Audiobookshelf and Driving
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Audiobookshelf and Driving

Byrichard

In an ideal world I would use Audiobookshelf when I’m driving tomorrow. In the real world I can’t, or at least shouldn’t. The reason for this is simple. There is no iOS app which, in turn, means that there is no car play app. Combined this means that if I want to use the app during a road trip I need to fiddle with the app’s website when one podcast ends and the next begins.

Focusing on the Road

At 120 kilometres per hour you do not do such things. At 120 kilometres per hour you want the app you’re using to switch from podcast A to B to C automatically. You want this when you’re walking too. This is especially of walks on rainy days.

Long Audio Books

In my experience it’s better to find books that are seven or eight hours long, if you listen to books. Longer books will eventually give me headaches as I focus on the road and the book at the same time. It’s good to vary what you’re listening too, for focus, and for endurance.

No Pause during Driving Directions

Usually I use the GPS in silent mode. During most drives you have plenty of time to see the display change, understand what you have to do, and do it, without audio guidance. In the cases where you get audio guidance you want it to pause the podcast or audiobook. It’s frustrating to miss ten to fifteen seconds just because of a driving instruction

Setting Up a Playlist

I tried setting up a playlist but that is very slow. You need to add each podcast manually to the list, without the option to bulk add, and it doesn’t seem to auto-play the next podcast anyway.

Podcast or Book

When I walk and drive I like to listen to podcasts and books, so today I’m considering whether I will listen to books, or podcasts. In the past I have listened to two books during that drive. Tomorrow I think that I will start with podcasts.

And Finally

The web interface works very well and I am very happy with the app. When I get onto the testflight version of the app I will gain access to that functionality and then I will be able to use that app for road trips. For now I have to use the Apple Podcast app.

If it wasn’t for traffic I would set off now but it’s better to drive when the roads are quiet. That’s why I drive on Sunday mornings.

The Desire for a Road Trip

The Desire for a Road Trip

Byrichard

Almost every time I get into the car I wish I was going on a road trip. I wish I was driving from point A to point B and that the drive would take hours, rather than minutes. As much as I hate “commuting” between point A and point B on a daily basis I love travelling from A to B as a journey. I love sitting for many hours in a car, thinking, looking at the landscape, remembering things, thinking of the future and more.

Not the Usual

It’s interesting, because I use the car twice a week, on normal weeks. To go shopping, and no other reason. I used to drive an hour or two to go for walks. Now I never do. I should, because the roads into and out of my village are very dangerous for pedestrians. The paradox is that if I get into the car to drive ten minutes to go for a walk, I become part of the problem, rather than the solution.

The Absurd commute

Most people drive to and from work, every single day, rather than taking the train, cycling, or other. I used to drive to work too, when I had a parking space. As soon as parking cost 30-40 CHF per day I got a half fare and took the train. The train journey saw me walking twenty minutes at full speed, rather than catching the bus, and then walking from the train station on the other end to the office. I hate waiting for buses, and being in crowded spaces. The walk is more pleasant.

If we made parkings cost 30-40 CHF per day for everyone, most people would leave their cars at homes and motorway traffic would be a fifth or less of what it is now. They want to expand the motorway from 2030 onwards, but that’s absurd. Reduce commuting by car and you don’t need bigger motorways.

The Road Trip

The drive is thirteen hours long. I set off at 0300 and hope to be at my destination by about 1600. For the first three or four hours I drive in the dark. I head towards Grenoble, and eventually I go towards Porte De Valence. That’s when the sun starts to ride. I then drive west towards the Franco-Spanish border. I cross it and refuel. My first stop in over 800 kilometres. I then drive towards Barcelona, hit that traffic, and then towards Valencia, and beyond, before arriving at my destination.

During the last three or four hours I find myself needing the toilet more often. I think it’s fatigue.

I snack along the way, especially when I feel that I am losing focus. It usually brings my focus back. I also found that when I’m in France I find it comfortable to drive at 120 kilometres per hour, rather than 130. I’m used to this speed. It is the speed limit in Switzerland and Spain, so it makes sense to drive at a speed that causes less fatigue.

