MobileRead ForumsWed, 7 Oct 2009 - 17:46:57
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•Amazon Kindle goes international•Tablet PC LBook™ T9 to be released next year•Spotted: Gosund GS601 e-reader from China•Is Rapidshare a promoter of e-book piracy?•MobileRead Week in Review: 09/26 - 10/03•Why the Digital Revolution is Missing the Big Picture•Refurbished Sony PRS-505 for 179,99 EUR (Germany)•Top Ten September library ebook downloads•Simon & Schuster introduces the "Vook" : read it and watch it•Windows "everywhere" may boost e-books•RUMOR: Kindle coming to the UK next week•Book Club October 2009 Mobile Read Book Club Vote•MobileRead Week in Review: 09/19 - 09/26•Hanvon N518 coming to Germany•Introducing Inkmesh•Steve Jordan to appear in NY Times tomorrow•iriver Story on pre-order now - 290 USD aprox•July ebook sales figures announced

Amazon Kindle goes international

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Notices Just Launched Got Facebook? Join our MobileRead Facebook Fan Page! Checked it out. Definitely good news. However, bestseller prices are 11.99 instead of 9.99 as in the US, so I suspect other prices will be higher, too. On the other hand, that may be because of higher 3G delivery costs. And you probably couldn't register the Kindle to take advantage of US prices. Still, a very positive development.   HansTWN View Public Profile Find More Posts by HansTWN Track Posts by HansTWN via RSS Here is a link to the international wireless kindle which apparently is different internally than the US based one, and $20 more. And yes it looks like there will be an additional $1.99 tacked on to the book price. Since they haven't been shipped yet all countries haven't been added.......

http://www.amazon.com/Wireless-Readi...pf_rd_i=507846   desertgrandma View Public Profile Find More Posts by desertgrandma Track Posts by desertgrandma via RSS Checked it out. Definitely good news. However, bestseller prices are 11.99 instead of 9.99 as in the US, so I suspect other prices will be higher, too. On the other hand, that may be because of higher 3G delivery costs. And you probably couldn't register the Kindle to take advantage of US prices. And, of course, the selection for non-US customers is more limited than for American customers - I've spotted some books which are available for Americans but not for Germans.   And, of course, the selection for non-US customers is more limited than for American customers - I've spotted some books which are available for Americans but not for Germans. Probably copyright issues.

I'm interested in comparing different regions.

I'm in Germany, and the Kindle store lists 272,504 titles as available. What's the total number of titles for other regions (including the USA)?   Jürgen Hubert View Public Profile Find More Posts by Jürgen Hubert Track Posts by Jürgen Hubert via RSS Kindle book is 31.95, hardcover has been been reduced to 26.37. You can check out Amazon US from anywhere -- though not necessarily buy anything.   HansTWN View Public Profile Find More Posts by HansTWN Track Posts by HansTWN via RSS Amazon's made its international launch announcement overnight on its UK site and others. I guess those who don't feel snubbed so badly over the past couple of years as to acutally buy it, pay the extra (non-US) purchase price on the machine and a couple of bucks extra every time they download a book from a Kindle store with georestrictions on many titles. TBNT. Merry Christmas, Sony, Cybook, Cool-ER et al. Neil   neilmarr View Public Profile Visit neilmarr's homepage! Find More Posts by neilmarr Track Posts by neilmarr via RSS I was excited while reading the announcement and also feeling dismayed that my original Kindle and Kindle 2 would be unable to take advantage of this; but after reading about the limitations, I'm not so stoked. I mean, it's great that people in other countries can finally purchase a Kindle directly from Amazon but this really adds nothing to those of us who are already US customers. With a $2 charge for every download (including archived items!?) and no access to the web browser, I would never turn on the wireless when abroad (I'm living in Japan right now and I don't feel very deprived without wireless). The best thing about wireless to me is being able to access Wikipedia anywhere. Take away that, what's the point? There's no book I need so badly that I can't wait until I get home to download (of if I have my laptop with me, until I find a hotspot). __________________
"I do not speak with any fondness, but the language of coldest history, when I say that Boston commands attention as the town which was appointed in the destiny of nations to lead the civilization of North America."
-Ralph Waldo Emerson   Considering I often have to pay over twice the Amazon price for books sold in Australia, I'll take what Amazon can offer.

Some good news is that you can change your country on the "Manage Your Kindle" page. You will probably need a US credit card or to use the gift certificate trick to buy the American selection at US prices. The curious question will be whether books are still wirelessly delivered regardless of which country you are in. Since the international Kindles are designed for travelling overseas, I doubt they will require customers to change their location whenever they cross a border. __________________
Currently reading:
Create Your Own Economy by Tyler Cowen, Thinking and Deciding by Jonathan Baron, The Myth of the Rational Market by Justin Fox

Books I've read in 2009:
The Addict by Michael Stein, Faust in Copenhagen by Gino Segre, Blue Shoes and Happiness by Alexander McCall Smith, The Lightness of Being by Frank Wilczek, Animal Farm by George Orwell, The Cat Who... Went Underground/Talked to Ghosts/Lived High/Knew a Cardinal/Moved a Mountain/Wasn't There by Lilian Jackson Braun   A couple interesting points gleaned from your comprehensive list:

1. Despite what the Kindle International homepage says about $9.99 NYT bestsellers for international readers, NONE of NTY Bestsellers to any other country than the US appear to be under $11.99 (with some over). And then is added the $1.99 international surcharge.<BR/>
2. Only about half of the counties listed have wireless downloads available.

"Low Book Prices: New York Times Best Sellers and New Releases are $9.99, unless marked otherwise. When traveling abroad, you can download books wirelessly from the Kindle Store or your Archived Items for a fee of $1.99"
Last edited by sforce; Today at 04:24 AM. Thanks for that, BK. Quite fascinating.

I live in France where 'Kindling' is unlikely to spark a bonfire because relatively few ebooks are available in the French language. I'm a Brit, though, so it's interesting to see that Amazon justifies the two dollar hike in best seller prices there by claiming 'includes VAT'. As has been correctly pointed out in another thread here, ebook downloads are merely 'licences'. This means they are 'services' rather than 'purchases', thus carrying 6% VAT and not the 19% which the price increase reflects. Where's the extra buck and a half going?

By the way, I'm a partner in a small indie publishing house in Europe (BeWrite Books). The ebook versions of our paperback titles and those of scores of others were dropped by Amazon when they opened their own Kindle-specific store because publishers had to have an 'official' US presence. As far as I can see, publishers (and self-publishers) without registered US offices and/or US tax and social security numbers are still excluded.

Cheers. Neil (who's quite happy with the freedoms offered by his Sony PRS-505 and would prefer a small box of good Havanas for Christmas to a Kindle -- and not just because Cuban cigars are one of the very few things left that we can buy and Americans can't).   neilmarr View Public Profile Visit neilmarr's homepage! Find More Posts by neilmarr Track Posts by neilmarr via RSS While this news is a useful first step to try and shake up some of the international markets, with their claimed figures for books being 280 (UK/AUS), 290k (NL/DE) compared with 350k for the states, I think the sensible approach will be to sit back and let other people see just how bad the geographic restrictions turn out to be in practice rather than theory.   Crowl View Public Profile Find More Posts by Crowl Track Posts by Crowl via RSS I have a US Kindle also, and I live in Belgium. When hearing the news about an international Kindle I wondered if mine will work also, but no luck, the modem is changed from EVDO to HSDPA.
My question is... If I register my Kindle now will I be able to buy books and download them to my computer? Or when registering it will complain with something like "you have a US Kindle, can't be registerd from your location". Hm...
But I think Amazon made a smart move, instead of negociationg individually with GSM operators it transfered the costs to users...   LucasCorso View Public Profile Find More Posts by LucasCorso Track Posts by LucasCorso via RSS Welcome to the MobileRead Forums.

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Notices Just Launched Got Facebook? Join our MobileRead Facebook Fan Page! Quote: 1-Click to order your Kindle Edition. Your purchase will be sent automatically and wirelessly to the Kindle via Amazon Whispernet. No cables, no computer, no syncing. If you send your purchase to an iPhone or iPod touch, it will be available in your Kindle for iPhone application.If you are outside a wireless coverage area, or are outside the U.S. and want to avoid international fees, select "Transfer via computer" when you Buy now with 1-Click. You can then download the Kindle Edition to a computer and transfer to your USB connected Kindle. Given the simple workaround (sending gift cards to yourself) and the country restrictions and higher prices: Why would anyone be interested to switch form the former process of purchasing directly in the US?
Only arguments for me would be a.) wireless download and b.) country specific content (German newspapers or magazines for example).   Quote: We are excited to now ship Kindle to Austria. Customers in Austria will enjoy:
Books in Under 60 Seconds: Think of a book and you could be reading it in under a minute

Free Wireless: Free 3G wireless lets you download books right from your Kindle. No monthly fees, service plans, or hunting for Wi-Fi hotspots. See Coverage Map. See Wireless Terms and Conditions

Large Selection: Over 290,000 English-language books to choose from; plus U.S. and international newspapers and magazines

Low Book Prices: New York Times® Best Sellers and New Releases are $11.99 to $13.99 (prices include VAT), unless marked otherwise. You'll also find many books for less - over 70,000 titles are priced under $5.99 I don't actually want a Kindle ... I want to read Kindle Books on my iPhone!!

*opens-iTunes-to-check-kindle-app*   I wonder if that charge is the real reason for prices being a minimum of $11.99 everywhere else, they have simply rolled the $1.99 into the price and then countries such as the uk that have potentially higher prices it is the extra amount on top of the $11.99 that is due to local taxes.   Crowl View Public Profile Find More Posts by Crowl Track Posts by Crowl via RSS Not really. Have you looked at the "roaming" charges for data on GSM networks? And don't forget that, in the EU, eBooks are liable for the full rate of VAT, which is anywhere from about 15% to 25%. That makes sense for the Europe. But we only pay 5% tax.   You can't throw it away. You buy via your computer, but you can only download via WiFi or data plan to your Iphone/Ipod touch. So it must be in working order.   HansTWN View Public Profile Find More Posts by HansTWN Track Posts by HansTWN via RSS Slashgear says that the kindle will be shipped directly from the US so buyers will be responsible for shipping, import taxes and duty fees.
"A UK buyer, for instance, can expect $20.98 shipping and $45 in fees, bringing the total cost to $344.98." Last edited by olis; Today at 05:34 AM. Now it gets interesting

In the UK this is going to shake things up. I love my Sony 505, and my efforts at the moment are centred around justifying and importing a red 600. But $1.99 surcharge or not, this can only be good news for eBooks.

My big fear is that someone (Apple?) actually gets a tablet right, and these expensive eInk readers fall by the wayside, and our retinas are back to being fried alive. I think this move makes that less likely, and I'm stunned at the figures Amazon are quoting for Kindle editions versus dead tree versions.

Exciting times!

amjb   amjbrown View Public Profile Find More Posts by amjbrown Track Posts by amjbrown via RSS You can buy US iTunes gift certificates (I bought them from a commercial provider, paid US 52.41 for US$ 50 face value), then you can download the Kindle app. And you also get your music much cheaper then in other countries, besides many things are only offered at US itunes.   HansTWN View Public Profile Find More Posts by HansTWN Track Posts by HansTWN via RSS Quote: In the future, we plan to introduce a UK-centric Kindle experience, enabling you to purchase Kindle and Kindle books in sterling from our Amazon.co.uk site. It anoys me the french website don't mentions such a thing. The day amazon sell e-book on their french website, as ePub, and to non kindle owner, i'll think about buying books from them.   The info for UK customers says this

Free Wireless: Free 3G wireless lets you download books right from your Kindle. No monthly fees, service plans, or hunting for Wi-Fi hotspots. See Coverage Map. See Wireless Terms and Conditions

I read the conditions to say that if I buy a book while in the UK it is wirelessly delivered free. If I go on holiday to Spain and have a book delivered wirelessly it costs $1.99 extra as a roaming charge.

