Great example of 1440×1080 (4:3) on YouTube

Despite the 16:9 thumbnail, the above video’s YouTube stats indicate that it is a 1440×1080. When you play it, you’ll see that it’s 4:3.

Wonderful example of 4:3 (1440×1080) on a 1920×1080 canvas on YouTube

The above video has a Norman Lear Effect logo in the canvas, in the pillarbox.

Feasibility of getting a deliverable file at 4:3 (1440×1080) w/square pixels

As I have explained, there are many advantages and disadvantages of delivering either 4:3 content on top of a wider 1920×1080 canvas with pillarbox… versus delivering a pure 4:3 (1440×1080) file with square pixels, depending upon the delivery venue. If you would like to use a pure 4:3 (1440×1080) square pixel file, hopefully your software will be able to fulfill your wish and deliver it properly, without ruining it.  However, if your software (like many) won’t give you that and you are forced to create an intermediary file with 4:3 content on top of a wider 1920×1080 canvas, then you may consider using the Apple Photos app on macOS to crop that intermediary video file properly and as desired. At first, it might seem wrong to do this with the Apple Photos app on macOS for video files, but Gary from MacMostVideo will prove that it is quite correct with the following video!

At 3:26 of the above video, you will see that there is even a 4:3 cropping preset in Apple Photos for macOS to facilitate this process. (Gary mentions the square cropping preset, but the 4:3 cropping preset is also visible there.) If you click on the 4:3 cropping preset, your cropping tool will be locked to that aspect ratio to make it extremely simple.

If you know of any similar app that does true video cropping for Linux or Windows (truly changing the dimensions), please comment its name below this article.

Related articles

• Capture from VHS to 59.94p or 50p: best practices & goals

• Review: Canopus/Grass Valley ADVC110 analog to digital converter with micro-TBC to capture VHS and other analog videotapes

• First look: Dub Optimiser converter to extract Y/C video from U-Matic decks with dub output

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In English:

• Email bulletins, bulletins.AllanTepper.com
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En castellano:

• Boletines por correo electrónico, boletines.AllanTepper.com
• En Telegram, t.me/boletinesdeAllan
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Most of my current books are at books.AllanTepper.com, and also visit AllanTepper.com and radio.AllanTepper.com.

FTC disclosure

RØDE has not paid for this article. RØDE has sent Allan Tépper units for review. Some of the manufacturers listed above have contracted Tépper and/or TecnoTur LLC to carry out consulting and/or translations/localizations/transcreations. So far, none of the manufacturers listed above is/are sponsors of the TecnoTur, BeyondPodcasting, CapicúaFM or TuSaludSecreta programs, although they are welcome to do so, and some are, may be (or may have been) sponsors of ProVideo Coalition magazine. Some links to third parties listed in this article and/or on this web page may indirectly benefit TecnoTur LLC via affiliate programs. Allan Tépper’s opinions are his own. Allan Tépper is not liable for misuse or misunderstanding of information he shares.

Both Blackmagic Design and TecnoTur have announced their 2024 holiday discounts. First I’ll share those from Blackmagic Design, followed by those from TecnoTur. Blackmagic just announced a limited time offer of 20% off DaVinci Resolve Studio, DaVinci Resolve Micro Color Panel, DaVinci Resolve Micro Panel and Fairlight Desktop Console. The new special prices follow:

• DaVinci Resolve Studio was US$295; now US$235
• DaVinci Resolve Micro Color Panel was US$509; now US$395
• DaVinci Resolve Micro Panel was US$859; now US$665
• Fairlight Desktop Console was US$3,055; now US$2,445

Additionally, there is a limited time offer to receive a free Blackmagic Cloud Pod when you buy a Blackmagic Cloud Store 20TB or Blackmagic Cloud Store Mini 8TB.

These offers are available for a limited time only. Learn more about DaVinci Resolve at www.blackmagicdesign.com/products/davinciresolve and Blackmagic Cloud Store at www.blackmagicdesign.com/products/blackmagiccloudstore.

TecnoTur’s 33% palindromic offer is as follows:

The following 33% discounts apply to most TecnoTur web hosting plans, both new orders and renewals, including:

• Solo
• Palindromic
• Podcasting/Radio broadcasting (CombinedHosting)
• Book Portal (promotion, links and direct sales with automatic download)

as well as the following accessories:

• Maintenance
• Website migration

The 33% discount cannot be combined with any other discount. It is not valid for domains or Membership plans. The discount code is Gratitude2024 (all together, without any space) for both new orders and renewals.

I wish you Happy Thanksgiving. For more information, visit TecnoTur.LLC.

About the pending price increase

TecnoTur has not adjusted its hosting or maintenance prices for more than a decade, but starting January 1, 2025, we will have to do so. On that day, the new information will be posted on the website. However, all current contracts (closed and paid before that day) will be honored at the current price. If you want to save even more, renew now and do so with the Thanksgiving discount.

(Re-)Subscribe for upcoming articles, reviews, radio shows, books and seminars/webinars

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In English:

• Email bulletins, bulletins.AllanTepper.com
• In Telegram, t.me/TecnoTurBulletins
• Twitter (bilingual), AllanLTepper

En castellano:

• Boletines por correo electrónico, boletines.AllanTepper.com
• En Telegram, t.me/boletinesdeAllan
• Twitter (bilingüe), AllanLTepper

Most of my current books are at books.AllanTepper.com, and also visit AllanTepper.com and radio.AllanTepper.com.

FTC disclosure

Blackmagic has not paid for this article. Blackmagic has sent Allan Tépper units for review. Allan Tépper is the director of TecnoTur.LLC. Some of the manufacturers listed above have contracted Tépper and/or TecnoTur LLC to carry out consulting and/or translations/localizations/transcreations. So far, none of the manufacturers listed above is/are sponsors of the TecnoTur, BeyondPodcasting, CapicúaFM or TuSaludSecreta programs, although they are welcome to do so, and some are, may be (or may have been) sponsors of ProVideo Coalition magazine. Some links to third parties listed in this article and/or on this web page may indirectly benefit TecnoTur LLC via affiliate programs. Allan Tépper’s opinions are his own. Allan Tépper is not liable for misuse or misunderstanding of information he shares.

Software compatibility to connect & sync with your computer

For all of the many reasons I covered in my recent article Audiobook distribution strategy in 2024 + why M4B is ideal for direct sales, they should really be in M4B format, not in any format usually used for music files. This will facilitate the iPod knowing that it should be classified as an audiobook, not music, and therefore have it in the proper section.

