Literacy Bridge
Audio Content Manager
We have developed a content management application called Audio Content Manager that enables our partner organizations to manage their recordings on a computer. Similar to iTunes, you can think of this application like the computer’s main interface to the Talking Book.
Our partners first record their messages and then import the audio files from a variety of formats (such as .wav, .mp3, and so on) into the Audio Content Manager. They can then organize recordings by language and category (e.g. “livestock diseases” or “malaria prevention”) and decide which recordings should be loaded onto each Talking Book they own. This enables our partners to customize the devices with the specific messages they want to share in the appropriate language.
After getting a Talking Book back from the field, our partners simply connect the device to their computer and usage statistics from each recording are automatically synched with their computer for them to review. Audio Content Manager enables them to see meaningful information (such as play count and a user’s rating) for each Talking Book. This information helps them know which recordings are most popular and which recordings they should try to improve.
Our development team has created Audio Content Manager using open source software. This application uses Open Source libraries and implements open standards, such as Dublin Core metadata fields and the DAISY DTB (Digital Talking Book) specification. DAISY DTB is a widely accepted standard for encoding audio books for visually impaired people. If you are a software developer who would like to help with this work, see our volunteer site for information about how to join our development team.