General. Amazon provides wireless connectivity free of charge to you for certain content shopping and downloading services on your Device. You may be charged a fee for wireless connectivity for your use of other wireless services on your Device, such as Web browsing and downloading of personal files, should you elect to use those services. We will maintain a list of current fees for such services in the Kindle Store. Amazon reserves the right to discontinue wireless connectivity at any time or to otherwise change the terms for wireless connectivity at any time, including, but not limited to (a) limiting the number and size of data files that may be transferred using wireless connectivity and (b) changing the amount and terms applicable for wireless connectivity charges.

Coverage and Service Interruptions. You acknowledge that if your Device is located in any area without applicable wireless connectivity, you may not be able to use some or all elements of the wireless services. We are not responsible for the unavailability of wireless service or any interruptions of wireless connectivity.   Flub View Public Profile Find More Posts by Flub Track Posts by Flub via RSS Well hang on a second, if I buy a Kindle and have it shipped to here in Australia where I live, I should according to that statement not pay a $1.99 surcharge to download the book as I am not travelling abroad, I am merely using the device in my country of residence. If I travel abroad to another country then yes, I agree that I should pay, but not when I am sitting at home and not travelling abroad. Perhaps they should state that OUTSIDE of the USA you pay $1.99 to download a book.   Solicitous View Public Profile Find More Posts by Solicitous Track Posts by Solicitous via RSS WTH!!! Canadian customers are always chipped! Amazon.ca sucks, no kindle yet for us but sure, why not release it in Fiji and the Congo? Its like Canada doesn't exist to American companies! Zune was really really late. iPhone was really really late. Kindle is still really really late. Like the above too, I am losing all interest in wanting one.

Sony probably will get my money before long. 9-9 __________________
-=- Jenny -=-

Quote: The $1.99 per title download fee does not apply to International customers. This fee only applies to U.S. customers traveling internationally. Also, if an international customer uses a Kindle International outside of his home county, he will NOT need to pay a download fee. This also applies to U.S. customer only. So basically the way it will work is that you buy a Kindle International and register it to a particular country. If you register it in the US and travel outside the US you will pay an extra download fee. But if you register it in another country you don't pay any download fee either at home or abroad. However, it seems that books have an added $2 above US prices and less selection if your Kindle is registered outside the US, so you are essentially paying it anyways. Subscriptions are a bit higher but at least not $1.99 per day more.

My thoughts are that this is still a useful alternative to those with no US credit card to be able to participate in the ebook market. It beats paying almost $10 shipping to buy a physical book from amazon.com with 3-6 weeks international shipping. For me, I have a US credit card so I think I'll just stick to downloading on my computer for now and save the two bucks.

It also seems to be a bit strange that the international wireless surcharge is so high even in places where data plans are much cheaper than in the US. For example, I'm in Taiwan and pay about US$23 a month for unlimited 3G data plan without a voice plan (I pay per-usage for voice). That's compared to my friends in the US who typically pay at least $70 a month for data and voice.

Tablet PC LBook™ T9 to be released next year

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News and Commentary Latest on e-books, e-paper, DRM and related technologies
Quote: The new device is not an ebook reader as one would expect, but a tablet PC. 12.7mm (1/2") thin device will run Windows 7. It will have a touch screen and use multi-touch technology.

Technical details:
CPU: Intel Atom Z530 1.6G 512KB L2 533MHz
RAM: DDR2 2GB
HDD: 120GB
Screen: TFT LCD, 8.9" wide, LED, 16:10, 1024x600
Wireless: Bluetooth, WiFi, (3G option available)
Expected battery life: 4 hours.
Weight: 670g

Expected retail price: $350-375
Street date: March 2010 I thought this site was aimed towards ebook readers (Aka: light,portable, long battery life, and preferably readable in sunlight?) __________________
---------------------------------
I'm just another jobless guy spending his time browsing on the internet...
It's a pitty that so much talent can not come to it's fullest potential here in Miami. Computers don't exist here(or so...)! We still live with the Florida Groove, and Disneyland, while brassbands and Latino music is heard all over, and alligators swim in the swamps.
People renting out fishingboats earn more than marketing analysts.   ProDigit View Public Profile Find More Posts by ProDigit Track Posts by ProDigit via RSS I'm looking for something with 10+ hrs battery life, myself. I don't mind charging overnight, but I don't want to have to be concerned about battery life during a single day.   Bob Russell View Public Profile Find More Posts by Bob Russell Track Posts by Bob Russell via RSS I'm looking for something with 10+ hrs battery life, myself. I don't mind charging overnight, but I don't want to have to be concerned about battery life during a single day. Yes, when compared to netbooks (with same screen res, HDD, CPU) 4 hours is disappointing. But unlike a netbook, this is supposed to be handheld, so the form factor has to be light and thin enough to make that comfortable. Still I'd double battery capacity, whatever that takes. Flash memory instead of HDD might help with that too.   I'm looking for something with 10+ hrs battery life, myself. I don't mind charging overnight, but I don't want to have to be concerned about battery life during a single day. yeah. i am more concerned of the battery life with this thing. 4 hours is just like 1 sitting... but that will do i guess. it's more of like a pc anyway.

yeah. i am more concerned of the battery life with this thing. 4 hours is just like 1 sitting... but that will do i guess. it's more of like a pc anyway. Thats because it is a PC.

Spotted: Gosund GS601 e-reader from China

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If you can't count anymore on getting special attention by waving around a mainstream e-book reader, how about you try this little beauty straight from China. Dubbed GS601 E-ink, it looks different from any other reading device I've seen so far. Aside from that, the specs look rather mundane:
Display: E Ink, 6-inch 800x600 Size (in mm): 160x116x9 Weight: 1kg (if true, it'd make it the heaviest e-book reader ever) Internal Memory: Flash? External memory: 1GB-16GB Connectivity: USB 2.0 Battery: Lithium-Polymer 3.7V 1000mA Lifetime: "up to 20hrs" reading time or 16hrs audio playback Formats supported: TXT, DOC, PDB, PDF, JPG, BMP, MP3, WMA, APE, FLAC, AAC, WAV, OGG
When I tried to figure out the price through the order page, it would say zero yuan, so it doesn't seem to be available yet. Or, it's just a very good price.

Link to the product page: GS601 E-ink

Thanks to Lee for the tip! 20 hours? It's pretty long. You read how many pages per minute?

20 hours is 1200 minutes. Let's say you read 3 pages per minutes, so, it will give you about 4000 pages. I've yet to time my Mini, so I've no idea how many pages I'll get out of one charge (they say 8000 I believe) __________________
Fence sitter Extraordinaire
Can't decide between the IRex Digital Reader, or Sony PRS600. That Plastic Logic device looks good too and the Hanvon WISEreader N518 as well. And don't forget about the Txtr reader! I could also wait for the BeBook2?

Or should I go for the Canon PowerShot SX20 IS? 3 page per minute? Gosh! Either you are a speed reader or you use a large font size. I don't think I can get much more than 1 page per minute.   Jellby View Public Profile Visit Jellby's homepage! Find More Posts by Jellby Track Posts by Jellby via RSS Either way I rather have a battery capacity in hours (with let say one page turn every 50s) than in "continuous page turn" like almost all current devices. __________________
"We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars."
Oscar Wilde   20 hours? It's pretty long. You read how many pages per minute?

20 hours is 1200 minutes. Let's say you read 3 pages per minutes, so, it will give you about 4000 pages. I've yet to time my Mini, so I've no idea how many pages I'll get out of one charge (they say 8000 I believe) I get twice that with my reader. I've been reading on it, for a week solid since my last charge, and it just now says it is at three quarter charge. I've probably gone close to that 20 hour limit in that time.   There may be a connection between the good price and its weight.?. So: if the weight goes down, the price goes up. Hurray for heavy readers!!   Morken View Public Profile Find More Posts by Morken Track Posts by Morken via RSS If the image is not photoshopped, this would be the first ereader with a glossy screen (all the others are matt). Thats going from the reflection.   gregcd View Public Profile Find More Posts by gregcd Track Posts by gregcd via RSS

Is Rapidshare a promoter of e-book piracy?

Where do users commonly get their pirated e-books from? NYTimes columnist Randall Stross asked himself the question and so he hired an antipiracy organization from California to do a search on how many e-book copies of Dan Brown's "The Lost Symbol" were available free on the Web. They came up with 166 copies on 11 different sites; 102 of the copies were located at Rapidshare.

In case you don't know, Rapidshare is a hugly popular one-click hoster with headquarters in Switzerland, claiming to have storage capacity of several petabytes.

The Association of American Publishers agrees with the findings that Rapidshare is the big daddy for illegally sharing e-book content.

Quote: "As far as we can tell, RapidShare is the largest host site of pirated material," Mr. McCoyd [executive director at AAP] said. "Some publishers are saying half of all infringements are linked to it." And Rapidshare's response? A spokeswoman said that her company wasn't responsible for content uploaded by its users, and that it's the publishers' responsibility to send take-down requests, requiring a link to each individual download address ("it's left to the publishers to find all instances of a given book title on RapidShare’s servers").

Rapidshare's advice to the publishers: to "give away most of their content for free" (as the popular rock group Nine Inch Nails did).

Read the full article: Will Books Be Napsterized? (registration required)

Thanks to Tim for the hint! Considering that most people use Google for almost everything, it is very likely that Rapidshare is also the main source for those who want to share books illegally. Obviously, there are other places as well, but they will always be a niche and not of interest to the average John Doe e-book pirate. __________________
"It doesn't matter how good or bad the product is, the fact is that people don't read anymore." - Apple's Steve Jobs, Jan 15, 2008   What I don't understand how Rapidshare can get through with this. Small sites go down immediately when they have some kind of infringing material on their site. In some countries, Rapidshare has been ordered to make sure no illegal content is present on their servers. And yet - they continue as they always have, and it seems nobody can do anything against it. __________________
"It doesn't matter how good or bad the product is, the fact is that people don't read anymore." - Apple's Steve Jobs, Jan 15, 2008 I doubt rapishare is the main source for the illegal downloading of ebooks. IRC, Usenet and Torrent sites are in my estimations as much bigger sources. And I wouldn't be suprised if my 10+ years of experience in piracy (yarrr!) beats some sort of "anti-piracy" company that just wants to make money by telling copyright companies what they want to hear.

I do agree with Rapidshare that piracy will prevail and that their only solution will be found in the embracing of the idea of giving things out for free!

But no matter, some people will keep buying overpriced ebooks that are more expensive than their paperback (or even hardcover in some cases) equivalent and as such will keep feeding the machine and supporting with their money all sort of draconian laws and restricting technologies. (Instead of blaming pirates for DRM for example, ask yourself WHO paid for the development of it? yes, that's right. The people that buy overpriced books!)   pieter View Public Profile Find More Posts by pieter Track Posts by pieter via RSS Rapidshare is just a site where end users can upload files-- there is a disclaimer that you aren't supposed to upload anything you don't have the legal right to upload, and Rapidshare takes down specific files when they are told to. Unless you want the ability to share files of any type at all to be outlawed, I don't see much more that Rapidshare should be doing. It is the owner of the intellectual property that has the obligation of protecting their content, not Rapidshare's.