On the macOS platform, after Apple discontinued the macOS iTunes app in favor of dedicated apps for different functions several years ago, the connection and synchronization of classic iPods was delegated to the Finder. During my research for this article, I received several loaned iPod units (acknowledgements are ahead) and purchased one myself. I discovered that the generation 4 and generation 5 are both thankfully still supported by the Finder in macOS Sonoma 14.6.1, as is the iPod Nano 7th generation. In all cases, it informed me that the iPods were already up to date in terms of software/firmware and offered to sync audiobooks to those models of iPods. It successfully synchronized all of the non-DRM audiobooks and some DRM-protected audiobooks (those which were purchased years ago from the iTunes Store and claimed on my Mac Mini M1). The DRM-protected audiobooks from Audible did not sync to the iPods until after being legally liberated by the free Libation app (reviewed here). The non-DRM audiobooks from Libro.fm synced without any issue, except those which were encoded (by Libro.fm) with the HE-AAC códec with M4B. (In addition to selling all audiobooks DRM-free, Libro.fm also supports independent brick & mortar bookstores, chosen by you, the purchaser.) However, all of the audiobooks I had personally encoded with the HE-AAC códec for author clients with M4B did synchronize and played fine on these three iPods. There must be some minute detail between my encoding and Libro.fm’s encoding to cause this subtle difference. (I am open to talk if Libro.fm wants to know how I achieved it.)

On the Windows platform, I did not do any personal testing. However, my research indicates that Apple still hasn’t completely retired the ancient iTunes app for Windows since Apple still hasn’t replaced all of its functions with dedicated Windows apps, as it did for macOS several years ago.

An alternative app to use on Windows or Mac if you ever find that the Apple apps no longer support your iPod (or, if in the future the Apple support for iPods ceases to exist) is a very highly rated app called WALTR PRO. WALTR PRO is available both for macOS and Windows. Even though the website’s headline no longer mentions iPods, the WALTR PRO app indeed supports them, as covered later in its websites and its videos. There is a free trial. The developer of WALTR PRO agrees with me about the benefits of using the M4B format for audiobook files and has published so on its website.

Behavior of the iPods I tested with audiobooks

Although all of the three models of iPods I tested support audiobooks and have their own section for them, that section is hidden until you activate Audiobooks in the settings. In the case of the iPod Nano 7th generation (the only classic iPod to include a touchscreen to my knowledge), it was easy to relocate the Audiobooks (Audiolibros) icon from the last page to the first page.

The iPod Nano 7th generation and the iPod 5th generation were capable of displaying the audiobooks’ cover art and the metadata, i.e. the audiobook title and the chapter title. The iPod 4th generation was incapable of displaying the cover art of any of the audiobooks, but the other metadata was shown. The navigation was fine with all of the tested iPods. This was the case with all of the audiobooks: the ones I had encoded myself for clients, the compatible DRM-free ones from Libro.fm and the liberated ones from Audible (thanks to Libation).

Although I personally don’t use any bluetooth audio headphones, it is important to point out that the iPod Nano 7th generation is the only classic iPod to offer this option as a standard feature, to my knowledge. (There are kits which add the bluetooth capability to older classic iPods.)

Explanation about the main image

The above image shows an iPod 5th generation on the left, followed by an iPhone 12 Mini in the center (for size reference only) and an iPod Nano 7th generation on the right. Even though the iPod 5th generation is larger, it has a much lower screen-to-body ratio than the much smaller iPod Nano 7th generation on the right. As a result, the iPod Nano 7th generation does a much better job displaying the audiobook’s cover art. The higher screen-to-body ratio on the iPod Nano 7th edition is possible since it has a touchscreen, which allows the elimination of the mechanical controls used on older models. Even though the iPod Touch Nano 7th edition has icons which can be repositioned via the touchscreen, it does not run any version of iOS and cannot download apps.

The most practical classic iPod for audiobook consumption

In my opinion, the most practical classic iPod for audiobook consumption is the iPod Nano 7th generation, after moving the Audiobook (Audiolibro) icon to the main screen. That’s because of the smaller size, larger screen to body ratio, flash memory (as opposed to mechanical, spinning drives) and better display of the audiobook cover art.

NOTE: Even though the iPod Nano 7th generation uses a Lightning connector (as opposed to the 30-pin connector used on other classic iPods), there are adapters to use the iPod Nano 7th generation to allow using the iPod Nano 7th generation with the docking stations and devices covered ahead.

Docking stations and devices for classic IPods

Many devices exist on the new and used market to dock any of the mentioned classic iPods to hear them with loudspeakers. Here are a few examples:

Above is the Apple Universal Dock. It has a 3.5 mm stereo TRS line output for connecting to powered speakers, an IR (infrared) receiver for use with a wireless remote control (included with the Apple Universal Dock), a 30-pin input for connection to a charger (not included).

Above is the Apple Hi-Fi, a discontinued speaker system that was developed and manufactured by Apple Inc. It was released on February 28, 2006, for use with any iPod digital music player. The iPod Hi-Fi retailed at the US Apple Store for US$349 until its discontinuation on September 5, 2007. They are still available in the used market starting at about US$75.

According to Jeff Taylor of Beaker Films (and one of the two friends who lent me an iPod for this testing and research):

«The Apple Hi-Fi sounds great, has plenty of low-end and can get very loud. It can run on 4 D batteries, but even without them, it’s very heavy. I bought it for playback of a song during a music video shoot for ESPN.»

Above is the Bose SoundDock Series II Speaker Dock. Although discontinued by Bose Corporation in 2017, it is still available as used from about US$35 including a remote control. Despite an intensely compelling «urban legend», there is apparently no relationship between Bose Corporation (the audio company) and the internationally famous singer, composer, musician and actor Miguel Bosé, who is known to be a Spaniard, but was actually born in Panamá and has combined Colombian, Italian, Panamanian and Spanish nationalities. However, the «urban legend» might be true

Why the classic IPods are better for audiobooks than other standalone DAPs

In this section, I will explain why classic IPods are better for audiobook consumption than other dedicated standalone DAPs (digital audio players) which are on the market, i.e. those which are not Android devices. So far, all of the other dedicated standalone DAPs I have researched (those which are not Android devices) are incapable of playing M4B files. If you have read the benefits of the M4B format as covered earlier in this article and in more detail in Audiobook distribution strategy in 2024 + why M4B is ideal for direct sales, you now know why the classic iPods are in a class by themselves.

