downloading from bbc iplayer to mp3/4 player?

sunflowergirl

Hello,
My Mum is in hospital and my Dad has got a philips mp3/4 player (today and I havent seen it) so she can listen to stuff while there.
Is there a way to download the afternoon plays/ short stories from bbc iplayer or can these only be listened to through your computor?

sorry if this is a stupid question but I know nothing about these devices and how she can listen to audio books etc without joining an audiobook website.

any help greatly apreciated

bat999

Hi

BBC radio have most of their programmes for use with 'listen again'. That means that you can listen on your computer for up to one week after they are broadcast.

But some of the programmes are available as podcasts too, which means that you download an mp3 version onto your computer then transfer it to your mp3 player.

But there aren't many ones as podcasts

It looks like 'afternoon plays' aren't podcasts, but there may be other programmes that are interesting.

This is the page to find out:-http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio/podcasts/directory/station/radio4/

thefirs

Have a look at this thread: http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=422869. There are a number of freeware utilities that allow you to download the realplayer files from listen again, and one or two others that will convert it to mp3/wma for use on your portable player.

As it's a two-stage process its a bit more fiddly than just downloading the podcast, but well worth it for a mum in hospital, I think.

bat999

^^^^^^^^^
Most of the suggestions in that thread are rubbish (imho).

But it looks like some people have had success.

When I record BBC programmes I use the 'listen again' function and a capture program similar to Audacity.
But when recording like this it is in 'real-time', so a half hour show takes half an hour to record.
:cool::cool:

Hungerdunger

bat999 wrote: »

^^^^^^^^^
Most of the suggestions in that thread are rubbish (imho).

I think that's a bit of a rash statement to make. I've been using Net Transport with Streambox Ripper for over a year now and find it quick and relatively easy.

However, I accept that they are not the most intuitive programs, and it does take a bit of practice to get them working efficiently. The advantage of Net Transport is that it will download a program for you in much faster than real time. If sunflowergirl or her dad are prepared to put in a bit of practice, I can send them my own quick guide which I prepared for someone else a while ago.

Otherwise, I'd agree with bat999 that Audacity does the job fairly simply, but you will need to be around to start and stop recording, and unless Mum's player plays WAV files you will also need to convert them to mp3 format.

bat999

bat999 wrote: »

But it looks like some people have had success.

calvincamel

Providing the 'player' also records (many have a 'line-in' capability), why not do it the old way and the simple, low-tech way - hitting play on one device and record on the other. When the program is finished, press stop on both.
Just connect the MP3 player to the computer/speaker via a 3.5mm to 3.5mm audio lead and play/record, as we used to when taping our records and CDs. Ooh, records, remember them?

bat999

Hi
I expect that the OP's mum is out of hospital by now.
This thread has been dormant since January '08.

mikiex

if anyone is interested thing have moved on eg.
http://www.nerdoftheherd.com/tools/radiodld/

NiVZ

Hello,

A bit late I know (okay 2 years too late), but there is a program called "get_iplayer" that can do this.

It says it gets TV shows in MP4 format, and radio shows in MP3 format ready to put straight on your iPod without converting.

NiVZ

Lakeuk

mikiex wrote: »

if anyone is interested thing have moved on eg.
http://www.nerdoftheherd.com/tools/radiodld/

This is the programme to use, I never miss a programme now, this app downloads them automatically and I transfer them onto my iPod, and listen to them on my daily commute into work