That’s also why I set off at 3am. It’s early, but I find that it’s easier to drive towards Spain during daylight. I find that as soon as the sun sets I begin to feel more tired.

Paradoxically on the way back I often drive through the night, from Grenoble towards Geneva. When I’m heading home it matters less.

A Mental Break

In a normal year I might do this drive two to three times. I flee southwards to avoid Christmas fuss, but I might also drive again in April or so, to get “spring” or summer sooner.

Podcasts and Books

During the drive I listen to hours of podcasts and books. To some extent the drive is an opportunity to listen to books and podcasts while watching the landscape change. I listened to Harry Potter books, Louis L’amour books and more. It’s nice to have an opportunity to listen to books for hours in a row, without worrying about doing something more productive with one’s time.

It’s like my daily walks, but for longer, and sitting down. I managed to finish entire books in a single sitting.

And Finally

The most I’ve driven in Four days is 3600 kilometres. I drove to Tarbes and then Barcelona, and from Barcelona back to Tarbes and then to Geneva. By the end of the trip I was exhausted. This is much smaller, it’s 2600 kilometres with a few weeks in the middle to recover.

I could fly but a big part of the experience is the drive. There was a time when I was flying between England and Switzerland and it became boring. It felt like commuting, rather than fun. It’s more tiring to drive but the experience is more pleasant.

Almost every time I get into the car I wish I was going for a road trip. I finally have the opportunity to go for that road trip next week. It will give me new things to write about, and it will recharge me before coming back.

According to TomTom Go if I set off now the trip should take just 11 hours. In practice, because I drive at 120 in France it will take about twelve to thirteen hours. Part of me is impatient to set off but another part of me wants to finish what I’m working on. Within the next day or two I will have PhotoPrism and Audiobookshelf running off of a 4 TB hard drive, rather than an SD card and a 2TB drive and that setup will be a serious iteration, rather than experimental.

From A Spanish to A Swiss Autumn
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From A Spanish to A Swiss Autumn

Byrichard

When I left for Spain Switzerland was just starting to turn Autumnal. Today, when I looked around I could see that Autumn has arrived properly in Switzerland. In Spain the sun is still warm enough for t-shirt wearing and swimming. The sun is still strong enough to change our chrominance.


Yesterday I drove for around 11 and a half hours, with just one stop to refuel. I usually stop three or four times on that route but I felt like trying to do it in a single hop. This is for two reasons.


1. We’re still in a pandemic and I want to minimise risk. The stop I made was quiet so there was little risk of being too close to others.


2. I didn’t want to leave the car unattended for too long. As I am driving alone I don’t want to leave the car alone, in case people decide to steal things, not that anything was visible.


During the drive I listened to Troy, read by Steven Fry. It is interesting, and it is revision for those who have read his other books. There are moments when I struggled to hear what they were saying, due to the sound being lower, and that cars are noisy.


During the drive I enjoyed eating Spanish honey flavoured peanuts. They are easy to eat, not too messy, and good to keep you focused and attentive. During this drive I had to be focused for twelve hours non stop. People say “oh but twitter, social media and television have destroyed people’s ability to focus. I don’t believe this is accurate. I couldn’t drive for twelve hours safely otherwise.


I did see that one car had swerved off the road, into some grass, and then bounced back. I am certain that this person was either distracted, or fell asleep and smashed into the barrier. From what I saw two or three people were standing beside the accident so I think they’re fine.


Two things make driving easier these days. Cruise control, because this gives you the chance to move your leg around, rather than keep it locked and immobile. The second is to drive at the speed limit or slightly below. When I was in France several trips ago I enjoyed driving in France at 130 kilometres per hour. I eventually found that 130 kilometres per hour, in a previous car was more tiring, and that I was comfortable with 120 kilometres per hour. So from then on I always drive at the speed limit or a speed limit that I am used to. For twelve hours the goal is endurance and comfort. I would not repeat the drive within two weeks again, especially with the change from summer to winter time. I think that such a drive is easy once, but that to be repeated it would be good to wait three to four weeks, before making the return journey, especially as a solitary driver.