Rapidshare, though, is just one of multiple popular file storage sites, including Sendspace, Megaupload, Depositfiles, Megashares, 4shared, and others. You can use them for "legal" sharing of files or "illegal" ones, just like any other file sharing method.

The only reason I can think of for Rapidshare to be singled out for an article is because there is a search engine for Rapidshare files at http://rapidlibrary.com/ (which turns up on google searches early and often.)

But I agree, torrents (especially bulk torrents) and usenet, and possibly emule and avaxhome are likely bigger sources than Rapidshare alone. Last edited by ardeegee; 10-04-2009 at 01:02 PM. Reason: naming ok, just no links please. thanks I don't see the point of mentioning RS in regards to ebooks in particular, as all kind of copyrighted material is being uploaded there. They talk of petabytes (I am in my engineer studies and have no idea how much that is), so quite sure there are a few movies, songs and porn industry blockbusters there.
All of the video and audio media went pirate the moment it was digitalized, so why one expects books will be different? As mp3 sells go and rise in numbers with the $1 per song scheme, the same will happen when book prices become sane.   gollu View Public Profile Find More Posts by gollu Track Posts by gollu via RSS What sites like Rapidshare, Mediafire, 4Shared, Box, FilePanda and dozens of other do is make it easier for the "average joe" to get stuff. My guess would be much more content changes hands via IRC and Torrents.

As far as if they promote piracy or not I don't know, but they don't really discourage it either. __________________
~Brian

"The test of any good fiction is that you should care something for the characters; the good to succeed, the bad to fail. The trouble with most fiction is that you want them all to land in hell, together, as quickly as possible."

All the piracy talk ignores some fundamentals that are really important for the book publishing industry.

1. No one has any idea of how many books are really being downloaded and read.

2. No one has any idea of how many of the downloaders are downloading the book simply because it is downloadable.

3. No one knows what percentage of the downloads are truly lost sales.

4. Everyone mistakenly compares book piracy with music piracy but they aren't even apples being compared to oranges -- they are more dissimilar than that. Downloading music essentially translates into instant gratification (the ability to listen to the music in its entiretly immediately) both individually and in a group. Downloading and listening require virtually no work. In contrast, downloading a book is more work intensive and doesn't provide instant work-free gratification. A book only can provide gratification after it has been read (or perhaps while it is being read), which isn't a 5-minute venture.

I suspect -- but clearly do not know -- that most book piracy is simply a way of thumbing one's nose at "the authorities". I suspect that for every 1,000 downloads of a particular book, only 1 is read and that 1 is unlikely to be a lost sale. Music downloads are different in almost every way.

5. None of the major publishers and most authors are receptive to experimenting with the Baen model, largely because it is easier to assume that everyone interested in a particular book would steal that book given the opportunity.

Unfortunately, as long as there is piracy publishers and authors will demand DRM, and as long as there are high prices, delayed ebook availability, and DRM there will be piracy. The circle will remain unbroken until some major publisher finally decides to try some other tactic. __________________
Richard H. Adin
www.wordsnSync.com
bringing editing into the 21st century

www.freelance-editorial-services.com
when only the best will do

I think it would be more interesting to research where the original source files came from. If they are cracked DRM versions, which stores are people shopping at, or which formats are they buying in, and then uploading? If they are scanned versions, things get even more interesting.

I suspect if there were a way to track sources, most of the pirated copies of this (or any other) DRM'd book would be found to trace back to a very small number of initial uploads. There's no "street cred" to be gained in the darknet gift economy by uploading what's already available. That's why the release of the last Harry Potter book was such a pirate's dream. Everyone knew that it wouldn't be released as an ebook, and the paper versions were (supposedly) tightly controlled. The release was also highly publicized, guaranteeing fame (or notoriety) to anyone who managed to "beat the system." So the race was on to provide a digital copy as early as possible-- in this case before the actual paper release date. Further updates were clean-ups and enhancements, such that now, if an authorized ebook were to be released, I doubt anyone would DRM-crack it and upload it, as there would be no point. The free pirate versions are probably better than the official DRM version would be in terms of proofreading, formatting, etc.

I'm also quite skeptical of the rapidshare claim-- what's easy to find on Google isn't necessarily where the action is happening. __________________
~neko

Simple advice:
-> = good
-> = bad

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I still want an InfoPad Years ago, when cassette tape piracy threatened to destroy the music industry in India, an enterprising company decided to take the battle to the pirates. Made tapes so affordable that it didn't make any sense to buy bootleg (i.e. reduced the price by 65-70%), turning it into a volumes game. Now, this is should be easily possible with digital media, so what's preventing these 'moguls'? I mean, if a new book were to cost $2.99 or $3.99 rather than $9.99 - $12.99, who'd risk downloading pirated versions?   sriram View Public Profile Find More Posts by sriram Track Posts by sriram via RSS A judge can make whatever ruling he likes. The question is exactly how RapidShare is expected to do this.

RapidShare is a file sharing service. Users can upload anything they desire. If I want to share material where doing so would be considered theft, I wrap it in an password protected archive under a misleading name. I then post the RapidShare link in a forum where folks interested in what I'm offering hang out, along with the password to extract the content from the archive. Precisely how is RapidShare supposed to police that? The old story of King Canute trying to order the tide not to roll in comes to mind.

This is a tempest in a teapot. Yes, we can assume there is piracy of ebooks. But how much? We have no way to tell.

If I'm an author, with ebooks on the market, I frankly don't care about things like bit torrent files for downloading a thousand ebooks. Mere downloads are irrelevant My concern will be ebooks which are downloaded illegally, and read instead of buying a legitimate copy from which I'll get revenue. But even then, I have no way to determine how much of a problem it is, let alone any way of preventing it.

Given that, I have three concerns:

1. Writing the best stuff I can, to give people books they will want to read.

2. Doing everything possible to let people who might be interested in what I write know that I exist and have books available they might like.

3. Make it as easy as possible for people aware of me to find my books and give me money.

People will pay for value if you provide value at a fair price, and make it convenient for them. Can I find illicit copies of particular books? Probably. But it will take time and effort. I pay for convenience all the time. Ebooks will be no different.
______
Dennis   DMcCunney View Public Profile Find More Posts by DMcCunney Track Posts by DMcCunney via RSS Yes. With extra problems, even if they decide on a[n insanely time-consuming] "review all content before posting" policy.

Assume, for a moment, that they review all content.
They get a collection of ebooks.
It includes:
Gone with the Wind
Little House on the Prarie
The Tarzan series
Zigzags of Treachery, by Hammett
Peter Pan
Little Brother
Down & Out in the Magic Kingdom
Free Culture
Pride & Prejudice
On Basilisk Station
Elfquest graphic novel, vol 1 issue 1.

What should they do? GWTW and Little House are copyrighted in the US, but not in Canada. The Tarzan series are public domain in the US and Canada, but not places with Life+70 terms. The Hammett story is PD in the US only. Peter Pan is PD everywhere but the UK. Each of those books is PD somewhere; no place that's subject to the Berne conventions acknowledges all of them as PD.

Little Brother, Down and Out, and Free Culture are copyrighted--but released under CC licenses. (Are they required to check for CC licenses?)

Pride & Prejudice is PD, if it's the gutenberg version, but could be copyrighted if it's the BN annotated version with extra content. It's certainly copyrighted if it's Pride & Prejudice & Zombies but the name has been clipped.

On Basilisk Station and the Elfquest graphic novels are both available for free--on their publishers' websites. They're not labeled "freely available to distribute," but neither do the publishers seem concerned if someone else goes to the hassle of hosting the bandwidth for them.

Should they okay or forbid the upload? What if the uploader got permission from Baen and Warp Graphics to share those files (which is very plausible in both cases)? How would the uploader let Rapidshare know that these are shared-with-permission?

Oh, and say there's a book in there called "Dan Brown.PDF." Not "Da Vinci Code," and not "Lost Symbol." Are they required to open it and figure out what the content is? If it starts with a rant about the evils of Dan Brown as an author, are they required to keep reading to find out if his books are also included?

A ruling of "you must filter entries" is a roundabout way of saying "you may not host files; your business stops now." __________________
When I'm not here, I'm somewhere else. Mind the rainbows. Years ago, when cassette tape piracy threatened to destroy the music industry in India, an enterprising company decided to take the battle to the pirates. Made tapes so affordable that it didn't make any sense to buy bootleg (i.e. reduced the price by 65-70%), turning it into a volumes game. Now, this is should be easily possible with digital media, so what's preventing these 'moguls'? I mean, if a new book were to cost $2.99 or $3.99 rather than $9.99 - $12.99, who'd risk downloading pirated versions? Nice idea. I am speaking from a personal opinion. I don't mind paying $9.99-$12.99US for ebooks, especially given they are about 50% of the price after conversion of pbooks here in Australia. What I do have a problem with is geographic restrictions. So if I am willing and able to buy an ebook, but every ebook seller refuses to sell it to me because I live in Australia, I have a few options;

1) Attempt to circumvent the geographic restrictions.
2) Buy the pbook (defeats the purpose of buying an ebook reader).
3) Don't buy the book at all (everyone misses out, including me).
4) Find a pirated electronic copy.

Which option would you take? I don't think RapidShare promotes piracy, I think it just provides the means. Regardless of the price of things there will always be people out there trying to get it for nothing, you can stop that. But I think what really needs to be looked at is WHY ARE PEOPLE PIRATING??? Is it price or is it because people can't legitimately buy the product?

Just my 2cents.   It's not a promoter of piracy, moreso a facilitator of piracy much in the same way the pirate bay is.

To avoid legal action I am sure rapidshare would have to provide an easy way for copyright holders to delete copyrighted material (or filter content). If you say rapidshare 'promotes' copyright infringement, the same could be said of youtube or the internet in general. __________________
Using: Kindle V2 + iPod Touch! EBook Fanatic!   Publishers are learning the lesson of the music industry, either produce the products that people want at what they consider reasonable prices or people will find their own way around it. Rapidshare is not the problem, DRM is the problem. The publishing industry thought that books could not be bootlegged so they sat on their hands now they will be in a panic and unfortunately for them more and more people are learning about it now. Pretty soon we will only have classics to read because there won't be a market for new books. __________________
Boosh!   I downloaded a copy of Dracula from the Sony/Borders Google Books section. It is a poorly formatted book. Gobbledygook on about every third page, interpolations of what must be the original photoscan of the volume. Now, there are a few cheapish versions on the S/B store, but not a word about the formatting. Nothing to tell me if they are text or pdf or epub or lrf. Nothing suggesting that the formatting is any better than the free version. In other words, the publishers don't seem to know what it is that they are selling. They think it's the content of the book, but don't seem to grasp that the content of this particular book is free.

So I am trudging along with the free version because I have no reason to believe that the other versions are any better.

The point is this: I don't think that what the booksellers are selling is content anymore, if it ever was. What they are selling is a number of services surrounding content. It used to be that the main service they were selling was Access, but with the internet, everything eventually becomes accessible. What booksellers need to be selling is Quality, Immediacy, Hassle Free. And they need to figure out how to price those services.

In the print environment, Amazon started selling some of the services, but not all of them. Successful bookstores are ones which sell what Amazon can't - and books themselves are not that product. Immediacy could be one. (I keep waiting for a bookstore that delivers books like pizza - call them up, and a guy in a car or on a bike delivers the book within the next hour.) Browsing is another such service, although Amazon is taking a bite at that.

For electronic books, it's going to be the same. The peculiar thing is that Amazon doesn't see that, or maybe they do but the publishers are too skittish.

