Audiobook Player

A web player for an OpenAudible library, with user accounts, per-user listening progress synced across devices, and an iPhone-friendly layout. Python 3 standard library only.

Setup

python3 server.py setup          # OpenAudible login the server uses (shared by all accounts)
python3 server.py adduser NAME   # create a player account
python3 server.py serve          # --upstream http://HOST:8000 --port 8080

Then open http://<server-ip>:8080 and sign in. The first account (and the PLAYER_USER default in Docker) is an admin. Admins manage users at /admin. Other commands: users, passwd NAME, deluser NAME.

Only MP3/M4B files can be played in a browser; convert Audible .aax/.aaxc books in OpenAudible first.

Notes

• Credentials and user data live in config.json, users.json, sessions.json, progress_users.json (git-ignored).
• Only read-only OpenAudible endpoints are proxied; admin commands and import are blocked.
• Traffic is plain HTTP. Use a VPN (e.g. Tailscale) or a TLS reverse proxy for access outside your home network.

Docker

# .env next to docker-compose.yml
OPENAUDIBLE_USER=...
OPENAUDIBLE_PASSWORD=...
PLAYER_USER=nate          # default account, created on first start
PLAYER_PASSWORD=...

docker compose up -d, then sign in at port 8080. The default account is only created if it doesn't exist, so changing its password later with docker exec -it audiobook-player python server.py passwd nate sticks. Add more people with adduser.

Offline listening

Tap the ↓ on a book (or "Download" in the player) to save it on the device. Downloaded books show a ✓, and the "Downloaded only" view lists them. They play with no connection to the server, and progress syncs when you're back online.

• Keep the app open while a download runs; iOS pauses pages in the background.
• The audio is stored in the browser (IndexedDB). iOS counts it against the site's storage quota, which is much larger once the site is added to the Home Screen.
• To open the app itself offline, serve it over HTTPS. Browsers only allow the service worker (sw.js) on secure origins. Put a reverse proxy with a certificate in front of port 8080 (and a domain name). Over plain HTTP, downloads still play but the page can't load without a connection.