I don't know, it can get annoying at times, but for two reasons I'm OK with it. First, while I listen to a lot of whole works, I do sometimes listen to them as they come out. Combine a confusing plot and a slow release schedule (Karl Meade's Odd Jobs being a case in point) and I need the training wheels sometimes. Since I'm usually listening to at least one or two podcast novels, reading as many as three books, listening to several short fic podcasts, reading SF magazines, etc (short attention span lately, so sue me), sometimes the training wheels are nice. Also, I find that when I listen to a story, my attention is more apt to wander than when I read. In a short story, that's fine, if I miss something that breaks the story I just go back and re-listen. In a novel, you might miss something three episodes back without knowing it, and that reminder can be helpful.