"Piracy" is an illusion. The assumption that the download of a pirated book is a lost sale is just that - an assumption. An assumption more likely to be true is that a free book can be a hook into the sale of the next book. Another better assumption is that an intelligently priced and marketed book will move better than a pirated version.

Literate people do not want to pirate ebooks. They do, however, want to have them quickly, hassle free, well formatted, and at what they see as a fair price. Right now, pirated books deliver that complex of value better than publishers do. It's not that the pirates do it well, but rather, that the publishers don't seem to want to do it at all. __________________
HARMN As an example, I searched for the new Dan Brown book. I found it in Kindle and LRF format (the formatting looked pretty decent). But, I'm not interested in reading it. Not even for free. So what is the value if I download it? Full price? Half price? I don't know. I do know that *IF* I was interested in reading it, that I would not be willing to pay the same price as if I had purchased a dead tree book. And I would not accept any form of DRM.

Tom   tdavie View Public Profile Find More Posts by tdavie Track Posts by tdavie via RSS Thanks for those site recommendations.

I got my copy off of the S/B Bookstore mainly because as a Mac user, my access to that store is recent. Having read all the hype about how many of those books were available, I decided to try it out with the book that they are reading over at Infinite Summer. I will upgrade to the ones you pointed to! __________________
HARMN   I downloaded a copy of Dracula from the Sony/Borders Google Books section. It is a poorly formatted book. Gobbledygook on about every third page, interpolations of what must be the original photoscan of the volume. Now, there are a few cheapish versions on the S/B store, but not a word about the formatting. Nothing to tell me if they are text or pdf or epub or lrf. Nothing suggesting that the formatting is any better than the free version. In other words, the publishers don't seem to know what it is that they are selling. They think it's the content of the book, but don't seem to grasp that the content of this particular book is free. Harmon, we have Dracula in the MR uploads section, converted by JSWolf. Try that instead: it will be much better. I wouldn't say that they promote pirate, just lazy. They will remove copyrighted material, you just need to notify them first. Although, I do understand why they do that. I had a site for a while that was similar, that merely hosted game files for the game Frets on Fire, and despite an extremely small user base, I could easily spend hours removing files that weren't allowed when ever I looked at the site. I can't even imagine how difficult it would be even with a site that gets 1% of the traffic rapidshare gets. They would require to have entire teams of people, who do nothing but searching and removing copyrighted content. From a business standpoint, it is better to let others do the work of searching for you. Saves you money.   Hellmark View Public Profile Visit Hellmark's homepage! Find More Posts by Hellmark Track Posts by Hellmark via RSS The yellow pages provides phone numbers, addresses, and advertising for legitimate businesses. This isn't even remotely analogous to Rapidshare's facilitation of pirated books.

Rapidshare is far closer in character to the pawn shop. Rapidshare claims they are not providing stolen goods, and instead it was the evil person using their service that did it, and Rapidshare knew nothing about it . This is just like the pawn shop that says "Honest your honor, I didn't know that stuff was stolen. It is all the fault of the thief who sold it to me."

Pawn shop owners that knowingly sell stolen goods go to jail. To protect themselves they record your ID and the goods you are selling them into their records. Many pawn shops, such as those in Florida, provide this information to the police on a routine basis, and others will certainly provide it if asked. [Edit: If you don't provide an ID they throw you out of the store.] Pawn shops also serve a legitimate purpose. They provide short term loans and quick cash for people who need the money but can't get credit elsewhere. Any pawn shop owner who had a business where 95% of the stuff he sold was stolen would soon find himself in prison. __________________

A Site Designed for Kindle Owners Well, ebookshare has been up for years- guess if you only LINK to sites or torrents it is okay.

IMHO, the publishers STILL do not understand pricing of e-books. Look at the ridiculaous prices charged for tech e-books, esp. computer related. APress is an example- they want over $40 for a protected pdf e-book. I would NEVER pay thaat price, nor would most people. But, I have bought several Apress pdf's for the "special" price of $10....... Last edited by Alexander Turcic; Yesterday at 10:07 AM. Reason: changed link to site name. please no links, we don't want trouble. ;)   The transportation company promotes piracy by allowing the public lockers to be used by criminals for putting illicit goods and criminally-acquired money in there to exchange with their shady fellows.

I mean clearly it's the transportation company's responsibility to thoroughly screen the contents of their public-use lockers.

Same with self-storage providers. If anything illegal makes it into their little closets, even if it is something very small inside an inconspicuous unmarked box... the whole company along with the entire upper management should be brought down by the subsequent lawsuit. If nothing else it would make the self-storage market more dynamic!

- Ahi __________________
Aћáид эмлэ́кэ миндөрөккэ́ э́лјэн бэннэд,                       PDF: The eBook format!
Ш лэ́ђ мэ́чэшэ a јөвэндө́ нэмзэдэ́кэкнэк.

あたやいだ えめれけ みにでおろけ えれじぬ べねで
し れぎゅ めちし あ よゔねど ねめぜでけけねけ

앋야이데 엠엘에케 민도로케 엘옌 벤네데
에셰 레기 메체셰 아 조벤에도 넴세데켁넥

You are misrepresenting their business model. They don't rent disk space to people and provide code to access it.

Here is what they do. They allow people to load anything they want on their servers for free, and they allow everyone else to download those files for free. However, downloaders can also pay a fee to download the files quicker if they want. That is how they make money. Plus, if you are one of the people that uploads files that other people download a lot then they give you free access to their quicker downloads.

I know how their system works because I've used their free service before. I was stealing. I guess I'm just one of those weird people who is dishonest enough to steal, but honest enough to admit it.

I'm not going to lie to others, or to myself, and try to justify stealing based on some convoluted logic about an illegitimate business occasionally getting listed in the yellow pages, or a legitimate file occasionally getting listed on Rapidshare. __________________

A Site Designed for Kindle Owners You are misrepresenting their business model. They don't rent disk space to people and provide code to access it.

Here is what they do. They allow people to load anything they want on their servers for free, and they allow everyone else to download those files for free. However, downloaders can also pay a fee to download the files quicker if they want. That is how they make money. Plus, if you are one of the people that uploads files that other people download a lot then they give you free access to their quicker downloads. So far, it's giving free space and bandwith. Which is not even close to "promote piracy".

Gee. Lotsa questions listed in order to sow doubt. Shame you use it in a fairly unambiguous context.. It's way harder to argue that torrent sites "make available" than RS.
How many files have been posted: Hundreds of thousands to millions; there are lots of forums these days where (especially music and video) are being shared via RS. Most of these forums require one to register before being able to see the forum contents. It became more popular when demonoid and other large websites were having trouble, and have become more popular because seeding is highly dependent on upload speeds.

Have I seen them all?
Huh? We're talking about statistical significance here, not about whether they offer only IP not owned by poster. (and/or downloader, depending on your location)
And a second indication as to how many files they offer would be the fact that the service has been adding servers at an astounding rate. This happens through demand, not because RS particularly cares about redundancy. The files that cause increase bandwidth to be necessary are big files rather than small ones; i.e., music/video content. I'm guessing books are still a rather minor part in all this, but they have higher RRPs per megabyte. (which is a poor indication of worth, but still.) Public domain videos of course do exist, but they're generally already hosted on sites like archive.org, or youtube, and do not need to be mirrored 200x on RS.

Have you opened all the files?
My, how you must annoy your friends with your rigorousness.

And, most of all, can you explain why "don't care" equals "to promote"?
They don't need to promote; mouth-to-mouth advertising works very well for them. So no, they don't actively 'promote' themselves. That said, why is this proof of anything?
If they were to 'promote' it, it would be ever so much easier for a IP owner to complain to a judge to have them shut down; this way they can play the plausible deniability card. So no, they won't blatantly advertise the fact that you can put anything on there, especially IP content; but that's like saying the Mafia doesn't admit to being a criminal organization, and then using that as proof.

Anyway, the most criminal thing I would want to accuse RS of is trying to bully everyone into buying a subscription. Especially the captcha stuff was just nasty last year, though they've cut down on that now.
The biggest difference between torrent sites and RS is that torrent sites run on donations, RS actively makes people pay for faster service, knowing they're hosting what they're hosting, and trusting that the take-down rate will be low enough for them to be able to turn a profit. __________________
“the greatest dangers to liberty lurk in insidious encroachments by men of zeal, well-meaning but without understanding”
Geocities promoted piracy for years by not policing content. I've seen thousands of stories, pieces of artwork, and articles on various topics copied from other spots around the web without permission of the owner.

Of course, bloggers don't have the political clout that publishing companies do, so they were stuck filing individual complaints... just as the law requires.

If the law isn't adequate to protect people's interests, it is perhaps worth considering why, and asking if the public in general--rather than the tiny fraction who feel their rights are being infringed--wants or needs that law in place. Certainly, the purpose of law is not to enact more and more draconian restrictions on many people, in order to protect a tiny number from unproven damages. (Anyone got any indication that Dan Brown's sales are off because of unauthorized downloads? That Rowling would've sold more books if they hadn't been digitized & shared around the web?) __________________
When I'm not here, I'm somewhere else. Mind the rainbows.   Given that you can only make a value judgment about files whose download links have been explicitly shared, I'd be curious how you think one could possibly gauge the statistical significance (i.e.: weight) of anything knowable about RS by outsiders.

In other words, the fact that you are able to identify 100,000 RS download links with pirated materials doesn't mean that legitimate use doesn't utterly dwarf illegitimate use. And while checking all links is certainly not feasible, there's no other method either that is bound to get you accurate data.

- Ahi __________________
Aћáид эмлэ́кэ миндөрөккэ́ э́лјэн бэннэд,                       PDF: The eBook format!
Ш лэ́ђ мэ́чэшэ a јөвэндө́ нэмзэдэ́кэкнэк.

あたやいだ えめれけ みにでおろけ えれじぬ べねで
し れぎゅ めちし あ よゔねど ねめぜでけけねけ

앋야이데 엠엘에케 민도로케 엘옌 벤네데
에셰 레기 메체셰 아 조벤에도 넴세데켁넥

Given that you can only make a value judgment about files whose download links have been explicitly shared, I'd be curious how you think one could possibly gauge the statistical significance (i.e.: weight) of anything knowable about RS by outsiders.

In other words, the fact that you are able to identify 100,000 RS download links with pirated materials doesn't mean that legitimate use doesn't utterly dwarf illegitimate use. And while checking all links is certainly not feasible, there's no other method either that is bound to get you accurate data.

- Ahi

MobileRead Week in Review: 09/26 - 10/03

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Gosh we've talked a lot this week. Here's your weekly round up of MobileRead's events.

