by specialized software that knows how to speak the text. There is a range of different voice synthesizers available, each with its own voice characteristics. DAISY players also enable navigation by keyboard commands and text-to-speech.

    Bookshare offers two free DAISY readers with membership:

  • BRF (Digital Braille) - All copyrighted Bookshare books are available in the ".brf" format. The BRF format on Bookshare allows Members to download books in contracted or uncontracted braille. Members select the format they prefer in account preferences. The files can be used with common braille reading devices or braille printers.

    The Bookshare software produces these documents automatically from the submitted book format. While of good quality, the output is never as good as braille that has been proofread by a knowledgeable human editor/transcriber.

  • HTML (Hyper-Text Markup Language) is the standard for Internet documents.
    Freely distributable titles (e.g. public domain or Creative Commons licensed) are available for download in this format.
  • TXT (ASCII) files are unformatted text files. This is the kind of file that would come out of Notepad or other text editors. Freely distributable titles (e.g. public domain or Creative Commons licensed) are available for download in this format.

19 What are DAISY and BRF?

DAISY and BRF are digital formats for accessible materials. NISO/DAISY 3 is the global digital talking book standard, supported by many leading libraries, assistive technology software and hardware manufacturers worldwide that serve those with disabilities. It provides the capability to distribute books digitally with powerful indexing and bookmarking to easily move quickly from one part of a book to another.

For Members who wish to listen to the books, DAISY book reading software with built in text-to-speech is included with membership. As a format, DAISY supports delivering books that include both digital text and recorded human speech. A DAISY document is not required to have both of these components, but the standard provides a way to deliver both. You can find out more about the DAISY consortium at www.daisy.org.

The BRF format is the standard contracted or uncontracted braille selected through account preferences. BRF files may be used to produce hard copy (embossed) braille or read with a refreshable braille display.

20 Why don’t you offer all of your books, newspapers and magazines in the HTML format?

Only Bookshare’s freely distributable material (e.g. public domain or Creative Commons licensed) is available for download in HTML format. Bookshare’s DAISY format XML books can be saved with an HTML extension, which makes some web browsers display the content more accessibly. Some Bookshare Members who use screen readers prefer to listen to and navigate Bookshare books in their favorite web browser. Also, Members using a Macintosh computer without access to other software can read Bookshare DAISY XML books in their browser if they save the DAISY book with an HTML extension.

21 I've heard that the DAISY book format contains actual recorded human speech. Why don’t Bookshare books seem to have it?

Some DAISY books have human narration, and many do not. Bookshare books only contain digital text.

DAISY format is an extremely flexible file format that permits both digital audio (such as recorded human speech) and digital text (that can be read with any of the available text-to-speech engines and synthesized voices). Digital text can be synchronized visually with audio, for simultaneous reading and hearing a word read out loud using one of the many very high quality voices. The text in Bookshare DAISY files can also be enlarged for people with low vision, as well as being supported by most Braille displays. These differences give readers with print disabilities choices over how they want to read books. Bookshare has chosen to produce DAISY digital text for the benefits of rapid production of accessible books, so that Members can obtain accessible books as quickly as possible. An additional consideration is that DAISY digital recorded audio files require up to several hundred megabytes of disk space which would make downloading slower.

Reading Tools

22 How do I read a book that is in the DAISY format?

The DAISY format is the digital talking book standard. You can easily read a DAISY book with Victor Reader Soft Bookshare Edition or READ:OutLoud Bookshare Edition, both of which are provided free with your membership. Almost all access technology products that support text reading can read Bookshare’s DAISY books. It is also possible to open Bookshare files in leading web browsers like Internet Explorer and Firefox, and use a screen reader and/or screen magnifier to read the text.

23 How do I download the complimentary DAISY reader software?

First, log in to the Bookshare website with your username and password. Then visit the Reading Tools page for the download links for:

  • Victor Reader Soft Bookshare Edition
  • READ:OutLoud Bookshare Edition

24 Does the free DAISY software work with RFB&D books and DAISY from other sources?

No. The free software can only read Bookshare content. You can purchase an unrestricted version of the Victor Reader Soft from RFB&D or other distributors. You can purchase an unrestricted version of READ:OutLoud from Don Johnston www.donjohnston.com.

25 Do Bookshare books work on the Victor Reader Wave?

Bookshare books are DAISY text only and cannot be read on audio players such as the Victor Reader Wave. Bookshare books do work on players that include synthetic speech such as the Victor Stream or the ClassMate.

26 What is the advantage of Bookshare over something like Kurzweil or Wynn?

They offer complementary benefits. Kurzweil and WYNN are software applications that students and other individuals can use to read Bookshare books in the DAISY format, as well as scan their own books. If your book is already in Bookshare, you can download it and read it with either Kurzweil or WYNN. But, if you need an assignment or article scanned, or if the book you need isn’t in Bookshare, Kurzweil and WYNN offer a great way to scan it in. If it’s a book, please contribute that scanned book to Bookshare so other people can benefit from your efforts.