Acknowledgements

• Thanks to professional voice talent CC Limardo for lending me the iPod 5th generation for testing and research for this article.
• Thanks to Jeff Taylor of Beaker Films for lending me the iPod 4th generation for testing and research for this article.
• Thanks to Camila Vela for photographing the main image for this article.
• Thanks to Andreína Ascanio Toro for retouching the main image for this article.

Related articles

• Escuchalibros.com is created to handle the audiobook production explosion

• Review: Audiobook Builder, an ideal authoring tool for audiobooks for direct distribution

• Apple Books app: inconsistent among formats & platforms

• Audiobook distribution strategy in 2024 + why M4B is ideal for direct sales

• Review: Libation, to remove DRM from Audible files legally

Lee este artículo en buen castellano

El consumo de audiolibros durante el renacimiento del iPod

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Most of my current books are at books.AllanTepper.com, and also visit AllanTepper.com and radio.AllanTepper.com.

FTC disclosure

Allan Tépper paid the official price for the iPad Nano 7th generation from Elite Obsolete Electronics. None of the companies listed in this article is paying for this article. Some of the manufacturers listed above have contracted Tépper and/or TecnoTur LLC to carry out consulting and/or translations/localizations/transcreations. So far, none of the manufacturers listed above is/are sponsors of the TecnoTur, BeyondPodcasting, CapicúaFM or TuSaludSecreta programs, although they are welcome to do so, and some are, may be (or may have been) sponsors of ProVideo Coalition magazine. Some links to third parties listed in this article and/or on this web page may indirectly benefit TecnoTur LLC via affiliate programs. Allan Tépper’s opinions are his own. Allan Tépper is not liable for misuse or misunderstanding of information he shares.

Without requesting them, I was recently awarded two different certificates by Eric Hauch, the CEO of Authory. The first certificate (shown above) is for being a «Human Writer», as opposed to being an AI writer). The second certificate (shown below) is for being an «Experience Leader». This means that Eric Hauch and his company, Authory, still cares about having human writers. I have been an extremely happy paid Pro user of the multiple services of Authory for several months now, but I have been delaying publishing a detailed review about it until the company activates a few pending features, some of which I have suggested or requested. Today, I want to thank Eric Hauch and Authory for recognizing the value of human writers. Although I use  various AI tools to improve audio recordings and to substitute a teleprompter, I have not become compelled in any way to have a robot write for me, since writing comes quite naturally to me.

From Authory’s FAQ about these certificates:

What is the Experience Leader Certificate?

The Experience Leader Certificate is a prestigious recognition awarded to individuals whose experience in writing articles is significantly higher than the work experience of an average writer. It is awarded by Authory, a trusted platform that conducts regular audits of millions of articles from thousands of professional content creators.

What does the Experience Leader Certificate signify?

The Experience Leader Certificate signifies that, based on the number of articles written compared to other writers, the recipient has a high level of expertise in writing articles.

 

How can I verify the authenticity of the Experience Leader Certificate?

 

The Experience Leader Certificate is awarded by Authory, a reputable platform that conducts regular audits of millions of articles from thousands of professional content creators. You can verify the authenticity of the certificate by checking the unique certificate link: If it is hosted on authory.com, then the certificate is valid.

Clarification of why I have received two different certificates

I imagine that the reason that I have received two different certificates is because I have purchased two independent Pro accounts from Authory, dividing up my work in Castilian (aka «Spanish») and English. That probably explains the difference in «Number of articles by certificate holder».

Links to the two certificates

• Link to Allan Tépper’s Human Writer certificate, hosted by Authory
• Link to Allan Tépper’s Experience Leader certificate, hosted by Authory

Be sure to be subscribed as indicated below to be notified by my upcoming Authory review and other information.

Lee este artículo en buen castellano

¿Estoy oficialmente certificado como escritor humano? ¡Sí!

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• En Telegram, t.me/boletinesdeAllan
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Most of my current books are at books.AllanTepper.com, and also visit AllanTepper.com and radio.AllanTepper.com.

FTC disclosure

Authory has not paid for this article. Some of the manufacturers listed above have contracted Tépper and/or TecnoTur LLC to carry out consulting and/or translations/localizations/transcreations. So far, none of the manufacturers listed above is/are sponsors of the TecnoTur, BeyondPodcasting, CapicúaFM or TuSaludSecreta programs, although they are welcome to do so, and some are, may be (or may have been) sponsors of ProVideo Coalition magazine. Some links to third parties listed in this article and/or on this web page may indirectly benefit TecnoTur LLC via affiliate programs. Allan Tépper’s opinions are his own. Allan Tépper is not liable for misuse or misunderstanding of information he shares.

Last year, I published Wide book distribution in 2023: My 6 tips. Most of what I covered there is still valid. However, that was a general article about three types of books: print books, ebooks and audiobooks. Today, I am going to expand upon what I suggested there about audiobooks. I’ll explain why many author-clients of my TecnoTur Publishing division have elected to distribute their audiobooks everywhere except Audible/Amazon, how to get 80% royalties with Spotify, and how to get 97% royalties on your audiobooks sold via your dedicated e-commerce website created for you by TecnoTur, get your money within 3 business days, and even get the purchaser’s email address. I’ll also go into details about why the .M4B file format is ideal for your direct audiobook distribution strategy, including the square image and chapter navigation for your direct audiobook purchasers.

A brief history of audiobooks since 1878

Many short, spoken word recordings were sold on cylinders in the late 1800s and early 1900s, however, the round cylinders were limited to about 4 minutes each, making audiobooks impractical. Flat platters increased that to 12 minutes, but this too was impractical for longer works. By the 1930s, close-grooved records increased to 20 minutes (which reminds me of the mini U-Matic tapes for ENG). Although spoken recordings were popular in 33⅓ rpm  vinyl record format for schools and libraries into the early 1970s, the beginning of the modern retail market for audiobooks can be traced to the wide adoption of cassette tapes during the 1970s. In the early 1970s, instructional recordings were among the first commercial products sold on cassette. By the middle of the 1990s, the audio publishing business grew to US$1.5 billion a year in retail value (short-scale billion, U.S. version). In 1996, the Audio Publishers Association established the Audie Awards for audiobooks, which is equivalent to the Oscar for the audiobook industry.