E-Book General - News and CommentaryRUMOR: Kindle coming to the UK next week Windows "everywhere" may boost e-books Simon & Schuster introduces the "Vook" : read it and watch it Top Ten September library ebook downloads Refurbished Sony PRS-505 for 179,99 EUR (Germany) Why the Digital Revolution is Missing the Big Picture E-Book General - Reading RecommendationsOctober 2009 Mobile Read Book Club Vote   Alexander Turcic View Public Profile Visit Alexander Turcic's homepage! Find More Posts by Alexander Turcic Track Posts by Alexander Turcic via RSS

Why the Digital Revolution is Missing the Big Picture

Quote: Now, I can sit in front of my computer for hours and read blogs, websites and multi-thousand word news articles. But when it comes to reading books, I just can't. I'm not sure if there's something wrong with me, or it's just that books themselves have an appeal that goes beyond the skeleton of words and paper. I don't mind lugging five paperbacks with me on a two-day trip, and there's something oddly enjoyable about scouring your shelf for the right five books, because heaven forbid you run out of reading material during those 48 hours. My shelves are lined with books -- read and unread -- and I have hundreds more in creased storage boxes. I pine for the day when I have enough shelves to house every one of them. I love physical books, love the weight, love the texture, love the feel. Yes, I am that guy in the bookstore picking up every new hardcover, who finds that books with a rough front make him feel fancy. He just doesn't get it. When I go on a trip I don't have to pick only 5 books to take with me; I bring my entire collection. The right 5 books? Hah. Try the right five hundred books.   That is because you read eBooks I think that for most people a single book is sufficient for a short trip and I always make sure that I have at least one on my Kindle that I want to read before I leave though you are right... it is great to have the ability to carry all that you want with you.
It is like music and the MP3 player. Sure, I could choose a hand full of CD's on a trip but why not take 100gigs of music. Am I going to listen to them all? Nope... but having the option is the best part   That is because you read eBooks I think that for most people a single book is sufficient for a short trip and I always make sure that I have at least one on my Kindle that I want to read before I leave though you are right... it is great to have the ability to carry all that you want with you.
It is like music and the MP3 player. Sure, I could choose a hand full of CD's on a trip but why not take 100gigs of music. Am I going to listen to them all? Nope... but having the option is the best part My point was that he and I are a lot a like; we both have hundreds and hundreds of books. (In fact, I still have a couple hundred paper books even after going digital.) And we both have to have enough reading material in hand at all times. The fact that he could have five hundred ebooks with him instead of only 5 paperbacks apparently escaped his notice. That was what I was trying to say.

EDIT: I can understand what the guy is saying.

It's kind of like the concept of Desert Island Discs. What are your top 10 discs that you'd take with you if stuck on a desert island? Why take 10 discs when I can take my MP3 player with 200 Albums on? It defeats the point of the exercise.

For this guy, choosing which 5 books he is going to take is part of the fun, something which is pointless when you have a reader full of books... __________________
There are 10 types of person.
Those who understand Binary
And those who don't

My Random Book Selection Although I don't agree with the writer about the joy of "scouring your shelf for the right five books," I do agree that something has to be done to make reading "cool" in order for ereader devices to sell better.

If ereader devices are to become common place, they have to be marketed to more than just persons wanting to read the "classics."

I think the niche to fill is those persons wanting individualized information on devices bigger than a smartphone (whose screens are too small) and smaller than netbook/laptops (devices that are too heavy and take too long to start up).

How about the person wanting to read a personalized newspaper with RSS feeds they select? Or the company that sends the meeting agenda to everyone's ereader? How about the husband who gets the shopping list from his better half on his way home from work? Or the attorney who desperately needs case law in the court room and gets the cases sent to his ereader on the fly by her legal assistant.

I think that an ereader device that can receive and/or store individualized information and display it in a readable, shareable (try showing an news article on your phone to a group of people huddled around the phone) format quickly will become indispensable to the public.

Ereader devices can and need to be advertised as more than just an ebook reader. Heck, I even use mine to store recipes that I use frequently. It sure beats pulling out all the cookbooks just to find the one recipe that I need.   acastillo View Public Profile Find More Posts by acastillo Track Posts by acastillo via RSS Kindle is already doing this a little bit with newspaper and blog delivery and emphasis on best-sellers. Sony needs to catch up.

The first thing I do everyday is put the New York Times (or sometimes another paper) on my PRS-505. I love getting the news this way. I don't have to pay for and carry a big newspaper around all day or hurt my eyes reading the whole thing on the computer.   Superlucky View Public Profile Find More Posts by Superlucky Track Posts by Superlucky via RSS I think ultimately, the whole point of the blog excerpt is that there is something intangible about a paper book... at least for the poster. There are people who love books for the content within them; for us, the transition to ebooks is an easy one. Then there are those who love books for being books; for them there is far more to love about books than simply their content. This guy clearly falls into the latter category.

--
Bill   bill_mchale View Public Profile Find More Posts by bill_mchale Track Posts by bill_mchale via RSS The thing is, he could recreate the situation he likes by only adding books to his device as he reads them and thus would still have to choose the ones he wants to take before leaving.

Personally, when I am going on a short trip, I want to pack as lightly as possible and my reader is just perfect for that because I won't run out of stuff to read and its no heavier or bigger than a large paperback.

As far as ebooks being marketed to the wrong people, he is dead wrong for a number of reasons, firstly its a lot easier to get somebody interested in ebooks when they are already into reading and just need to be talked into a slight format change rather than a whole new interest and secondly word of mouth is huge benefit to sales. Last edited by Crowl; 10-02-2009 at 12:39 PM. I have to agree with the author to an extent. While the function of the ebook device cannot be matched, the experience is not the same as a book. The ability to carry your entire library with you makes sense, but does not "feel" the same as carrying even one of your favorite books. Looking at shelves lined with books does indeed create a different feeling than a digital reader on the desk, even if it does contain thousands of ebooks.

What is not mentioned is that going digital (with all of its benefits) does not stop anyone from remaining a fan of the physical book. Why not keep one foot in each world? The quality of books on the shelf would most likely increase. It would be nice if publishers would allow us to download the digitial version of a book when we purchase the physical one.

Another route toward a solution is an ebook device that "felt" more like a book. Maybe a two-page device that opens like a book and could be covered with something nice like leather (or whatever). Maybe we could at least get closer to the experience that is missed by the flat device.

For those who desire function over experience, I think ebook devices are doing pretty good.   Mike M. View Public Profile Find More Posts by Mike M. Track Posts by Mike M. via RSS Quote: I love physical books, love the weight, love the texture, love the feel. Yes, I am that guy in the bookstore picking up every new hardcover, who finds that books with a rough front make him feel fancy. He likes the physicality of the books. With an ereader, it's always the same feel and weight in your hands. We also loose the cover's seduction (hey, for me, a good cover can add a lot to a book ), the smell and texture of paper, the pleasure of holding something physical in your hands (without the worry that it's fragile and can break easily).

I personally embraced the ebooks. And for about a year I pratically didn't touch pBooks. But know I can say it's 50/50. It's different the whole deal of receiving a new book by mail or by browsing a bookstore, and just downloading a file, loading it in your ereader and just have the words in there, nothing tangible (you don't even see the cover again!).

I think I know what the author feels... Although I'm extremely fond of ereader/ebooks virtues too.

(BTW, I'd rather take 5 books to a desert island than 500 in an ereader. The battery would be wasted after reading one or two ebooks, anyway. ) Is there something wrong with me? When I click on the link to the article there's no article.

I understand what the original author means about the feel, shape, smell and weight of paper books. It was something that stopped me from transitioning for awhile. But with as much travel I do and the volume I read, an ereading device just makes sense for me. I don't understand what he means, however, about not marketing ereading devices to avid readers. Those of us that need 5 paperbacks for 48 hours will always have a use for an ereading device, even if it's just for trips. I think what he's trying to say is that there is going to be a portion of the market that won't want to give up paper books. Just like there are still people who collect vinyl records, the paper book market is not going to completely disappear any time soon. I do think it will begin to decline. When ebooks and ereaders become less buggy and more available, I think we'll see a huge decline in paper reading. But there will always be a nostalgia market, or hangers-on who simply want to do it the way they've always done.   Stensie4JC View Public Profile Find More Posts by Stensie4JC Track Posts by Stensie4JC via RSS Well, we know that he is missing something. Like many people who "prefer" paper books or who knock eBook readers, it doesn't seem like he has given an honest shot to eBook readers. He has maybe tried one briefly, looked at the price, and moved on, with his mind firmly closed.

When I read only paper books, I didn't get much thrill out of paperbacks, which was the majority of what I read. Before I got my K2, I "preferred" paper books too. Then, I met a lady on the train with a K2 and found myself staring and almost reading over her shoulder. I questioned her, and my mind was opened. When I heard about all the "free classics" that was all the further justification I needed to invest in the reader itself. It doesn't take many classics at $6 a pop to pay for a K2.

A nice cover heightens the experience, but that is only worth the money for a book I would read more than once. (Sherlock Holmes, Lord of the Rings, etc) For a sci-fi or fantasy book that is in a 10-book series, it would have to be a VERY good book to justify the purchase of the hardcover to get that nice feeling.

I guess I'm preaching to the choir though. We're all on the same... er... location.   JeremyZ View Public Profile Visit JeremyZ's homepage! Find More Posts by JeremyZ Track Posts by JeremyZ via RSS I have to agree with the author to an extent. While the function of the ebook device cannot be matched, the experience is not the same as a book. The ability to carry your entire library with you makes sense, but does not "feel" the same as carrying even one of your favorite books. Looking at shelves lined with books does indeed create a different feeling than a digital reader on the desk, even if it does contain thousands of ebooks.

What is not mentioned is that going digital (with all of its benefits) does not stop anyone from remaining a fan of the physical book. Why not keep one foot in each world? The quality of books on the shelf would most likely increase. It would be nice if publishers would allow us to download the digitial version of a book when we purchase the physical one.

Another route toward a solution is an ebook device that "felt" more like a book. Maybe a two-page device that opens like a book and could be covered with something nice like leather (or whatever). Maybe we could at least get closer to the experience that is missed by the flat device.

For those who desire function over experience, I think ebook devices are doing pretty good. True. The real issue is dedicated readers ONLY appeal to avid readers. No one else is going to spend money on a device that is only for reading.

So they're marketing it fine. Marketing of e-books can change when there are multi-purpose tablets etc. out there that non-avid readers are buying mainly for other purposed. Then they'll need some different marketing to get that niche to buy more e-books on their tablets they bought mainly for web surfing, or note taking etc. and expand the e-book market beyond avid readers.

Kind of like how someone who isn't big into music wouldn't spend money on an iPod Touch. But they may get an iPhone for the internet, video, apps, etc. etc. and then maybe Apple can sell them some MP3s with the proper marketing since they now own a device that can buy and play them.   I think ultimately, the whole point of the blog excerpt is that there is something intangible about a paper book... at least for the poster. There are people who love books for the content within them; for us, the transition to ebooks is an easy one. Then there are those who love books for being books; for them there is far more to love about books than simply their content. This guy clearly falls into the latter category.

--
Bill Walter Benjamin called that intangible 'aura' (or 'auratic experience'), referring specifically to pre-gutenberg books, to paintings/sculptures/anything-not-mass-producible; something that was due to a work of art which it had because of its exclusivity. Of course, after reproducible works became the norm (along with repros of paintings etc), people started valuing other aspects about a work than the fact that you could only get a "I-can-see-this-work-only-while-and-when-I'm-here" experience from experiencing the work. (An attempt is still being made by some of the sillier people to collect, say, first editions of works, but to me that's mostly a misguided rear-guard.)
The point being, in any case, that collecting books is different from reading them (this applies to other works of art as well, just not as readily, as it's quite a bit easier to enjoy a painting you own than a book; as well as applying to other things-you-can-collect, though those collections don't quite have the same amount of cachet).. It's a bit harder to say "gee, I own these specific 1432kB of epub file, which means I've got myself a neatly formatted edition of the Pevear&Volokhonsky translation of the Brothers Karamazov, than it is to say the same about the hardcover; mostly because nobody will believe you when you say the two are of equal value. This, I am quite sure, will some day change, though I have to admit I find it hard to be quite as certain/'proud' of the fact I own it, as the ebook edition is quite a bit less tangible than the hardcover I have on my shelf.
Anyway, the point I was hoping to make is that value (or social capital) is something quite dependent on community standards (something Benjamin never quite made explicit when talking about aura), but as such, it will need to be recognized as valuable before it will be accepted as such.
In other words: Be patient For me it is not the "printed" matter the hook was in the cover art. As a reader that is what catches my interest and while reading a paper book periodically will stop and look at the cover. The interest has to be there for a person to read something. Currently all the readers currently don't have good cover art due to both lack of color and or not being designed to be viewed in gray scale. Not only that people don't want to pay $400.00 for something to read books on that can only be used for one purpose and that they have to pay as much or sometimes more for a e-book. Of course with printed material they can either share/gift it to someone else or trade it back to a used books store for credit so they can read something else. Readers will not be main stream until they reduce the price, have color displays and books are inexpensive.