27 Can a student make notes within the DAISY file?

Depending on what you use to read the book, note taking may be possible. Bookshare’s complimentary copies of both Victor Reader Soft Bookshare Edition and READ:OutLoud Bookshare Edition have note taking features which allow you to insert your own text and move from note to note.

28 Can students who prove a disability download the complimentary software onto their personal computers?

Yes, the free software that comes with Bookshare membership can be installed on all computers a Member uses to read the books, including a personal computer at home. Both of these tools are DAISY readers:

  • Victor Reader Soft Bookshare Edition
  • READ:OutLoud Bookshare Edition

To download the software, log in to the Bookshare website and visit the Reading Tools page.

29 Have you worked in partnership with the software companies Next-up and Natural Soft which have wonderful screen readers and MP3 converters?

Bookshare supports any access technology vendor in working with Bookshare books. Regarding voices, Bookshare DAISY books are compatible just about every synthetic speech product using just about every voice. To date, schools have been using the MP3 converter of their choice to convert Bookshare books.

30 What software do you recommend for converting to MP3 format?

There are many applications that have the capability to convert Bookshare DAISY text into audio for use on MP3 players, using text-to-speech synthesizers. However, the two products that Bookshare is familiar with and can recommend are:

  • Kurzweil 1000
    Kurzweil Educational Systems
    www.kurzweiledu.com
    800-894-5374
  • Open Book
    Freedom Scientific
    www.freedomscientific.com
    800-444-4443

If you’re just interested in the MP3 conversion functionality, you can download TextAloud, a very affordable application from NextUp.com.

31 I have a Mac computer. Do I just have to use my computer's built-in text-to-speech program to hear the text?

Yes. Unless you have Kurzweil 3000 or other software capable of reading Bookshare DAISY text. You can read Bookshare books in your Mac web browser and use VoiceOver to speak the text aloud.

32 If we have a student who uses Kurzweil 1000, can we get a book already downloaded into that program?

Yes. Kurzweil 1000 has an online search feature that allows the user to search the Bookshare library and open Bookshare books without leaving the Kurzweil program. The Kurzweil 3000 doesn’t currently have the online book search feature.

33 What about the future for Mac computer users, do you plan to offer a DAISY reader? Is the free Victor Reader software program both MAC and PC?

Currently, Victor Reader Soft Bookshare Edition and READ:Outloud Bookshare Edition are only available for PCs. In 2009, there will be Mac versions of both READ:Outloud Bookshare Edition from Don Johnston and Victor Reader Soft Bookshare Edition from Humanware.

However, the Mac version of the Kurzweil 3000 can read the Bookshare files saved with an HTML extension. For more information, please visit: www.kurzweiledu.com.

34 What about Mac access software?

The latest Macintosh operating system, Leopard (OSX 10.5) features a built-in screen reader called VoiceOver. Members without other DAISY software can use VoiceOver and Safari to read Bookshare’s files saved with an HTML extension.

Miscellaneous

35 I have trouble reading the Bookshare website screen. Can I change the colors or font sizes?

This new website has what is known as a “liquid layout.” With a simple keystroke, “CTRL +” you can increase the size of the text and images on your screen to a level that is comfortable for you. If you want to just increase the font size, without changing the images, most web browsers, such as Internet Explorer, provide this capability. Usually, you can find commands for doing in the View menu. You can set the foreground and background color as well as font size to make it easier for you to read the screen.

36 Are there any other languages besides Spanish?

Spanish and English are the primary languages available at this time, and you can search for books by language. The Bookshare library does contain some books in other languages, but they are not searchable by language at this time. Bookshare plans to expand to other languages in the future.

37 As a braille transcriber, can we download a book and emboss it ourselves?

Yes, Bookshare books can be opened in Braille2000, into Duxbury or MegaDots and embossed. Each book needs to be downloaded by an authorized Sponsor and associated with an individual student. Schools have the option to download the books and provide them to transcribers, or may add transcribers as Sponsors and permit them to download books for specific students.

38 What format does Bookshare want in a scanned book that is submitted to Bookshare?

The current preferred format is RTF (Rich Text Format). Bookshare has extensive volunteer documentation on how to prepare high quality materials that will be suitable for adding to the Bookshare library. Learn more about volunteering.

39 Once a book is downloaded, can it be burned to a CD?

Yes. You can copy Bookshare books to other media for the purposes of transferring the book to the qualified Member selected when the book is downloaded. While the media containing the books may change, books must stay in the possession of the qualified Member.

40 What does it mean when I see a title marked as "pending" that can't be downloaded?

A pending title is a book or periodical that has been requested for the Bookshare collection but which we don't have yet. These might be found, for instance, in one of our special collection lists where we want to include a full list of titles for a particular award, even if we don't have each book in our collection.

41 There is a user preference to provide lower quality image downloads. Why would I want lower quality images?

Many applications, including Read Out Loud, do not have the resources to render large textbooks with high quality images. This setting gives you textbooks with lower quality images that will load in most DAISY readers.

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