Five Dollar iPod Clone with Linux Connectivity
Literacy Bridge, a non-profit organisation is developing an MP3 player in iPod Shuffle format. The player will cost US$ 5 and the capable of downloading CC-licensed audio files from Linux platforms.
The "Talking Book" is about the same size as an iPod Shuffle. The device, which uses flash memory, retrieves its content from Linux-based kiosks, which will be sold to subsidize the price of the Talking Books.
The main applications that the developers envisage are in the health and educational sector. Based on the developers’ plans kiosk station operators will offer content to Talking Book owners who can then download MP3 files for a small fee. The audio files themselves will be released under the Creative Commons 2.5 license and will be free of Digital Right Management (DRM).
Liberty Bridge mainly targets poorer regions of the world. To improve the power supply kiosk operators can purchase solar powered chargers to charge the batteries in the players. This will allow Talking Book owners to replace their old batteries with new ones when they purchase new content.
The Talking Book itself does not have an LCD display in contrast to the iPod; instead, it just has a jack for a earphones and a USB port for data transfer. Multiple players can also be linked by a USB port, the supporting an exchange of audio files. The kiosk stations comprise an extremely lean and thus extremely cheap laptop that runs an embedded Linux version.
The inventor of Talking Book, Chliff Schmidt, formerly worked for the Eclipse Foundation and the Apache Software Foundation, and was involved in the "One Laptop per Child" project. Schmidt expects the Talking Book and kiosk station prototypes to be tested before the end of the year in Ghana and India. The system will be presented against the backdrop of the ApacheCon conference in Amsterdam.
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.

News
-
Linux Kernel 6.17 is Available
Linus Torvalds has announced that the latest kernel has been released with plenty of core improvements and even more hardware support.
-
Kali Linux 2025.3 Released with New Hacking Tools
If you're a Kali Linux fan, you'll be glad to know that the third release of this famous pen-testing distribution is now available with updates for key components.
-
Zorin OS 18 Beta Available for Testing
The latest release from the team behind Zorin OS is ready for public testing, and it includes plenty of improvements to make it more powerful, user-friendly, and productive.
-
Fedora Linux 43 Beta Now Available for Testing
Fedora Linux 43 Beta ships with Gnome 49 and KDE Plasma 6.4 (and other goodies).
-
USB4 Maintainer Leaves Intel
Michael Jamet, one of the primary maintainers of USB4 and Thunderbolt drivers, has left Intel, leaving a gaping hole for the Linux community to deal with.
-
Budgie 10.9.3 Now Available
The latest version of this elegant and configurable Linux desktop aligns with changes in Gnome 49.
-
KDE Linux Alpha Available for Daring Users
It's official, KDE Linux has arrived, but it's not quite ready for prime time.
-
AMD Initiates Graphics Driver Updates for Linux Kernel 6.18
This new AMD update focuses on power management, display handling, and hardware support for Radeon GPUs.
-
AerynOS Alpha Release Available
With a choice of several desktop environments, AerynOS 2025.08 is almost ready to be your next operating system.
-
AUR Repository Still Under DDoS Attack
Arch User Repository continues to be under a DDoS attack that has been going on for more than two weeks.