Our house used to be a fire hazard due to all the printed material that I used to have until I went digital. I currently read on my Dell Axim x50v. I carry a 4 gb compact flash and a 2 gb sd card full of books. (Both audio and e-book.)   magicmonster View Public Profile Find More Posts by magicmonster Track Posts by magicmonster via RSS For me it is not the "printed" matter the hook was in the cover art. As a reader that is what catches my interest and while reading a paper book periodically will stop and look at the cover. The interest has to be there for a person to read something. Currently all the readers currently don't have good cover art due to both lack of color and or not being designed to be viewed in gray scale. Not only that people don't want to pay $400.00 for something to read books on that can only be used for one purpose and that they have to pay as much or sometimes more for a e-book. For me, it's the opposite- I like that, with a Reader/liseuse, I can read books without having people peeping at me because I'm reading something with an "outrageous" cover (for their tastes!) or of a genre they despise. It's not the ultimate private experience with reading, but almost.

And I really like to be able to travel light, with a lot of books. If there's a lot of waiting (trains, for example) in 48 hours I can very well go beyond the 5 books limits, and I'm a regular insomniac, so I like to be sure to have something more to read. In fact, last trip (which was my first more or less fully digital) I marvelled at how little luggage I had with me. And what if you don't like one of the books you have brought? I think you are mistaken that only avid readers would be interested in a dedicated reader, as prices of ebooks and hardware fall, awareness increases and usability/covenience increases then they will become more interesting for more people.

In many ways, its that last point which is the most crucial one and while I love my 505, I think its a been a mistake on sony's part to have not got a wireless connection in all their new models along with a proper store for users outside north america rather than touchscreens that detract from one of the big pluses of e-ink, the clarity of the screen.

A more technically-aware user would appreciate such features, but they could and do easily live without them, however for more casual (often older) users the whole mess of regional restrictions, drm and various bits of software just to get some books on their reader would scare them off. Amazon clearly gets this point and are reaping the benefits in the states as you can see from the age demographics where 70% of kindle owners are 40+, which just aren't figures you would ever expect to see in the early adopter phase of a new technology.

As usual, you have decided to yet again repeat your point about what you think the market actually wants and its true multi-function devices will appeal to plenty of people, but the paper book market is huge and those hardware makers who find ways to tap into that market with products that let people read books as easily as they do now, buy books more easily and regain shelf-space are going to make a lot of money in the process. Last edited by Crowl; 10-03-2009 at 03:29 AM. Sure. You need to be using calibre instead of the Sony software. Believe me, it's a vast improvement. Download it here.

After you install calibre, hit the "Fetch news" button at the top. That will pop up the "Schedule news download" window. Expand the "+" sign next to the language you want and select your news source. You can then hit "Download now" to fetch the file. You can also set up a time for it to automatically download every day. If you want the NYT, first you have to go to their site and subscribe to the electronic edition (it's free) so that you can put your username and password in calibre. You will only have to do all this stuff once, so don't worry. After it downloads, connect your device, highlight the paper and hit "Send to device". You can also configure calibre to automatically send new news downloads to your device.   Superlucky View Public Profile Find More Posts by Superlucky Track Posts by Superlucky via RSS I think you are mistaken that only avid readers would be interested in a dedicated reader, as prices of ebooks and hardware fall, awareness increases and usability/covenience increases then they will become more interesting for more people.

.....snip.....

As usual, you have decided to yet again repeat your point about what you think the market actually wants and its true multi-function devices will appeal to plenty of people, but the paper book market is huge and those hardware makers who find ways to tap into that market with products that let people read books as easily as they do now, buy books more easily and regain shelf-space are going to make a lot of money in the process.

1. Maybe I shouldn't have said avid reader. I just mean people that read at least one book every month or two. If you read less than that (most of my friends don't read any books--aside from work related or school required reading period, or maybe 1 or 2 a year) then you're probably never going to buy a dedicated reader. It's just not worth it if you barely read.

2. I'm not saying what the market wants. There is definitely a huge market out there of people buying books--look how many Barnes and Nobles and Borders there are.

I'm just saying the market for e-books can also be expanded through multi-function devices. As well as keeping dedicated readers around. It's not an either/or proposition.

Have dedicated readers for the bookworms (and I mean that affectionately) who just love reading and don't give a crap about other features.

Have multi function devices for those of us that do other things more than read and would rather kill a bunch of birds with one stone with a multi function device vs. carrying a Kindle, PDA, netbook, mp3 player etc. around. And expand the market a big by selling e-books to people on tablets, smart phones, pdas etc. If Amazon wants to kill the other e-book stores, they'll get access to the Kindle store on as many devices as possible as quickly as possible and get people locked into the store.

In short, don't be so damn defensive. I'm not saying dedicated readers are going anywhere. There's a sizable market for them. There's also a sizeable market for multifunction devices as we see from sales of smart phones, net books etc. and they offer a great way to expand the e-book market by just simply adding access to e-books stores on those devices people buy for other reasons. And that's good news for everyone--dedicated e-ink reader fans included--as anything to expand the market means more books available, lower prices etc.   When I need cheering up, there's nothing like going into a book store. I love the smell of new books & paper (a stationary store will do for that too - BTW), I love picking up a book, having a browse, putting it down, meandering to the next cover that catches my eye. However, for the reading experience I actually prefer my e-book reader. I do a lot of reading in bed. I lie on my side and with thick tomes that is very, very annoying and heavy to hold. Besides, I *read* for the story no matter what shape or form.

So I would love to go into a book store with knowledgeable staff I can bother with all my questions and then go home with a pile of e-books. But that's just me, I'm probably weird   grimo1re View Public Profile Visit grimo1re's homepage! Find More Posts by grimo1re Track Posts by grimo1re via RSS Ebooks are still at a very early stage. Eventually, they will be to printed books as printed books are to medieval manuscripts or Indian/SE Asian palm-leaf manuscripts. Virtually every book that can be found will be available electronically and material books will be quaint collectibles. The revolution to ebooks or whatever they will be called has not really begun, but it is inevitable. We can't remotely imagine how people will read in 100 years, but it won't be books made out of paper (or, probably, anything very much like the ereaders of our day).   talaivan View Public Profile Find More Posts by talaivan Track Posts by talaivan via RSS I'm one of the people who enjoy a well made book. There are times when the way a book is made - the size, quality of paper, font - impacts whether I buy the book or not. I also like that I can take a book down, show it to a friend, and lend it to him. I like that when a topic of conversation comes up, I can usually find a book or two in my library bearing on the subject, take it down and pretty quickly find the quote or section I am looking for. All these things can't be done with ebooks.

What I like about ebooks is portability. I like that I can take an ebook reader with me on a trip, long or short, without strain (I do put a couple of emergency books in my suitcase, though...) I like that because of Project Gutenberg, the Internet Archives, and Google Books, I have increasing access to tons of older books.

To me, an ebook reader is just another book. It has its own particular physicality, but mainly it has utility. I had my iphone with me this evening when I decided to stop at a place and have a bite to eat - so I had a copy of Dracula readily available (I'm reading it as part of the current Infinite Summer book http://infinitesummer.org/) That would not have happened if I only read physical books.

So I think that there's a kind of spectrum involved with pbooks and ebooks, from a kind of artistic enjoyment on one end to utility on the other, with each person occupying a preferred point on the spectrum. And I don't think that will ever go away. I agree with the poster who said that we really can't know how people will be reading a hundred years from now, but I think that they will not substitute a new way of reading for what we have now. Rather, I think they will add other ways of reading. What I think we are going to see is not a replacement of one technology (pbooks) with a different technology (ebooks), but a kind of expansion of the ways we read and the way we access books. __________________
HARMN In short, don't be so damn defensive. I'm not saying dedicated readers are going anywhere. There's a sizable market for them. There's also a sizeable market for multifunction devices as we see from sales of smart phones, net books etc. and they offer a great way to expand the e-book market by just simply adding access to e-books stores on those devices people buy for other reasons. And that's good news for everyone--dedicated e-ink reader fans included--as anything to expand the market means more books available, lower prices etc. I think you are confused, I'm not being defensive, I'm merely bored of the way you seem to want to shoehorn in your idea of what an ideal device should be regardless of the topic and indeed this time you were seemingly so desperate to do you chose to ignore the majority of my post that was about cost and ease of use since those are very clearly not things that a multifunction device has a hope of hell of competing on.   I think you are confused, I'm not being defensive, I'm merely bored of the way you seem to want to shoehorn in your idea of what an ideal device should be regardless of the topic and indeed this time you were seemingly so desperate to do you chose to ignore the majority of my post that was about cost and ease of use since those are very clearly not things that a multifunction device has a hope of hell of competing on. Well the specialized devices right now also suck for cost and ease of use. Hopefully it's not always the case, but it depends on how much more money is funneled into them and how much is invested in inventing the wheel (I won't say reinventing, since dedicated readers are a pretty crappy makeshift wheel as it is).   To me, an ebook reader is just another book. It has its own particular physicality, but mainly it has utility. I had my iphone with me this evening when I decided to stop at a place and have a bite to eat - so I had a copy of Dracula readily available (I'm reading it as part of the current Infinite Summer book http://infinitesummer.org/) That would not have happened if I only read physical books. Well the specialized devices right now also suck for cost and ease of use. Hopefully it's not always the case, but it depends on how much more money is funneled into them and how much is invested in inventing the wheel (I won't say reinventing, since dedicated readers are a pretty crappy makeshift wheel as it is). Looking at their demographics, it does seem like the kindle isn't doing too badly when it comes to ease of use since you wouldn't expect such a high average age in the early adopter stage of a new technology.

As far as costs, they are still high but do seem to be steadily reducing at this time, but until theres more competition with regards to screen supplies then that's going to be the limiting factor.   While I agree that there is pleasure in the physical feel of pbooks, I think that the point is being missed if that is used as an argument against ebook readers. I first "went ebook" because I'm a confirmed technophile and liked the idea, but I now find that I get more of the physical pleasure from ebooks than I do from p. I have a leather cover for my 505, which is now interestingly ageing. The feel of the reader in my hand is very comfortable, the weight is just right, the different ways of turning the page help as I change reading position (I have issues with my back, so I have to shift around a lot to minimise pain). Just the sight of the reader, and the knowledge of what it contains, makes me happy.

Just because it's electronic doesn't mean it's got less soul than a pbook - I've become very attached to my 505!

/JB   jbjb View Public Profile Find More Posts by jbjb Track Posts by jbjb via RSS Good point: When a gadget is desirable enough, people will save up if they have to, to buy it. This especially applies to the younger set, who usually don't have much money or credit, but somehow manage to get all kinds of expensive toys. The only thing preventing more people from buying e-book readers, therefore, must be desirability. __________________
www.SteveJordanBooks.com
As quoted in the New York Times!
(I promise, I won't leave this sig up. Just a couple more days, okay? Okay?)   I think you are confused, I'm not being defensive, I'm merely bored of the way you seem to want to shoehorn in your idea of what an ideal device should be regardless of the topic and indeed this time you were seemingly so desperate to do you chose to ignore the majority of my post that was about cost and ease of use since those are very clearly not things that a multifunction device has a hope of hell of competing on. I'm only saying what I want....and that I think there is a market for it.