With the spread of the Internet to consumers in the 1990s, faster download speeds with broadband technologies, new compressed audio formats and portable media players, the popularity of audiobooks increased significantly during the late 1990s and 2000s. In 1997, Audible pioneered the world’s first mass-market digital media player, named The Audible Player, which retailed for about US$200, held 2 hours of audio and was touted as being «smaller and lighter than a Walkman», the popular cassette player used at the time. Digital audiobooks were a significant new milestone as they allowed listeners freedom from physical media such as cassettes and CMP3, which required transportation through the postal mail, allowing instead instant download access from online libraries of unlimited size, and portability using comparatively small and lightweight devices. Audible.com was the first to establish a website, in 1998, from which digital audiobooks could be purchased. (Audible was later purchased by Amazon.)

The transition from vinyl, to cassette, to CD, to MP3CD, to digital download has been documented by Audio Publishers Association in annual surveys. The final year that cassettes represented greater than 50% of total market sales was the palindromic year of 2002. Cassettes were replaced by CDs as the dominant medium during 2003–2004. CDs reached a peak of 78% of sales in 2008, then began to decline in favor of digital downloads. The 2012 survey found CDs accounted for «nearly half» of all sales, meaning it was no longer the dominant medium. The APA estimates that audiobook sales in 2015 in digital format increased by 34% over 2014.

The resurgence of audio storytelling is widely attributed to advances in mobile technologies such as smartphones, tablets, and multimedia entertainment systems in cars. In 2018, approximately 50,000 audiobooks were recorded in the United States, with a sales growth of 20 percent per year. U.S. audiobook sales in 2019 totaled US$1.2 billion (short-scale billion, U.S. version), up 16% from the previous year. In addition to the sales increase, Edison Research’s national survey of American audiobook listeners ages 18 and up found that the average number of audiobooks listened per year increased from 6.8 in 2019 to 8.1 in 2020.

Source for the above: Wikipedia article.

Audiobooks as a business nowadays

In 2023, Forbes stated that audiobooks are the fastest growing segment within the book publishing industry.

Source: Forbes article.

Audiobook royalty breakdown in 2024

This is only a tiny overview of the three extremes of the 37-38 platforms (including libraries) where I have been helping authors to distribute their audiobooks, to both retailers and libraries.

Note that the extremely low Amazon royalty shown above is for audiobooks, not for ebooks. Also note that Spotify currently distributes audiobooks in the United States and a tiny number of other countries, which is a disclaimer I put next to the Spotify link on the direct sales websites I create for authors. The direct sales covered by your direct website mentioned in the third column (above) currently function for sales to all countries on planet Earth, with the notable exceptions of Crimea, Cuba, Donetsk, Iran, Luhansk, North Korea and Syria, due to embargoes.

Why the M4B format is ideal for your direct audiobook sales

Even though you could distribute the audiobook as a simple audio file (with or without an image and navegable chapters) like an .M4A with the AAC códec, as many audio podcasts do (AAC superseded the MP3 códec back in 1997, due to its higher quality at much lower bitrates, and even more so with the later incarnation called HE-AAC for spoken word, but many haven’t read the memo yet and continue with the long obsolete .MP3), the .M4A file format is not ideal to distribute audiobooks directly to consumers. The reason is because today’s content consumers are accustomed to having a dedicated app for music, a different one for podcasts, and yet another for books (whether they are audiobooks or just ebooks). The ideal file format is .M4B, since it can be opened by default by a book or audiobook app, which is what consumers are accustomed to having. That way, they have their music organized in one particular app, their podcasts in another and their audiobooks in a third. If properly authored, those DRM-free .M4B audiobooks will have a square graphic and chapter markers to facilitate the listener to navigate among sections.

In the next section, I’ll share my recommended apps for newbie audiobook consumers who may be purchasing their first non-DRMed .M4B file directly from the author.

.M4B app recommendations, per platform

The article you’re currently reading is focused on audiobook distribution, not ebook distribution. See my related article:

Apple Books app: terribly inconsistent among formats & platforms

for more details about why I reached the below app recommendations for direct audiobook distribution, and why I only recommend the Apple Books app for use on macOS for audiobooks sold via these dedicated ecommerce websites. At least for now, I can’t recommend the Apple Books app on those websites for iPhone or iPad for the reasons clarified in the article Apple Books app: terribly inconsistent among formats & platforms.

For the detailed reasons covered in that article, and since we (the direct audiobook sellers) can’t assume that every iPhone or iPad user also owns a Mac, I am making the following general suggestions for audiobook purchasers on each book website where .M4B audiobook files are sold:

• Android users: Use the free Sirin app (which imports any non-DRMed .M4B file).
• Apple Mac users: use the Books (Libros) app.
• Apple iPhone/iPad users: use the free BookPlayer app (which imports any non-DRMed .M4B file).
• Windows 10 and Windows 11 users: use the free Audibly app  (which imports any non-DRMed .M4B file).

Of course, all experienced users of any other audiobook apps are welcome to use their favorite one, and they probably won’t even read those instructions I include on those websites.

A very short history of my involvement with book and audiobook publication/distribution

• In 2010, I interviewed Victoria Mesas García of an audiobook production company from Spain. (Victoria Mesas Garcia later performed the female voice in the opening of my award-winning CapicúaFM podcast, which just turned 10-years old.)
• In 2011, I published the first book of my own authory. (To date, I have published 13 titles of my own authory. This excludes the 19 authors from 11 countries I have helped to write, edit, publish and do wide distribution.)
• In 2017, I published the first audiobook for a Honduran client. She chose to hire a Chilean narrator who performed most of the content. However, since I had written the foreword and epilog for that book, I narrated those sections with my voice.
• So far as of today, I have recently produced and distributed five additional audiobooks in three languages so far in 2024, as indicated below:

El mundo según Teresa Di Sclafani, narrated mostly by Venezuelan professional voiceover talent CC Limardo, with a few sections narrated by the author. (This one is in Castilian, aka «Spanish» and has the widest distribution so far, since it was the first book we published in 2024 in all three formats: paperback, ebook and audiobook.)

Il mondo secondo Teresa Di Sclafani, narrated completely by Italian professional voiceover talent Federica Ferro. (This one is in Tuscan, i.e. standard Italian.)

The world according to Teresa Di Sclafani, narrated by Anya. (This one is in English.)

Santiago Valiente, narrated by Spaniard professional voiceover talent Luis Carlos de La Lombana Barros. (This one is in Castilian.) 

Aquí estoy, Madre Tierra, self-narrated by the author, María Milagros Kowalski Alvarado. (This one is in Castilian.)

Please note that from the tradition of vinyl record jackets, single record jackets, and CD jackets, all audiobooks must have a square logo. The same thing occurred with audio podcasts for the same reasons. All of the above square audiobook logos were designed and created by Andreína Ascanio Toro, as were the rectangular flat ones for the respective ebooks and the CSB (cover-spine-back cover) of the respective print versions.

