eBooks and Typos

[seldan]

Currently, I read eBooks with the Mobipocket reader on a Treo device, however I am greatly looking forward to migrating to eInk once the Cybook G3 and/or Amazon Kindle is release. Although I'd love to get a Sony Reader, there doesn't seem to be any Bible translation other than the NIV on the Connect site, and I'm more of a TNIV/NRSV type.

That being said, I was excited to purchase the TNIV translation on Mobipocket. I started to browse it and noticed awful typos. I mean, there doesn't appear to be any proofreading done at all. This saddens me. I want to embrace eBooks but whenever I get a book, it is so poorly proofread that I go running back to the paper edition.

Mistakes happen, but there just doesn't seem to be a way to let these companies know of typos and actually get them fixed. eBooks seem like a poorly executed afterthought.

Has anyone else experienced mass typos in eBooks and been able to do something about it? Just curious. I can live with them, but it makes eBooks look bad.

Regards,
Tom

[jbenny]

It is bad enough that public domain ebooks have typos and other errors. Even ebooks from PG are not error free, despite the fact that they have all those proofreaders. I think that it is inexcusable that the ebooks you pay money for are sometimes even worse.

The most common errors I see are due to OCR. Some of these should have been caught with a spell checker, as they are not real words. The others should have been caught by someone actually reading the text. It seems that even the commercial publishers can't be bothered to do this.

I usually keep track of the errors I find as I am reading an ebook, so I can correct them later. For non-DRM formats, this is easy. That is why I only buy in LIT format, so I can correct my personal copy.

Right now, I'm reading "Red Alert" that was a Black Mask release. I'm not halfway done and I've found several errors so far. I appreciate the efforts of PG, Baen, Blask Mask (or whatever it's called now) and others, but I would prefer that they had error free text before they released something, as opposed to going for quantity.

[RWood]

There are 2 versions that I know about in the MobileRead free download section for the Sony Reader. They are the King James version and World English version.

NIV, TNIV, and NRSV are copyrighted translations and therefore not in the public domain. Good luck on your search.

[Patricia]

There are several versions of the Bible available here on the Book upload section, including the King James and World English Bibles.
The section also includes works by a number of Christian authors.

[nekokami]

I've been considering switching to reading some books with Abiword on my iLiad, so I can correct typos as I read. I've been to lazy to do it so far, but sometimes the typos really do drive me crazy.

[DMcCunney]

Originally Posted by jbenny

It is bad enough that public domain ebooks have typos and other errors. Even ebooks from PG are not error free, despite the fact that they have all those proofreaders. I think that it is inexcusable that the ebooks you pay money for are sometimes even worse.

Distributed Proofreaders tries, and does a fairly good job, but perfection is a goal to be strived for, not something you normally attain. eBook publishers are at the mercy of their sources. They don't acquire the manuscript, copy edit, and proofread. That happens elsewhere, and if it's done badly or not at all, they are stuck with the results.

The most common errors I see are due to OCR. Some of these should have been caught with a spell checker, as they are not real words. The others should have been caught by someone actually reading the text. It seems that even the commercial publishers can't be bothered to do this.

It's an increasing problem. Some publishers still try, but others see it as an expense they'd prefer to avoid. I recall at least one exchange on the topic on another forum I'm involved with, where the participants are mostly in publishing in one manner or another. One who worked for a production service that did copy editing and proofreading on a contract basis complained about books that apparently weren't proofread. Another who was an editor at a major publisher said that proofreading and copy editing were part of the production budget for the book. The first replied "At your house they are, because you folks still maintain standards. That is not the case everywhere else..."

Right now, I'm reading "Red Alert" that was a Black Mask release. I'm not halfway done and I've found several errors so far. I appreciate the efforts of PG, Baen, Blask Mask (or whatever it's called now) and others, but I would prefer that they had error free text before they released something, as opposed to going for quantity.

Blackmask is now called Munseys, though www.blackmask.com also gets you there.

I know the proprietor of Blackmask. He'd like to have error free text, too, but how do you propose he get it? What he's doing is taking text from elsewhere, like PG, and reformatting into a dozen electronic formats. He's a one man shop. He can create the ebooks and maintain the site, but he can't also proofread - there just aren't enough hours in a day.

Drop the proprietor of Munseys a note with your corrections. He's pretty responsive.
______
Dennis

[Patricia]

To find all of the uploaded Bibles on this site, click here:
http://www.mobileread.com/forums/ebooks.php

then click on the inconspicuous search button on the top right.

[DaleDe]

Originally Posted by DMcCunney

Blackmask is now called Munseys, though www.blackmask.com also gets you there.

I know the proprietor of Blackmask. He'd like to have error free text, too, but how do you propose he get it? What he's doing is taking text from elsewhere, like PG, and reformatting into a dozen electronic formats. He's a one man shop. He can create the ebooks and maintain the site, but he can't also proofread - there just aren't enough hours in a day.

Drop the proprietor of Munseys a note with your corrections. He's pretty responsive.
______
Dennis

It is interesting that you say this. I have found 0 length file downloads, corrected and produced a copy from a different format. Also corrected several books and offered all of this back to Blackmask but never heard any kind of response. The only thing I see is how fast he can produce more books, no quality commitment. Maybe it works better if you know him.

dale

[DMcCunney]

Originally Posted by DaleDe

It is interesting that you say this. I have found 0 length file downloads, corrected and produced a copy from a different format. Also corrected several books and offered all of this back to Blackmask but never heard any kind of response. The only thing I see is how fast he can produce more books, no quality commitment. Maybe it works better if you know him.

dale

<shrug> Maybe.

I was a participant on the old Blackmask forums and was in contact with the chap before we actually met. I had occasion to be in his neck of the woods a while back, dropped him a note saying "give me a call if you want to meet", and got a call when I was there. Nice guy, and we spent a pleasant afternoon talking electronic literature.

I just don't expect instant responses to mail.

You can also try leaving comments in the Munseys forums. He reads those.

If you still get nowhere, let me know and I'll have a go at it.
______
Dennis

[DaleDe]

Originally Posted by DMcCunney

<shrug> Maybe.

I was a participant on the old Blackmask forums and was in contact with the chap before we actually met. I had occasion to be in his neck of the woods a while back, dropped him a note saying "give me a call if you want to meet", and got a call when I was there. Nice guy, and we spent a pleasant afternoon talking electronic literature.

I just don't expect instant responses to mail.

You can also try leaving comments in the Munseys forums. He reads those.

If you still get nowhere, let me know and I'll have a go at it.
______
Dennis

Thanks, another forum to join.

Dale