Not that it is what everyone needs or wants, or that it will completely replace dedicated readers. I'd probably keep a dedicated reader around just because they are smaller and easier to read in bed etc. and perfectly adequate for reading a novel for pleasure.

But they're completely useless for reading academic books, scholarly journal articles that I must be able to quickly and easily highlight and right notes on. And they're a pain for travel since I also need something with full internet access, full e-mail, pda functions etc., need something that plays MP3s, something that I can watch video on etc. So I'd love a multi function tablet that can do all that, while keeping something like a Kindle for reading novels around the house or in waiting rooms etc.

Others have no need for that stuff as they're older, don't need such a device for work and are just into reading and not much into music, video etc.

Thus there's plenty of room in the market for dedicated readers and multifunction devices that also can access say the Kindle store etc. Gives people options and gives e-books stores access to more customers. Seems like a no-brainer win-win situation to me. I think some are just overly worried about dedicated readers vanishing--but I don't see that happening. There we always at the least be a sizable niche for them. Just like there's a sizeable niche of academics/professionals who would buy a good tablet device.   Thus there's plenty of room in the market for dedicated readers and multifunction devices that also can access say the Kindle store etc. Gives people options and gives e-books stores access to more customers. Seems like a no-brainer win-win situation to me. I think some are just overly worried about dedicated readers vanishing--but I don't see that happening. There we always at the least be a sizable niche for them. Just like there's a sizeable niche of academics/professionals who would buy a good tablet device. If larger-sized multifunction devices improve enough, there will be little need for dedicated devices... but the DDs might still be popular, depending on the set of features and prices they can manage to make them more relevant or personalized to an individual's usage patterns. I personally think they have a long ways to go, which is why I don't own one, but that's just my opinion, and others obviously like them exactly as they are. Not sure how anyone would be offended. Just saying some people love reading and don't have hobbies with music, video games, movies, tv etc. nor need the type of features a tablet would offer for their work--thus I get some people don't need such a device.

Size is the main factor. No need to hold a big table with say an 10" or letter sized screen to just read a novel. It's big and bulky and just as not as comfortable to read for hours. Battery life won't be as good as e-ink and eye strain worse until there's some screen tech that can do HD video etc. etc. and be easy on the eyes like e-ink.

So I see why people prefer dedicated readers for leisure reading--as I said above I'd probably keep one around and use a tablet mainly for work stuff and only use it for leisure reading when traveling since I'd need it with me and not want to carry it and a dedicated reader.   Size is the main factor. No need to hold a big table with say an 10" or letter sized screen to just read a novel. It's big and bulky and just as not as comfortable to read for hours. Battery life won't be as good as e-ink and eye strain worse until there's some screen tech that can do HD video etc. etc. and be easy on the eyes like e-ink. That's why I suggested that multifunction devices can (and certainly will) improve, increasing battery life, lowering weight, and improving visual quality... at which point, the advantages of digital devices will be lessened, and they may need to come up with some new tricks in order to stay relevant. Like... becoming multifunction devices...

And don't forget, so far we haven't seen the magazine or textbook media really break into e-books. As that media tends to be more visual, with added color, photos, diagrams, etc, you need larger screens to properly display all that... tablet- or letter-sized would be better than the standard size of most eInk screens available today.

So, if the present dedicated devices don't optimize themselves for what might ultimately be a much larger market than text-based literature, they could easily find themselves seriously marginalized by the multifunction devices. Aww...fair enough. But I'll stand by it. Older people are less likely to be playing video games, watching videos, listening to mp3s etc., more likely to be retired than having a job where they want/need to use that cutting edge technology.

Not saying there are older folks who DO need that stuff--just less so than younger generations who are more wrapped up in that kind of stuff.

Quote: That's why I suggested that multifunction devices can (and certainly will) improve, increasing battery life, lowering weight, and improving visual quality... at which point, the advantages of digital devices will be lessened, and they may need to come up with some new tricks in order to stay relevant. Like... becoming multifunction devices...

And don't forget, so far we haven't seen the magazine or textbook media really break into e-books. As that media tends to be more visual, with added color, photos, diagrams, etc, you need larger screens to properly display all that... tablet- or letter-sized would be better than the standard size of most eInk screens available today.

So, if the present dedicated devices don't optimize themselves for what might ultimately be a much larger market than text-based literature, they could easily find themselves seriously marginalized by the multifunction devices.
Agreed. Technology will improve. Though I'm still not sure I'd want to do my leisure, "paperback" type reading on something with a big screen even if it's very light etc.

But I need a big screen for all the other stuff--and especially for textbooks, academic books, scholarly journal articles etc.

So I could see at least myself wanting both a small screen reader for novels and a larger screen multifunction device.   Aww...fair enough. But I'll stand by it. Older people are less likely to be playing video games, watching videos, listening to mp3s etc., more likely to be retired than having a job where they want/need to use that cutting edge technology. Heh.

Dude: Retirees have something called leisure time! Why not play video games, listen to MP3s, watch videos, etc? Or did you really expect all retirees to just sit around in their wheelchairs and drool on each other? Assuming "older people" are somehow less likely to enjoy music, movies and literature than younger people is pretty silly. In fact, they probably enjoy those things a lot more than the younger generations, simply by virtue of having experienced so much more of it in their lifetimes, and therefore know so much more about quality media...

The big picture (getting waaay back to the topic at hand) is that e-books aren't just for a few lucky and particularly sharp geeks... they're for anybody and everybody. In fact, they will be much easier for older people to enjoy than static, font- and size-locked printed text, and even a tablet PC will be lighter, smaller and easier to carry around than a copy of the Washington Post.

The author was expressing the fact that he thinks it's okay to be a luddite... and if you want to be a luddite, that's your business. But the world moves on, and sometimes even luddites have to come around to the new way of things. Heh.

Dude: Retirees have something called leisure time! Why not play video games, listen to MP3s, watch videos, etc? Or did you really expect all retirees to just sit around in their wheelchairs and drool on each other? Assuming "older people" are somehow less likely to enjoy music, movies and literature than younger people is pretty silly. In fact, they probably enjoy those things a lot more than the younger generations, simply by virtue of having experienced so much more of it in their lifetimes, and therefore know so much more about quality media... Sure....but they're not as tech savvy was my point. My parents are retired and only in their late 50's to early 60's and while they're into music, movies, reading etc., they're not into mp3 players, online stuff etc.

Some in that age group--and even older--certainly are. But you can't make any argument that older generations are a huge chunk of any tech market.

Especially when we're talking about complicated multifunction tablets that don't even exist yet.

Something simple to use like a Kindle has much more of an appeal in the older crowd, as the average age of Kindle owners shows.

Quote: The big picture (getting waaay back to the topic at hand) is that e-books aren't just for a few lucky and particularly sharp geeks... they're for anybody and everybody. In fact, they will be much easier for older people to enjoy than static, font- and size-locked printed text, and even a tablet PC will be lighter, smaller and easier to carry around than a copy of the Washington Post. 100% agree.

But a multi function tablet that does all kinds of stuff isn't going to appeal to the older crowd.

A simple to use Kindle certainly will--I think you mis-read my post. I'm saying the kind of multi-featured tablet I want--like the MS Courier concept videos etc.--won't appeal much to retiree's who are are put off by the complicated technology and don't need the work related functions etc.

I was saying dedicated readers will stick around because they are simple to use and appeal to people (of all ages) who just want to read on an small and easy to use device and have no interest in some complicated multi-function device.

No reasons for them to die off just because career focused people like me prefer multi-function devices that simply our lives.

My post was saying why I think dedicated readers will stick around even once swanky multi-function tablets are out and affordable. There's definitely a market for both, I don't see multi-function tablets killing off the need for dedicated readers, which you seemed to argue in your post.

Quote: The author was expressing the fact that he thinks it's okay to be a luddite... and if you want to be a luddite, that's your business. But the world moves on, and sometimes even luddites have to come around to the new way of things. Agreed. But not many older people (say 50 and up) are going to come around to tablets. A lot can come around to simple e-readers like the Kindle for sure though. Yeah, that used to be me, too, before I got my iPhone. I hate carrying things, even books. So I tended to take books that fit in my pocket. I've got a couple of "manbags" but I think carrying them is kind of like wearing seat belts - the older generation never got the habit. I do have Infinite Jest at my office, in its own personal manbag, to take to lunch & read. But mainly, if it fits in my pockets, I take it, otherwise, not.

One of my strategies in the past was to stash books around wherever I might find myself - office, car, book(s) in every room in the house in partial states of unread, briefcase when I had to carry one. Um...I still do all that...

So for the most part, carrying things ain't my bag, meaning that the iPhone was a real boon - now I have books in my pocket all the time. But with aging eyes, I'd like to have a bit larger font, & I think I've found a pretty portable eReader in the Sony 300 I just bought. It will fit most of my jacket pockets, & in the summer I tend to wear cargo shorts so it will fit a pocket then, too.

But I think that for a lot of people, it's just easier to carry an eBook reader, so I regard that as added functionality, even though I expect most of us on this board, pre-ebook, carried pbooks around. __________________
HARMN So, if the present dedicated devices don't optimize themselves for what might ultimately be a much larger market than text-based literature, they could easily find themselves seriously marginalized by the multifunction devices. What books - and eBook readers - bring to the table is exactly the fact that they are NOT multifunctional devices. By their single dimension, they focus attention in a way that is conducive to deep reading. That experience is hard to obtain on multifunctional devices.

For this reason, I think that eBook readers will not be marginalized any more than books are - particularly if the prices for the readers continue to drop, and level off sufficiently lower than the price of the multis.

I think that your observation might hold true for the higher end, larger sized devices, though. I always carry a laptop for school, and my ebook reader fits easily into my netbook's little bag. Plus goes into a hoodie pocket, or my coat's pockets without a problem. Always with me, so easy to fit reading into my schedule.   Hellmark View Public Profile Visit Hellmark's homepage! Find More Posts by Hellmark Track Posts by Hellmark via RSS

Refurbished Sony PRS-505 for 179,99 EUR (Germany)

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This Sunday, October 4th, Thalia is going to sell refurbished units of the Sony PRS-505 that were previously used by Thalia employees. Each unit has been fully tested, has undergone thorough quality checks, and comes with original packaging.

Apparently there is only limited availability, so if you are interested, make sure to bookmark the following page to visit next Sunday:

http://www.thalia.de/shop/sony/show/?ProvID=10903884

Thanks to MobileReader beam for the tip! __________________
Follow MR on Twitter Thanks for the news, i'm in Italy and i don't speak german. I've only understood that thalia ship in Italy for an honest shipping price, so can someone is so wonderful to retrieve an email for to deal with Thelia ?   That's not a surprise considering how USD has depreciated against EUR and also how the retail price of the 505 is a lot higher in Germany than in the US.   Alexander Turcic View Public Profile Visit Alexander Turcic's homepage! Find More Posts by Alexander Turcic Track Posts by Alexander Turcic via RSS Thanks for the news, i'm in Italy and i don't speak german. I've only understood that thalia ship in Italy for an honest shipping price, so can someone is so wonderful to retrieve an email for to deal with Thelia ? Unfortunately, they state: "Der Versand ins Ausland ist nicht möglich".
Meaning: No shipping outside of Germany.
I hate it. Especially within EU it's ridiculous. But I permanently have this with UK, which (theoretically) would be extremely cheap now.   play.com sometimes has factory refurbished 505 models or should i say fair trade companys like FactoryRefurbsDir who sell through play. i got a brand new 505 last week for £129 only a tear on the box to make it a refurb worth while to keep checking the site   dogsballs View Public Profile Find More Posts by dogsballs Track Posts by dogsballs via RSS

Top Ten September library ebook downloads

Overdrive tracks ebook and audiobook downloads for the libraries it supports, and it just released Top Ten lists for September. (There are actually 8 lists.)