App to create proper .M4B audiobook files

Although an .M4A audio file (which can optionally include an image and chapter marks as used with some audio podcasts) is very similar to an .M4B, there are indeed some key differences. One of those differences affects which apps will play them, at all and/or by default. Although some online comments state that you can create an .M4B file with any type of .M4A file by simply renaming the extension of the file, some people have discovered that doing that creates an improper .H4B file which does not have guaranteed cross-platform compatibility. That’s why (for the purposes of commercial distribution of audiobooks from a dedicated ecommerce website like the ones I create for our client-authors), I would only use a completely proper .M4B file.

See my review of Audiobook Builder, an under US$10 app for macOS-only which creates proper .M4B files very well, including the square image and chapter marks which properly work with the navigation systems of the above-mentioned audiobook consumption apps. I clarify that Audiobook Builder is not an audio editor, but an audio authoring tool for audiobooks, using pre-edited audio and graphic files. Audiobook Builder can export .M4B or .M4A files, but I only use it to create .M4B files for the reasons explained earlier.

SIDEBAR: FLAC for other wide distribution

When I publish the other audio files for audiobooks distributed via 37 or 38 other platforms, most of those want us to upload each chapter or section as a separate file. Considering that they are very likely going to re-encode the audio, I upload each chapter to the majority as a compressed-yet-lossless .FLAC audio file, which is one of the two types they accept.

I am only concerned about creating .M4B files myself for direct distribution via the ecommerce websites I create for myself and clients. When I use Audiobook Builder for that purpose, Audiobook Builder fortunately accepts the same lossless .FLAC files I use for the other distribution, including its metadata, which saves me a great amount of time. I point that out since the Audiobook Builder website and documentation don’t currently mention its capability of accepting uncompressed lossless .FLAC files, but fortunately Audiobook Builder indeed accepts them without any problem.

That way, in all cases, the final deliverable is only one generation of a lossy format, instead of more than one generation, for maximum quality and fidelity.

TecnoTur’s policies with authors

TecnoTur has never acted as a middleman with authors’ royalties. With our muli-year experience writing, editing, designing, publishing and performing wide distribution of four types of books (audiobooks, ebooks, multimedia books and print books), TecnoTur guides the author with all of the nuances which make the difference, including helping the author to create her/his own accounts, with all royalty payments sent directly to the author’s bank account.

Image credit

The main image of this article is courtesy of Daily Graphic (New York), Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

Related articles

• Wide book distribution in 2023: My 6 tips (February 2023)
• Apple Books app: terribly inconsistent among formats & platforms (July 2024)
• Review: Audiobook Builder, an ideal authoring tool for audiobooks created for direct distribution (July 2024)
• To DRM or not to DRM? That is the question for today’s digital content producers (January 2011)

Lee este artículo en buen castellano

Estrategia para la distribución de audiolibros en 2024 y por qué el M4B es ideal para las ventas directas

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• En Telegram, t.me/boletinesdeAllan
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Most of my current books are at books.AllanTepper.com, and also visit AllanTepper.com and radio.AllanTepper.com.

FTC disclosure

Some of the manufacturers listed above have contracted Tépper and/or TecnoTur LLC to carry out consulting and/or translations/localizations/transcreations. So far, none of the manufacturers listed above is/are sponsors of the TecnoTur, BeyondPodcasting, CapicúaFM or TuSaludSecreta programs, although they are welcome to do so, and some are, may be (or may have been) sponsors of ProVideo Coalition magazine. Some links to third parties listed in this article and/or on this web page may indirectly benefit TecnoTur LLC via affiliate programs. Allan Tépper’s opinions are his own. Allan Tépper is not liable for misuse or misunderstanding of information he shares.

The Books app from Apple sadly behaves quite differently on macOS than on iOS and iPad OS with certain types of files, which confuses users and has other negative effects.

First, a little bit of obligatory history: The Books app which Apple currently includes on macOS, iOS and iPadOS, was called iBooks prior to iOS 12. (This same Books app is called Libros if you run your system in Castllian.) On all of these mentioned platforms, this same Books app can perfectly read any non-DRMed ebook file in the .EPUB format, and fortunately does so by default, in addition to those purchased from the Apple Books store. Fortunately, with non-DRMed .EPUB files, the user experience works consistently when the user double-clicks on the file on macOS, iOS or iPadOS. Sadly, the behavior of the Books app across these three Apple platforms with non-DRMed .M4B audiobook files is wildly different. On macOS, the same wonderful thing happens with non-DRMed .EPUB files with non-DRMed .M4B audiobook files: You double-click on the file, and it automatically opens in the Books app, showing its cover art and the metadata as it plays each chapter (i.e. the chapter or section name) and a button allows navigating any particular chapter or section. Sadly, as of publication time of this article, the Books app on iOS and iPadOS behaves wildly differently if you simply double-click a non-DRMed .M4B audiobook file on your iPhone or iPad or download it. Nothing happens. In addition, the current version of Books for iOS and iPadOS has no Import or Open function either.

According to some comments online, if a Mac user who also owns an iPhone or iPad first opens one of these non-DRMed .M4B filed on the Mac within the Books app and then shares same Apple account on her/his iPhone or iPad, that non-DRMed .M4B file will play properly inside of Books on the iPhone or iPad. I have not confirmed this, since it’s not a procedure I can recommend to all purchasers of non-DRMed .M4B audiobooks. That’s because there are many more owners of iPhones and iPads that don’t own any Mac computer. As the owner of a company (TecnoTur Publishing) that helps authors distribute and sell their own .M4B audiobooks on dedicated ecommerce websites I build for them, I sadly cannot recommend purchasers use the Books app to consume those .M4B audiobooks purchased there to consume them on an iPhone or iPad. Instead, I make a different recommendation, as I covered in my related article:

Audiobook distribution strategy in 2024 + why M4B is ideal for direct sales

It is not currently clear to me whether the behavior of Books on iPhone and iPad is intentional or it’s a bug yet to be fixed. I really believe that it behooves Apple to offer a consistent user experience for the Books app across all platforms, at least those platforms owned by Apple. (Currently, there is no Books app from Apple for Windows or for Android, although Apple does offer its Music app for both Windows and Android. This is another inconsistency from Apple, since both the Music app and the Books app are tied to a revenue center at Apple which makes money by selling content.)

