Ever wish you could turn student-created ePub files into narrated audio books? Or make any ePub into an audio book? You can on your Windows 10 computer, by taking advantage of the Freda ebook’s built-in audio reader. Before we go through the process, let’s take a moment to revisit how you can create an ePub-formatted ebook for free.
Creating ePub Formatted eBooks
使用Google Docs作为我共享的EPUB形式的电子书的简单工具此博客条目。EPUBis the most widely-supported file format for publishing accessible documents and digital books, allowing people to consume long-form content in their preferred apps on a diverse range of screen sizes and devices, including smartphones, tablets, and ereaders.
方便作者、出版商和academic institutions to create works that can be consumed digitally, they now offer the ability to export Google Docs files as EPUB publications. Simply go to the File menu > Download as > EPUB Publication (.epub) (源). Now that you know how to use Google Docs as an ePub creation tool, we’re ready for the fun stuff.
获取Windows 10的免费电子书阅读器: You can use theFreda app on Windows 10to read any non-digital rights management (DRM) ePub ebook. Free Reader, or Freda for short, provides a wide variety of options that include reading EPUB books, changing type size, font, spacing, margins, layout and color scheme, along with being able to customize the controls and gestures. You can also add bookmarks along with highlighting and annotating sections of text. The application allows you to search for words or phrases within a book, and to search online for definitions, translations (great for those wanting to learn a second language), and information related to any text element you may select.
免费的电子书阅读器和录音机
首先,将您的Google Doc文件保存为计算机上的EPUB文件。然后,使用Freda电子书阅读器打开文件。文件打开后,让弗雷达向您读取文件。
When you first ask Freda to read an ebook to you, you will see the following. You will want to choose READ ALOUD:
您可以选择几种声音(Microsoft David,Zira或Mark)。
Try out the different voices to see which you prefer. Further below, I will share how you can get additional voices for your Microsoft installation.
我应该使用什么录音机?
Use大胆。Per their website, “It is a free, easy-to-use, multi-track audio editor and recorder for Windows, Mac OS X, GNU/Linux and other operating systems. The interface is translated into many languages. You can use Audacity to record live audio, record computer playback on any Windows Vista or later machine, and edit sound files.”
The next question to consider is how to record Freda reading the ebook to you. To accomplish that, you’ll need to get the free, open source audio editorAudacity。Once you have it installed on your Windows 10 computer, you will need toadjust some of its settingsby putting in the preferences as shown below:
Make sure to change the Recording settings to ENABLE “Sound Activated Recording.” That way, you can turn on Audacity and have it record once you turn on Freda to read aloud.
This will allow you to record audio from your Windows 10 computer as the Freda ebook reader reads the book aloud to you. Here’s what that looks like:
Listen to Microsoft David read About Carroll。
Wait, what if I have a PDF that I want read aloud?
If you have a PDF document that needs to be read, find your way to theNatural Readers website。在无限的阅读时间内使用他们的免费声音,您可以免费向您阅读PDF。如上图所示,请使用Audacity记录PDF书籍的自然读者阅读的音频。
向Windows 10添加更多声音
Are Microsoft’s voices for David, Zira, and/or Mark not getting it done for you? There are many more you can add on, including in other languages. Here’s a short list:
Text-to-Speech languages and voices available in Windows
Language (Region) | Windows 10和Windows 8.1 | Windows 8 | 姓名 | Gender |
---|---|---|---|---|
中文(香港) | Y | N | Tracy | 女性 |
Chinese (Taiwan) | Y | Y | Hanhan | 女性 |
中文(中华人民共和国) | Y | Y | Huihui | 女性 |
English (United States) | Y | Y | Zira | 女性 |
English (United States) | Y | Y | David | Male |
English (Great Britain) | Y | Y | 榛 | 女性 |
French (France) | Y | Y | Hortense | 女性 |
German (Germany) | Y | Y | Hedda | 女性 |
Italian (Italy) | Y | N | Elsa | 女性 |
Japanese (Japan) | Y | Y | Haruka | 女性 |
Korean (Korea) | Y | Y | Heami | 女性 |
Polish (Poland) | Y | N | 宝琳娜 | 女性 |
Portuguese (Brazil) | Y | N | 玛丽亚 | 女性 |
Russian (Russia) | Y | N | Irina | 女性 |
西班牙语(墨西哥) | Y | N | Sabina | 女性 |
Spanish (Spain) | Y | Y | Helena | 女性 |
How to Add a Voice
Want to add more languages and voices? You canfollow the steps outlined on this Microsoft Help page。One easy way to get started involves you going to your Windows 10 Start button (the Windows flag icon in the bottom left-hand corner of your screen), then going to Settings (represented by the gear icon). SelectTime & Language。然后,转到区域和语言添加一种语言(例如西班牙语),然后转到语音以选择您的默认语音。Microsoft向您的计算机添加了一种语言,可能会有略有延迟。在我的表面书上,该过程大约需要五到十分钟。速度可能取决于您的互联网连接。
Final Tips for Moving from Google Docs to Audio Book
以下是一些最终提示,请先牢记在开始录制之前。弗雷达电子书音频读取器如果检测到没有人在那里,它将关闭自己。因此,请务必执行以下操作:
- Make sure to turn off your screensaver.
- Disable your power off for display (it’s OK if you turn off a computer monitor), hard drive, or internet connection. This will have the same effect as telling Freda that you’re not there listening and it will shut down.
- Press the RECORD button in Audacity before switching over to Freda to tell it to start the read aloud.
你可以continue to use your computer, just be sure not to play any other audio or it will be recorded. If you don’t want to listen to the audio read aloud while you are working, you can turn off your speaker using the Volume Mixer.
Enjoy!