In as much as the audio book phenomenon isn't too new, there are still lots of people that don't know certain things about it.

I must confess that I was also ignorant about certain aspects of audio books myself, especially [1] download audio books!

When I first discovered audio books, I had so many questions, and nobody was there to answer them. Today I can hear a lot of people asking the same questions.

You may also have the same questions I had, and you really want to find the answers.

If yes, then below are some of these questions and their answers:

And what is an audio book?As I'm sure you have already worked out yourself, and audiobook is just a book, but it is in an audio format.So, instead of receiving a normal book in the post, you will get a CD, cassette or mp3 version of the book. Many of the online stores will also allow you to purchase downloadable audio books, that you can download straight to your PC.

What formats do audio books come in?  Audio books come in normal cassette formats, CD formats and MP3 formats which can be played on cassette players, cd players or MP3 players respectively.

What is an MP3 audio book?Although it sounds a little confusing, mp3 is just a method of compression to makes the files a lot smaller so that they don't take up as much space as CDs and cassettes.

I hear you asking, but just how can mp3 audio books be played? MP3 audio books can be played on any new version of CD players that support the MP3 technology - mostly those that can accept a 4.75 diameter disk.

They an also be played on any PC that has the Microsoft's Media Player or other related software.

What is an unabridged [2] audio book?  An unabridged audio book is one that was narrated word for word. In audio books of this type, the book is read from cover to cover, nothing is left out.It is narrated word-for-word, exactly the same content as what is in the printed book.

I have seen listings for abridged audio books, what does this mean?An audio book that has been abridged means that certain parts of the book have been removed to shorten it - so it doesn't contain the exact word for word narration that the original book has.

I've seen listings for dramatized audio books, what are these?  A dramatized audio book, as the name implies, is a dramatized "play-life" version of the printed book, with usual full cast, music and sound effects.

Are there any stores online where audio books can be purchased? There are many audio book stores on the Internet. Some of them are SpokenNetwork.com, Amazon.com, BarnesAndNobles.com,
and Talking-Book-Store.com, to mention a few.

Now, I hear you asking, where exactly can I purchase the audiobook that I need on the Internet? You can visit any of the major audio book stores and search for the particular title you need.

An excellent source that I have found for audio book downloads is Spoken Network. You can find them at:

www.spokennetwork.com?cam=ama0010