I hope that Apple will update the Books app for iOS and iPadOS to make it behave as it the same for non-DRMed .M4B audiobook files as it already does with non-DRM-ed .EPUB ebook files. In the meantime, I’ll continue to recommend using BookPlayer in iOS and iPadOS. BookPlayer is free from the AppStore for iPhone and IPad platforms and solves the problem in the meantime.

Related articles

• Audiobook distribution strategy in 2024 + why M4B is ideal for direct sales (July 2024)
• Wide book distribution in 2023: My 6 tips (February 2023)
• Review: Audiobook Builder, an ideal authoring tool for audiobooks created for direct distribution (July 2024)
• To DRM or not to DRM? That is the question for today’s digital content producers (January 2011)
• Apple Podcasts adds weak CC (closed captions) with iOS 17.4 (and 17.4.1) (April 2024)

Lee este artículo en buen castellano

Aplicación Libros de Apple: terriblemente incongruente entre formatos y plataformas

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• Boletines por correo electrónico, boletines.AllanTepper.com
• En Telegram, t.me/boletinesdeAllan
• Twitter (bilingüe), AllanLTepper

Most of my current books are at books.AllanTepper.com, and also visit AllanTepper.com and radio.AllanTepper.com.

FTC disclosure

Some of the manufacturers listed above have contracted Tépper and/or TecnoTur LLC to carry out consulting and/or translations/localizations/transcreations. So far, none of the manufacturers listed above is/are sponsors of the TecnoTur, BeyondPodcasting, CapicúaFM or TuSaludSecreta programs, although they are welcome to do so, and some are, may be (or may have been) sponsors of ProVideo Coalition magazine. Some links to third parties listed in this article and/or on this web page may indirectly benefit TecnoTur LLC via affiliate programs. Allan Tépper’s opinions are his own. Allan Tépper is not liable for misuse or misunderstanding of information he shares.

Audiobook Builder is lightweight and user friendly. The application itself weighs only 29.4MB. Although it can accept other types of audio files as source material, I have only used .FLAC files in my use so far, for the reasons explained earlier. Having the metadata already included into the .FLAC files makes the job smoother and simpler, i.e. the name of each chapter (as it should appear on screen for end users) already placed properly within the .FLAC file. Depending upon the app used to play back among the three I covered in my related article:

Audiobook distribution strategy in 2024 + why M4B is ideal for direct sales

for Android, iOS, iPadOS, macOS or Windows, that chapter (or section) names will appear in the navigation menu and also on screen during playback, alternating between the book name with author, so the reader/listener knows where s/he is, in case s/he wants to use the navigation to move forward or back.

When first opening Audiobook Builder, we are presented with a splash screen where we choose among:

• Create a new project
• Open an existing project
• Get help

After clicking on Create a new project, Audiobook Builder asks us to save the project. It’s best to use the book name for this, in the desired folder. This is because it will be the name used for the final .M4B file (or .M4A file, but I only use Audiobook Creator to create .M4B files).

After that, Audiobook Creator’s first section called Cover asks us to confirm the Title, enter the Author name and Genre, which defaults to Audiobooks.

If you click the More… button, a popup window asks you to enter any of the following:

Narrated by, Date, Copyright, Description, Comments, Lyrics, Encoded by, and Encoded with, which has been pre-populated with Audiobook Builder 2.2.8 (www.splasm.com), macOS 14.5 in my case so far. Of those fields, so far, I have used Narrated by, Date, Copyright, Encoded by and Encoded with.

Whether or not you enter anything in that popup window, you are invited to drag in the cover art for the audiobook which should be square. Next you should move to the second section of Audiobook Builder, called Chapters.

Since I already have the original files (with appropriate noise reduction, equalization, reduced breaths, dynamic compression, leveling and prescribed pauses at the beginning and end) organized with file names like this example in a folder set to display by Name in alpha-numerical order:

a-opening-credits.flac

b-dedication.flac

c-introduction.flac

d-foreword.flac

1-chapter-1.flac

2-chapter-2.flac

3-chapter-3.flac

w-epilogue.flac

x-about-the-author.flac

y-other-works-from-the-author.flac

z-closing-credits.flac

It is very easy to select all and drag them in proper order in the Audiobook Builder’s Chapters window which invites you to drag in audio files. Since my files had the proper metadata inside and were already in the proper order, the title of each chapter/section was already perfect, as was the order, so I had nothing pending to do in the Chapters section. (Audiobook Builder also allows renaming the chapters and adding a specific image to each chapter or section, but I have not done that to date.) 

The last section is to build the .M4B file.

There is a Building Options link which opens a popup where you set Quality (including bit rate, mono/stereo, sampling frequency), Format (.M4B or .M4A), Encoding (HE-AAC or AAC, I use the former if it’s voice-only without music) and Part Style setting, which I discovered needs to be set to Break Between Chapters in order to get a single .M4B file with proper chapter marks and navigation.

Then you just click Build audiobook, select your folder destination. Blink your eyes and it’s done.

Quality of the Castilian translation of Audiobook Builder

As a certified translator and language activist, I applaud Audiobook Builder’s nearly perfect translation/localization to Castilian. I only found two errors in the translation (actually omissions), which will likely be fixed by the time you read this review, since I already reported them.

The translators neglected to translate the word «Audiobook» between «Edición» and «Visualización».

The translators neglected to translate the word «utilize» in the third section above.

Price and availability

You can buy Audiobook Builder for US$9.99 one-time payment (or a similar amount in your local currency) either from the Apple Appstore or directly from Splasm.com/audiobookbuilder, which is where I bought it after using the trial for a short time.

Conclusions

Whether you are looking to create DRM-free .M4B audiobook files for your own use or for direct sales on an ecommerce website to sell your book, ebook and audiobook directly to the public, I am very impressed with the quality, reliability and value proposition of Audiobook Builder. I find it to be well designed and very logical to use. I don’t think I would change anything in Audiobook Builder other than to correct the two translation errors/omissions.

Related articles

• Audiobook distribution strategy in 2024 + why M4B is ideal for direct sales (July 2024)
• Wide book distribution in 2023: My 6 tips (February 2023)
• To DRM or not to DRM? That is the question for today’s digital content producers (January 2011)
• Apple Books app: inconsistent among formats & platforms (July 2024)
• Apple Podcasts adds weak CC (closed captions) with iOS 17.4 (and 17.4.1) (April 2024)

Lee este artículo en buen castellano

Reseña: Audiobook Builder, aplicación para construir audiolibros para distribución directa

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En castellano:

• Boletines por correo electrónico, boletines.AllanTepper.com
• En Telegram, t.me/boletinesdeAllan
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Most of my current books are at books.AllanTepper.com, and also visit AllanTepper.com and radio.AllanTepper.com.

