Arizona State Library, Archives and Public Records Braille and Talking Books Division
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Tips for Better Service

Playing a Cassette Tape

Each cassette has 4 tracks called sides. Every book begins with side 1. If the book requires more than one cassette, the second cassette starts with side 5, the third with side 9, and so on.

To start a cassette, push the "side" switch down to the left and push the "play" key. At the end of side 1, turn the cassette over and side 2 will be ready to play without further adjustment. At the end of side 2, push the "side" switch down to the right, turn the cassette over again and play side 3. At the end of side 3, turn the cassette over and side 4 will be ready to play without further adjustment. To hear the first side of the next cassette, push the "side" switch back down to the left.

Problems with Your Cassette Player

If a tape plays too fast and sounds like Donald Duck or the Chipmunks, first make sure the speed switch is pushed down on the 15/16 side and that the variable speed control is pushed all the way to the left. If the speed switch and the variable speed control are in the correct positions and the tape is still running too fast, taking the cassette tape out of the player and slapping the tape flat down on a hard surface will often correct the problem.

If the tape plays for a minute, then stops, or the volume fades as you're listening, plug the machine in and let it charge for a few minutes. Then try playing the tape again. If the problem persists, try another tape. If that doesn't solve the problem, call the Library for a replacement cassette player.

If the tape sounds like two sides are playing at once, it might simply be a bad tape. Try another tape to determine if it is the tape or the machine. If the problem continues with all tapes, call the Library for a replacement machine.

If We Send You Damaged Tapes

We try very hard to inspect every book that is returned to the library but inevitably patrons will sometimes receive a tape that is damaged. We want to repair or replace those bad tapes so please put a rubber band around the damaged tape and make an X on the library side of the return label. If you were unable to finish the book and would like another copy, make a second X on the label so we know to resend the book. Of course you are also welcome to call and request a replacement by phone.

Sometimes patrons place an X in the little box on the label that says "Check if want again", but they have not checked the "damaged" box. In those cases we don't know whether you want another copy of the same book or just want another book, so we generally do nothing in response to that situation.

Returning Cassette Books

To return a cassette book, simply turn the mailing label over so that the Library address, printed in red ink, is the side that is up. Give the book to your postal carrier or drop it in a mailbox. You will be less likely to run out of books if you return each one as soon as you finish it. Most patrons automatically receive a new book when a book is returned, so it is not necessary to check the "want again" box in order to get another book.

Using the U. S. Mail

Books and cassette players may be mailed to us as 'Free Matter for the Blind and Physically Handicapped'. Printed request lists may also be mailed as 'Free Matter', but the envelope must be left unsealed. Hand-written notes, even if they include book requests, require regular postage.

Do not put notes in the book or magazine containers. There is no guarantee that when we find the note we will know who wrote it or to what it refers. The mailing labels are removed long before the containers are opened and it is often impossible to know who sent the note. It is also against postal regulations to put hand-written notes in the book containers.

Do not refuse mail. Refusing mail may result in halting all your service from the library.

How You Can Help

Open only one book container at a time so there's no chance that tapes from different books will get mixed together. Be sure all the tapes that belong in a container are inside the container before you send the book back to us. The side label on the container notes how many cassettes are in the container. Look in the upper right hand corner of the title label on the narrow side of the green container for that information. It will say 2 C or 3 C or however many cassettes make up the book. We will appreciate your help and more books will be available for everyone who uses our Library.

Rewind any tapes that you did not read all the way through on all four sides. To be sure a tape is rewound, place it in your cassette player with side one up and push the rewind button.

Call the library or send a note through regular mail or e-mail if you want to request books by a certain author or make another change to your service.

Let us know if your interest areas change or you're getting too few or too many books.

Remember to put your name and address on the request lists you send the library. Every day we have to discard request lists that are sent to us without a name.

If you're planning to move please let the library know your new address before the moving date and then give us another call when you know your new phone number. We're always amazed at the number of address corrections that flood the office each time a newsletter is mailed and we discover that many of our patrons have moved without telling us. Even more discouraging is the number who left no forwarding address, which means we have to put their service on hold. Many times those people are dropped completely from our rolls if we're unable to make contact with them and then they have to send a new application before we can serve them again.

If you are moving permanently to a different state, the Library will transfer all your records to the regional library in your new state. That way the new library will have a list of what you've already read and you won't receive a book a second time unless you request it. It also saves you from filling out a new application.

Patrons who have more than one address and normally go back and forth according to the season should also notify us when they're getting ready to make their seasonal moves. We can send your books and magazines to you anywhere in Arizona or the United States and can permanently maintain two addresses for you in our computer files. It normally takes four to six weeks for magazines mailed to you by CMLS to change to your new address, but if you've left a forwarding order the CMLS magazines should follow you until CMLS makes the address change.

Please keep food, drink and heat sources away from your cassette player. All those things damage your machine and shorten its life.

 

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Updated:  09/19/2006

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