Playing Audio

JW Library makes it possible to play the audio of a large number of publications. The really nice thing is that it is possible to find the exact verse you want to hear from the Bible, or the specific paragraph you want in a publication, and start the audio playback there. You can also just start the audio at the beginning of the chapter with an easy to find button in the top bar of the app.

Play from the beginning

When in the NWT Study Bible, look up the Bible book and chapter you would like to listen to following the directions given in the Bible section of this guide.

When the chapter you want to read opens VoiceOver focus will be on the back button.

Swipe right twice. Passing the name of the Bible book and chapter, and then the words "Study Bible."

VoiceOver should say: "Audio button."

When you double tap the Audio Button a dialog will appear. Focus will be on a Play AudioButton." Double tap to start playing the audio streamed from the Internet.

There will Also be a "Download Audio" button that will allow you to store the audio on your device for later off-line use.

Finally there is a "Cancel" button, in case you don't actually want to play anything right now.

Voiceover's 2 finger double tap--called magic tap--will allow you to pause and resume playback without having to find the on-screen controls.

Playing audio of a publication

You might be tempted to look for a publication in audio format by going to the Library tab and doing a 3 finger swipe left a couple times to get to the audio section, but the audio section only contains Music, dramas, and audio described convention sessions. The audio of digital publications in JW Library is accessed from within those publications, so open the publication the same way as you would if you wanted to read the text in it.

Open the publication you want to listen to from the Publications tab of the Library tab, from your favorites on the Home tab, or from the Meeting tab.

Find and open the chapter or lesson you want to hear.

From the Back button where VoiceOver focus lands when the chapter or lesson opens: swipe right twice.

The name of the chapter or lesson will be spoken. Then the title of the publication. Then focus will land on the "Audio" button.

Double tap the 'Audio" button and decide whether to Play, Download, or Cancel.

If you downloaded the audio of this chapter or lesson before there will be a "Delete Audio" button in place of the "Download Audio" button.

Start Audio from specific verse or paragraph

When on any verse number in the NWT Study Bible double tap to bring up a context menu.

In other publications: Double tap any paragraph. As long as VoiceOver focus is not on a link or image the context menu will appear.

You will know the menu has appeared if Voiceover says: "Display Study pain, button."

Wait a second after you tap the verse number to listen for that announcement, because it can take a second for it to appear. Sometimes it will fail to appear at all, but don't worry. Just double tap the verse number again if it didn't work the first time.

When you hear "Display Study pain, button," swipe right with 1 finger.

You can swipe right repeatedly to move through the menu items, but if you accidentally tap the screen instead the menu might disappear.

The "Play Audio" button is likely the last option in the menu on the screen of an iPad.

On an iPhone it is usually necessary to swipe right until you hear ""Right Triangle" button. Double tap it.

Now Voiceover should say: "Play Audio, button." When you double tap it playback should start at the verse you chose.

Note: If Voiceover is set to provide image descriptions it might say: "Possibly: Play," after the Right Triangle" button. Ignore this confusing message, because it isn't a play button in this case. It is just that a right triangle is evidently what the play button looks like in some cases. In this instance the Right triangle button is indicating that there are more menu options that don't fit on the screen. Double tapping it shows the rest of the available context menu items.

Media Control Bar

It is always possible to stop and resume playback of audio and video with the Voiceover "Magic" Tap. That is double tapping with 2 fingers.

If you want more control of audio playback in JW Library you can find some basic controls near the bottom of the screen, right above Home on the tab bar.

I find it easiest to find it by turning my Voiceover rotor to containers and swiping down with 1 finger. VoiceOver will say a percentage when focus lands in the media bar's container.

If you swipe left on the media bar there will be a place that says what is being played. That can be useful if you are coming back to JW Library after a while and don't remember what you had been listening to.

If you continue to swipe left you'll find the time elapsed, a play/pause button, and many more controls. The last item in the media bar is a Close button to make the media bar go away.

If you play a video the full-screen media player will automatically open, but playing audio does not open it.

To open the full media player when audio is playing: Turn the Voiceover rotor to containers and swipe down with 1 finger. You have found the minimized media player if VoiceOver speaks a percentage. Do not double tap on the percentage, because that sometimes makes the media player disappear completely. 😖

Instead, swipe right 2 times until you find the name of the media playing. Double tap there to open the full media player.

You will notice that it is not necessary to open the full media player in order to reach the settings. The Settings button will be on the media bar just to the left of the Close button.

In the Settings you will find options for changing playback speed, sharing media, and sending the audio to Airplay speakers.

Activate the next button at the bottom of this page to go to a description of the full Media Player.