FTC disclosure

TecnoTur LLC paid full price for Audiobook Builder. None of the companies listed in this article is paying for this article. Some of the manufacturers listed above have contracted Tépper and/or TecnoTur LLC to carry out consulting and/or translations/localizations/transcreations. So far, none of the manufacturers listed above is/are sponsors of the TecnoTur, BeyondPodcasting, CapicúaFM or TuSaludSecreta programs, although they are welcome to do so, and some are, may be (or may have been) sponsors of ProVideo Coalition magazine. Some links to third parties listed in this article and/or on this web page may indirectly benefit TecnoTur LLC via affiliate programs. Allan Tépper’s opinions are his own. Allan Tépper is not liable for misuse or misunderstanding of information he shares.

It’s “a blatant Apple Vision Pro clone but with a Quest Pro style rear battery” according to website UploadVR, but this new mixed reality headset comes from a company with experience in the market, and two other headsets already produced, the YVR 1, introduced in 2021, and the YVR 2, first all-in-one VR headset with pancake lenses from the company.

Play for Dream introduced its technology at the 2024 Mobile World Congress and now the company reveals the Play for Dream MR, claiming it’s the world’s first Android-based spatial computer, designed to “seamlessly blend digital and reality worlds to deliver powerful spatial entertainment experiences that revolutionize how people reach the world.”

Play for Dream MR was announced in Singapore, as part of a strategic move that marks Play for Dream’s first international expansion, establishing its Asia-Pacific marketing headquarters in the Lion City. The global launch ignited in Singapore, drawing in key media from APAC markets, investors and other stakeholders.

Eight exclusive DTS-customized spatial sound effects

As the world’s first Android-based spatial computer, Play for Dream MR is a mixed reality (MR) headset, that sets, the company says, “a new standard in spatial entertainment” as “it elevates your experience across various scenarios including IMAX- Level movies, eight exclusive DTS-customized spatial sound effects, immersive MR gaming, stunning 3D spatial video recording and photography, and more to explore. Featuring industry-leading specifications, a powerful self-developed algorithm architecture, it creates a seamless fusion of digital and real worlds, delivering an unparalleled spatial entertainment.”

Play for Dream has experience with movie streaming as it is one of the key points of its YVR 2 VR headset, and the company is now teaming up with industry leaders to revolutionize Virtual Reality… pardon, “spatial entertainment”. As the world’s first IMAX and DTS strategic partner in the spatial computing and MR field, one of the pioneering devices equipped with Snapdragon XR2+ Gen 2, Play For Dream MR delivers, the company says, “a whole new experience” thanks to collaborations with giants like IMAX, DTS, Qualcomm, Unity, BOE, that “ensure an unparalleled premium user experience, combining advanced technology with seamless integration.”

Your own 1000-inch IMAX-level giant screen theater

Play for Dream MR sounds like a dream for those who want to watch IMAX- style movies at home. Promising to set a new standard for spatial cinema, with 1000-inch IMAX-level giant screen theater, it also features DTS Simulated 7.1 Channel Spatial Sound Effect, recreating cinema level spatial reverb and surround sound, while offering 8 adaptive personalized sound settings for an immersive experience in movies, gaming, or work.

The specifications for the new headset are exciting: boasting 8K Micro-OLED screens and an ultra-light resin Pancake optical solution, it delivers an astonishing 27 million pixels at 3882 PPI, with 45 PPD at the center. Powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon XR2+ Gen 2 chip, Play for Dream MR ensures exceptional performance with minimal power use. Its cutting-edge camera and sensor array, including 11 cameras, 7 types of sensors, and 22 infrared LEDs, provide precise and efficient tracking with a color VST latency as low as 14ms.

Integrated light-weight curved battery

The headset has its own integrated light-weight curved battery. The company says that compared to flat batteries, this solution offers higher space utilization, a thinner battery compartment, and more comfortable wear. The built-in high-capacity battery and external power bank provide dual solutions, supporting 3 to 3.5 hours of worry-free play. Paired with a fast-charging 45W GaN adapter, enjoy lightweight, easy to carry, and quickly recharges anytime. The built-in battery also contributes to balance the weight distribution (3:2, according to the company) to minimize pressure on the face and make the headset more comfortable to wear.

The Play for Dream MR will run its own OS but will be compatible with Steam and will allow for PC wireless streaming through Wi-Fi. Compatible with a vast amount of Android apps, it will also support various Bluetooth peripherals. With controllers available, and eye tracking as part of the specifications, this is a headset which offers new options in terms of Virtual Production, besides being compatible with mainstream office applications and multi-screen streaming,  enabling multi-screen work for a blended virtual and real immersive experience. And entertainment too… allowing users to watch movies and seamlessly switch between MR and VR games, play 2D games on a large screen, and stream over 6000 Steam AAA games with a single click, immersing yourself in a truly captivating experience.

Price for the new VR headset is not announced yet, and it will not be cheap, but the company suggests it will be under $2000… what might explain why Apple is working on a new, more affordable version of its Apple Vision Pro.

As I covered in my CapicúaFM episode 89, we joined forces with the University Francisco Marroquín of Guatemala to protest and request correction from X.com (Twitter’s) translation department. We covered in detail within the episode that although the verb used by X.com (Twitter) is indeed a proper word in the DcRAE (Diccionario castellano de la Real Academia Española), in this case it’s a completely unnecessary linguistic calque, with a completely different meaning than the intended one. The inappropriately used verb postear (and in the preterite tense posteó) refer to the act of installing a physical wooden utility pole (like a telephone pole) as indicated in the photo (which is in public domain). The verb that X.com (Twitter) should be using is publicar with its third-person singular preterite conjugation publicó. For example, a correct sentence would be:

Ana publicó la noticia ayer en X.com.

In that sentence, it makes no sense to use posteó, since Ana did not install any utility pole.

We hereby request corrections from Elon Musk’s translation team. It offends me whenever I see the verb posteó used inappropriately each time I receive notifications from X.com (Twitter). Thank you in advance.

Note: My CapicúaFM podcast is turning 10 years old this month. As of yesterday, it has had 499,432 unique downloads in over 161 countries according to Podtrac. In addition, CapicúaFM has won two awards to date.

Related article

TecnoTur.LLC has beaten Twitter (X.com) with domain migration using Wildcard Redirect («redirección comodín»)

For more information

• The books The Castilian Conspiracy and La conspiración del castellano
• The podcasts Speak Castilian and CapicúaFM

Image credit for utility pole

By No machine-readable author provided. Silenceisfoo~commonswiki assumed (based on copyright claims). – No machine-readable source provided. Own work assumed (based on copyright claims), Public Domain.

