MP3 players forum: Sansa m240 won't sync NetLibrary audiobooks

Yes, I'm using WMP-10/11 to do the sync, over and over again. Sometimes I end up with two copies of the same audio file on the player, but neither one is synced. I've done as you describe using MSC mode on the player. I've also tried Drag'n'Drop which becomes available when the player is in MTP mode, which is the mode normally used for passing licenses, so I've read.

Thanks.

I've thought of that. Tried renewing licenses from NetLibrary just in case. Also, we've checked out more books than we can possibly 'read' in the allotted 21 days just to feed fresh material to the m240 player each time Customer Service came up with another new procedure for testing downloads.

Thanks.

I've been through that very process often enough to recite it while blindfolded. Just in case I'd been overlooking some obvious detail, I stepped through your procedure word by word. Result is still total time of 00:00 and "Synchronize to continue your music subscription."

I can download (free) music after the book and play the music just fine, so I know the process works. If I had some licensed music, which I don't, I could try that to see if it's a size issue causing the timer to overflow (unlikely), or a DRM issue which is what I suspect. So much for PlaysForSure.

At this point I've concluded this particular device is a dud and it's going back to the store tomorrow. Now, to try another of the same model, or go to another manufacturer? I want Flash, not hard drive, and AA/AAA batteries, not proprietary Li-ion.

Nice try, thanks.

I returned the m240 to BestBuy for a straight-across exchange, brought the newer m240 home, did the WMP drag'n'drop routine that had become habit by now, and it works! Straight out of the box it had latest firmware so I didn't even need to update that. Life is good!

I am puzzled as to why the previous unit failed in the manner it did? I do notice that the new m240 chooses MTP as the transfer protocol rather than MSC, the latter being required for fimware updates only. My understanding is that MTP was designed for DRM/License transfer, so I'm not surprised to see this selection when in Auto mode. However, the previous unit selected MSC when in Auto, and forcing MTP didn't work anyway. Oh, well.

The m240 is now on sale at BestBuy, though not as good as the price I paid originally, so I had to tell them that I didn't feel right accepting their $10 Gift Card, though perhaps I should have taken it to cover my troubleshooting time.

Thanks to all who offered assistance.

My Happy Ending didn't last long. We had thought that we could store multiple books on the m240 for use during extended travel or by more than one user. Although it is possible to store multiple books, it seems that it is only possible to access the first (or was it the last?) one downloaded. We recognized that without bookmarks, we would not be able to return to where we'd left off in the middle of any particular book, but were of the impression that we could at least select the beginning of a track/book and Fast Forward to a point on the timer. Not so, doesn't matter what track/book is selected, the m240 will only play from the beginning of its chosen one.

I've returned the m240 to BestBuy for a full refund and am now back in the market. It seems that to handle more than one book at a time, a player MUST have bookmarks. FWIW, salespersons seem now to be pushing the Microsoft Zune, once it's pointed out to them that iPods don't do WMA files.

I received the same error message on my sansa c240.

When you download a file from a subscription service, such as an audio book from a public library, you usually have to open the file on your computer first, which I believe, "activates the subscription" with the appropriate license. Some of the services pop up a screen telling you that your license is activated, but others, such as Overdrive, seem to do this automatically.

I believe they must activate via the internet.
So if you don't activate your subscription by opening the file on you computer, but instead load it to your mp3 player, there is no way for the file to activate, and it will give an error message.

When I downloaded a book and transfered it to a Sansa c240 mp3 player, I received the "synchronize" error message, but when I went through the above procedure and transferred to the mp3 player, no problems, and no error messages.

farrell@comcast.net

Error has to do with reading WMA files. SanDisk defaults to reading only MP3 files, to allow reading of WMA files go to:
Settings / USB / change from 'MSC' to 'Auto detect.'

OK - I was using WMP 9. Upgraded to WMP 10 and was able to download and synchronize the file so I can listen to it. Unfortunately, it still has the problem reported above of not keeping track of where I left off. I had planned to listen to books while commuting. Unless I get really short books, I will have to listen to the same first chapter every day.

After reading every message on every board that discusses this issue, this was the one that finally solved the problem of the "synchronize to continue your music subscription" error.

I had traveled to a conference with my husband and used his laptop to download a couple of audiobooks onto my Sansa Clip. I had forgotten that at some point an instruction had asked me to switch modes on the clip, which I had done. When I got home, every audiobook I downloaded gave me that error message.

After reading your post, I did as you suggested and changed my mode to Auto Detect. Voila! No more error message, even on the books I had already downloaded and weren't getting access to.

Thank you! I hope this works for others.

I learned today that you need to have the MP3 player in MTP mode when you synch to get the protected content to work properly. Why? I have no idea.

I hate the entire MSC/MTP mode thing. It's just confusing. They should find a way to eliminate the need.

I have an e260, so things could be a different for your player. On mine, from the main menu, go to "Settings" then "USB Settings."