OverDrive

Library App testing discussion for the SDPP-D Grant projects

Re: Criteria for assessing library reading applications

Post by
rmarion
»
Tue Oct 09, 2018 12:03 pm
I did install overdrive, but am having issues with opening files. Also, are we supposed to also install Libby as Over Drive is suggesting? I installed over drive on my iPad currently. I am just going to try opening overdrive files on the PC.
rmarion
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Overdrive on Windows 10

Post by
Danny
»
Tue Oct 09, 2018 1:15 pm
I have Overdrive installed on my Windows 10 PC. Installation was easy, but signing in with my library card was a nightmare. The process of finding my local library made the computer run extremely slow, and the only way to interact with the page was to use the mouse navigation options with NVDA. I have finally signed in, but when I searched to add a library, I was presented with a list of 43 numeric Overdrive options in various countries, and an untitled button that didn't appear to do anything.

I was at last able to select a library, by switching back to traditional navigation to search for it, then select and add it with the mouse. Now that it is set up, the interface looks promising.

I did also install Libby while I was on the Microsoft Store, but haven't opened it yet.
Danny
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Re: OverDrive on Windows 10

Post by
Daniella.LP
»
Tue Oct 09, 2018 4:40 pm
We will be testing Libby separately, likely in two weeks. So if you have not installed Libby yet, please ignore that Overdrive suggestion.

If you could also try installing Overdrive in the Mac, it would be very helpful as well.


rmarion wrote: Tue Oct 09, 2018 12:03 pm I did install overdrive, but am having issues with opening files. Also, are we supposed to also install Libby as Over Drive is suggesting? I installed over drive on my iPad currently. I am just going to try opening overdrive files on the PC.
Daniella.LP
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OverDrive for Mac

Post by
rmarion
»
Wed Oct 10, 2018 8:13 am
Hello:

I actually have tried installing overdrive on the mac yesterday. There is no overdrive app in the Mac app store, and the overdrive website suggests using adobe digital editions. I will try this today and report back later.
rmarion
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Adobe Digital Editions

Post by
Danny
»
Wed Oct 10, 2018 8:24 am
I just tried downloading a book with Overdrive on Windows, and opening it up in Adobe Digital Editions. For me, this made for a far better reading experience. Again, it's kind of a hack - the idea is to find what works well in Overdrive and what doesn't - but ADE is incredibly responsive and easy to use.

Just a thought I had last night: Would there be any benefit in writing a guide for others new to Overdrive, giving tips on installation, setup and use? Until the vendor starts implementing suggested changes, it could help other patrons use the software as-is today.
Danny
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Re: Adobe Digital Editions

Post by
rmarion
»
Wed Oct 10, 2018 8:33 am
I think that might be useful. However, if overdrive is able to make changes to their platform, that would be better. But even with that, a easy to understand user guide would be good.

It is strange that on the Mac side there appears to be no overdrive app. The instructions on their website indicate that you can attempt downloading the book from your library and it may open within your browser. So I am wondering if it does install an overdrive plugin instead of using an actual app. But it did appear that using Adobe digital editions was the preferred method on a mac computer.
rmarion
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Overdrive on Windows

Post by
Danny
»
Wed Oct 10, 2018 10:22 am
I agree, Richard. The hope here is that Overdrive will amend their application to make it more accessible. However, I worry that more effort is being put into Libby now, which may mean that Overdrive will fall further and further behind. Just a guess.

Interestingly, I found a document on Overdrive's Help section giving a quick overview on using Overdrive with accessibility technology, where they strongly recommended using ADE to read eBooks instead of Overdrive. However, for audiobooks, they posted a list of keyboard shortcuts that should be quite helpful for using their app. The link to the shortcuts for Windows is below.

https://help.overdrive.com/customer/por ... es/1481563

I'm bewildered that a version of Overdrive isn't available for the Mac. Even on the help page I was reading just this morning, they also post keyboard shortcuts for the Mac edition. Perhaps it never got developed, or maybe it's been taken down for some reason? I even found the Windows edition on the Microsoft Store well mired in recommendations for Libby. "Why get Overdrive, when you can get Libby instead?" :)

I've noticed that the library site opened by Overdrive is different than the regular site for the local library. Mine is

https://virl.overdrive.com/

Perhaps it would work to serf such a site for your local library, Richard, then feed the .acsm file to ADE for reading. Just a thought.
Danny
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Re: OverDrive on Windows

Post by
rmarion
»
Wed Oct 10, 2018 10:33 am
I did find the actual overdrive section for my library. It was when I tried to find the overdrive app for the Mac I found the info suggesting to read overdrive books with ADE. Some accessibility challenges with my local library website are also creating some minor delays.
rmarion
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Re: OverDrive for Mac

Post by
rmarion
»
Wed Oct 10, 2018 11:22 am
So on the Mac, to read OverDrive eBooks, it is a browser plugin. When you click the link for a book in your library, you are presented with 2 options if you have the book checked out. 1 is to read the book with your browser, or download it to read with ADE. This is the case with my local library. There is a desktop application for OverDrive Media though. Upon first test, I was able to open my book that I checked out but I think I need to flip each page as I read the book. Just using the command to read the entire document only read the screen that appeared to be visible.
rmarion
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OverDrive for Windows

Post by
Karoline
»
Wed Oct 10, 2018 11:35 am
Installing Over Drive on Windows 10 was easy. However, using JAWS 18, was completely new group reviewed unhelpful. NVDAU is a little bit better at reading elements on the page. I will try to log in and download a book.
Karoline
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