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Most of my current books are at books.AllanTepper.com, and also visit AllanTepper.com and radio.AllanTepper.com.

FTC disclosure

Twitter (X.com) did not pay for this article. Allan Tépper paid ful price for his X.com Premium account from his own funds. Allan Tépper is the director of TecnoTur.LLC and AccentedDomains.com is a service of TecnoTur.LLC. Allan Tépper and TecnoTur.LLC have paid full price for Twitter services and as of publication time of this article, there is no other financial relationship between Twitter (X.com) and TecnoTur.LLC. Some of the manufacturers listed above have contracted Tépper and/or TecnoTur LLC to carry out consulting and/or translations/localizations/transcreations. So far, none of the manufacturers listed above is/are sponsors of the TecnoTur, BeyondPodcasting, CapicúaFM or TuSaludSecreta programs, although they are welcome to do so, and some are, may be (or may have been) sponsors of ProVideo Coalition magazine. Some links to third parties listed in this article and/or on this web page may indirectly benefit TecnoTur LLC via affiliate programs. Allan Tépper’s opinions are his own. Allan Tépper is not liable for misuse or misunderstanding of information he shares.

As a website developer, consultant and the owner of a hosting company, I know that migrating an existing website (and/or associated email service) from one domain to another is something that requires careful prior planning for a successful outcome. Both Twitter (X.com) and TecnoTur.LLC (previously TecnoTur.us) have been in the process of doing that for different reasons but confronting the exact same issues and priorities. Twitter changed its logo and name to «X» in 2023. Although Twitter immediately acquired and redirected the X.com domain to Twitter, it still hasn’t reversed that. At TecnoTur, we have not changed the logo but only the domain. Among the goals are not only to begin directing the old bare domain’s traffic to the new one (rather than doing the opposite, which TecnoTur did at first before and Twitter still does since X.com still redirects to the older Twitter.com), but also to assure that other web traffic behave the same as before. For example, the old traffic headed to a subpage like OldDomain.com/contact or OldDomain.com/article-name will automatically be directed to NewDomain.com/contact or NewDomain.com/article-name. This is both for human internauts who possess an old link and for continuing SEO ranking. After replicating the old website into the new one using search-and-replace for all internal links, the rest is accomplished using a tool or technique which in English is called a Wildcard Redirect and (in Castilian) Redirección comodín, which sounds a bit funny since the word comodín has several unrelated slang uses, depending upon the region.

Ways to accomplish a Wildcard Redirect for a domain

There are several ways to accomplish WildCard Redirect for domains. They include adding code to the .htaccess file, a setting in the cPanel or using a redirection plugin in WordPress. The last one can be appropriate if the original website was created in WordPress. Using a redirection plugin in WordPress can be much easier than adding code manually to a .htaccess file, but requires maintaining the old WordPress website for whatever duration is desired for the redirection to occur, although fortunately with many fewer other plugins required than for an active WordPress website. Over the years, I have used all three methods mentioned at the beginning of this paragraph, depending upon the situation. The purpose of this article is not to delve deeply into each method or to review any particular plugin (I have used two such redirection plugins so far, each with different benefits and weaknesses), but to understand the preparations on a high level when planning such a transformation for a website, for whatever reason. Whether you work at Twitter (X.com) or a smaller organization, I hope this article will help in your planning.

Comments about the .LLC (top level domain)

The .LLC TLD (top level domain) is relatively new and officially shares two features with the .com TLD and two unique features.

Some common features in .LLC (compared with .com and .tv) are:

• Both the .LLC, .com and .tv allow for domain privacy, while the .us unfortunately does not.
• Both the .LLC and the .com allow for IDN accented domains (See AccentedDomains.com for more information and examples.), while the .us unfortunately does not. Although the .tv technically supports IDN domains, there is currently a terrible flaw in its implementation compared with other TLDs that support IDN domains which go beyond the scope of this article. If you work with the Government of Tuvalu and would like to fix it to make .tv domains work in a practical way with IDN (accented) domains, please contact me.

The unique features of the .LLC top level domain are:

• The .LLC is particularly attractive and cool for LLC companies, aka Limited Liability Companies.
• The .LLC is particularly attractive for people who speak, read or otherwise appreciate the Castilian (castellano) language (see SpeakCastilian.com and TheCastilianConspiracy.com), since it can also refer to the saying «Long Live Castilian».

FYI: Like other top-level domains, the .LLC is case insensitive (i.e. it works equally well if typed in any combination of upper and/or lowercase, without any exclusivity in domains), but I prefer to type .LLC with upper case to avoid confusion with some fonts, since the lower case version of the L can easily be confused with a different letter, the vowel «i».

Lee este artículo en buen castellano

TecnoTur.LLC ha superado a Twitter (X.com) con la migración de dominio mediante la redirección comodín

(Re-)Subscribe for upcoming articles, reviews, radio shows, books and seminars/webinars

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In English:

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• In Telegram, t.me/TecnoTurBulletins
• Twitter (bilingual), AllanLTepper

En castellano:

• Boletines por correo electrónico, boletines.AllanTepper.com
• En Telegram, t.me/boletinesdeAllan
• Twitter (bilingüe), AllanLTepper

Most of my current books are at books.AllanTepper.com, and also visit AllanTepper.com and radio.AllanTepper.com.

FTC disclosure

Twitter (X.com) did not pay for this article, nor did ICANN or the Government of Tivalu. Allan Tépper paid ful price for his X.com Premium account from his own funds. Allan Tépper is the director of TecnoTur.LLC and AccentedDomains.com is a service of TecnoTur.LLC. Allan Tépper and TecnoTur.LLC have paid full price for Twitter services and as of publication time of this article, there is no other financial relationship between Twitter (X.com) and TecnoTur.LLC. Some of the manufacturers listed above have contracted Tépper and/or TecnoTur LLC to carry out consulting and/or translations/localizations/transcreations. So far, none of the manufacturers listed above is/are sponsors of the TecnoTur, BeyondPodcasting, CapicúaFM or TuSaludSecreta programs, although they are welcome to do so, and some are, may be (or may have been) sponsors of ProVideo Coalition magazine. Some links to third parties listed in this article and/or on this web page may indirectly benefit TecnoTur LLC via affiliate programs. Allan Tépper’s opinions are his own. Allan Tépper is not liable for misuse or misunderstanding of information he shares.