Stephanie Meyer's Twilight series has the top 4 slots on the juvenile fiction list. I knew she was popular but I hadn't realized she was that popular. James Patterson has 3 slots, one on adult fiction and two on juvenile fiction. And The Lost Symbol was the most downloaded book during September (of course).

Adult FictionThe Lost Symbol, by Dan Brown Alex Cross's Trial, by James Patterson, Richard DiLallo Devil in Winter, by Lisa Kleypas Because You're Mine, by Lisa Kleypas Vision In White, by Nora Roberts Black Hills, by Nora Roberts Again the Magic, by Lisa Kleypas The Alchemist, by Paulo Coelho Dead and Gone, by Charlaine Harris Brighter Than the Sun, by Julia Quinn
Juvenile FictionEclipse, by Stephenie Meyer New Moon, by Stephenie Meyer Twilight, by Stephenie Meyer Breaking Dawn, by Stephenie Meyer The Angel Experiment, by James Patterson Coraline, by Neil Gaiman, Dave McKean Prom Nights from Hell, by Meg Cabot, Stephenie Meyer, Kim Harrison, Lauren Myracle, Michele Jaffe 3 Willows, by Ann Brashares School's Out--Forever, by James Patterson Nightfall, by L. J. Smith
There are also lists for Juvenile and Adult Nonfiction ebooks, as well as another 4 lists for audio books. Dan Brown and Stephenie Meyer also top the audio book fiction lists.   Nate the great View Public Profile Find More Posts by Nate the great Track Posts by Nate the great via RSS I use the BPL, one of the Overdrive libraries...and this ranking is pretty indicative of their offerings. An occasional (and rare) newer bestseller and quite a bit of romance novels.

I can't figure out how they pick what books are offered as its so random and sporadic when it comes to books being added...it seems as if they just offer them on Overdrive in response to various individual requests as opposed to any attempt at variety/selection (and perhaps that is what they do).   Boston View Public Profile Find More Posts by Boston Track Posts by Boston via RSS I use the BPL, one of the Overdrive libraries...and this ranking is pretty indicative of their offerings. An occasional (and rare) newer bestseller and quite a bit of romance novels.

I can't figure out how they pick what books are offered as its so random and sporadic when it comes to books being added...it seems as if they just offer them on Overdrive in response to various individual requests as opposed to any attempt at variety/selection (and perhaps that is what they do). That's what I figured. I guess you should start reading romance novels then Its the romance novels, and occasional new release, that are the ones that always have a wait list

There seems to be no rhyme or reason as to what formats they offer the books in either (although more are now being offered in ePub).

For example, I had all the Harlan Coben books in paper that I'd never gotten around to reading (someone gave them to me), so I wanted them in ebook but not enough to buy. They were all at the BPL but different formats - mobi, epub, and/or pdf. And it's not not like the earlier books were in one format and the later books in another. Fortunately, I know how to convert and was able to borrow them all except two that were offered in wma audio format only.

I love it to supplement my purchased reading...but its more like having a surprise grab bag as to what I find there.   Boston View Public Profile Find More Posts by Boston Track Posts by Boston via RSS

Simon & Schuster introduces the "Vook" : read it and watch it

Titles available include :
Promises by Jude Deveraux
The 90-Second Fitness Solution by Pete Cerqua with Alisa Bowman
Embassy by Richard Doetsch
Return to Beauty: Old World Recipes for Great Radiant Skin by Narine Nikogosian

Get more information on their site here.

I've not tested out any Vooks myself, but for educational works, this is a direction I think we'll see more of which could bring a whole new dimension to textbooks. How-to manuals as well could benefit, as well as books like musician biographies or books about the cinema. So what say the early adopters ? Pointless gimmick, or promising innovation ? Are there any Vooks you'd be interested in (available or not) ? __________________
I don't want none of that mischief on my eels! - pdurrant

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"Resistance is futile, y'all." --DixieBorg

by popular demand, we bring you the next exciting avatar in zelda's wardrobe, by the inimitable WetDogEared and his amazing dancing mice !! a round of applause, everybody ! Well, here in Europe in most small countries (i.e. not Germany, France or Spain) the movies most of the time are shown in original language with subtitles and no one seems to mind. __________________
Yet another reverse engineering blog
Like to chat? Join #mobileread   While clearly (?) a bad idea for fiction, I can surely see a use for this kind of media. Specifically, math and science textbooks would be vastly improved if moving figures or short videos were embedded. Some publishers are trying to make up for this now by having the figures/videos on their websites, but having to swtich between media can be a barrier to learning. If the video was right there, it would be way better.   europas_ice View Public Profile Visit europas_ice's homepage! Find More Posts by europas_ice Track Posts by europas_ice via RSS Note that PDFs can already include interactive diagrams and graphs (change a parameter and see how a graph varies, or how the properties of some system change), which for some sciences would be even better than videos.   Jellby View Public Profile Visit Jellby's homepage! Find More Posts by Jellby Track Posts by Jellby via RSS "Lazy reader?" Seriously? Look into the research on brain activity when reading, particularly when reading without speaking what is being read. It's one of the very least brain intensive activities a regular person participates in. Period. It requires much more brain power to pay attention to a video, or even plain audio. This is why reading helps people get to sleep at night while even trivial TV is more likely to keep you awake.

Lazy readers is a redundancy.

And as for the "Vook" idea, this is plain stupid. Welcome to the internet circa 2002 S&S! Web pages with video inserts every 10 paragraphs? Oh where have I seen that before... I don't know, maybe nearly every blog/news site on the web now?

Yet another move proving how bassackwards the thinking of publishers is at this point. Just like the RIAA, trying to uselessly defend an outdated business model or way of doing things.

Now, I'm not against the idea of a standard way to pack a site which includes some video together into a single file or archive, this is something that could theoretically be done with the HTML 5 standard if they would have the guts to specify a standard required video codec. In reality though, if it was really necessary for this to be a special eBook format, it should just be ePub with video embedded where images would've been in the past.

So once again, thanks S&S for apparently never using a modern web page before.   zacheryjensen View Public Profile Find More Posts by zacheryjensen Track Posts by zacheryjensen via RSS Might be nice for added information like showing how to do something in a non-fiction book. Personally, I tend to stay away from video and audio in web sites in general, I can't control the speed of the presentation and it's basically a really tough sell with me, I don't do well with auditory presentations at all, but I get the impression that a lot of people like it. All in all, this do seem like old wine in new bottles though. Wonder if they can shift it... __________________
My Shelfari Bookshelf - My Goodreads Page

Holiday photos 2009
The Faeroe Islands
Iceland - Nature
Iceland - Flora & Fauna
Iceland - Culture   +1

Marketing gimmick to broaden their audience.

Personally, I like that the written book is the pure, original material. I don't want video invading that too. At least with a movie, I can choose not to watch it.

This is not for us. (well, except the real gadget hounds among us) This is for people who are too lazy to read. To me, reading text is MUCH more demanding than watching TV. I feel sleepy after a while because I'm getting tired, not because I'm bored or because my brain isn't challenged enough.   JeremyZ View Public Profile Visit JeremyZ's homepage! Find More Posts by JeremyZ Track Posts by JeremyZ via RSS +1

Marketing gimmick to broaden their audience.

Personally, I like that the written book is the pure, original material. I don't want video invading that too. At least with a movie, I can choose not to watch it.

This is not for us. (well, except the real gadget hounds among us) This is for people who are too lazy to read. To me, reading text is MUCH more demanding than watching TV. I feel sleepy after a while because I'm getting tired, not because I'm bored or because my brain isn't challenged enough. First of all please do not claim to speak for all the members of MobileRead. You do not speak for me. Have you tried out the application? I doubt it because if you did you would have realized it is not just for people to lazy to read. I bought "Embassy" a fictional "Vook". First of all it is a real book, real words and everything. There is just short videos (that are quite well done) added to enhance the plot.

Here is an example:

Sure its a gimmick but I find it kind of interesting. I know it is not the hip thing to admit to but I am currently reading "The Lost Symbol" by Dan Brown. I think that it would be interesting to see short videos of the art and locations mentioned in the book. I bought the web version because I do not like reading on my iPhone but I think something like this would work quite nice on the mysterious Apple Tablet. Since I just started reading the "Vook" it is too soon for me to say that I would by another one. But I am not considering it $6.99 down the drain. First of all please do not claim to speak for all the members of MobileRead. You do not speak for me. Have you tried out the application? I doubt it because if you did you would have realized it is not just for people to lazy to read. I bought "Embassy" a fictional "Vook". First of all it is a real book, real words and everything. There is just short videos (that are quite well done) added to enhance the plot.

Here is an example:

Sure its a gimmick but I find it kind of interesting. I know it is not the hip thing to admit to but I am currently reading "The Lost Symbol" by Dan Brown. I think that it would be interesting to see short videos of the art and locations mentioned in the book. I bought the web version because I do not like reading on my iPhone but I think something like this would work quite nice on the mysterious Apple Tablet. Since I just started reading the "Vook" it is too soon for me to say that I would by another one. But I am not considering it $6.99 down the drain. Might be nice for added information like showing how to do something in a non-fiction book. Personally, I tend to stay away from video and audio in web sites in general, I can't control the speed of the presentation and it's basically a really tough sell with me, I don't do well with auditory presentations at all, but I get the impression that a lot of people like it. All in all, this do seem like old wine in new bottles though. Wonder if they can shift it... I'm with Ea, if a link I'm interested in leads to video rather than text I'll just close it and go elsewhere. Audio on websites got me to switch to headphones I don't wear. If I want information, video or audio is the last way I want to receive it.

I can see the value in illustrated examples in non-fiction books - but it doesn't work for fiction. Normally I just want to tear my hair out if I have to sit through five minutes of video to get maybe thirty seconds (if I'm very lucky) worth of information.

There's also the fact, and this is very important with SF and Fantasy (which I primarily read) that video cannot match the human imagination. Non-fiction doesn't have this problem, since it deals with reality rather than imagination.

Windows "everywhere" may boost e-books

The mobile revolution is coming. Maybe you could argue it's already here. We see growth in everything from netbooks to iPhones to e-ink devices. So why are we struggling so much to satisfy a simple set of e-book reader requirements like the following?...

* Full day (or better) battery life
* Responsive interfaces and page turns
* Lightweight and varied form factors
* Inexpensive (<$100)
* Reading firmware/software that supports many formats and DRM flavors
* Lighted reading surface

Most reading devices solve some of these issues, but not all. And it doesn't really seem to be just around the corner. But innovation from companies like Intel and Microsoft is likely to cause a revolution in the e-reading landscape. It's almost self-evident, but yet revolutionary.

Intel has already indicated that new generation of mobile processors will provide smaller and smaller form factors, more speed and longer battery life. Up next for netbooks, about a quarter from now, is the Pine Trail generation. Then Moorestown in 2010, which will improve handhelds, and then after that we will see huge jumps in the capabilities of smart phone processors.

This means two things:
* All ranges of mobile and desktop devices will eventually be able to run essentially the same Windows (or Linux) OS. Right now, we don't see consistent widespread support of e-book formats and DRM partly because there are so many platforms to cover. Small devices require a whole different OS, and that fragments the market. It means that it's hard work to support formats across a wide range of devices.
* Microsoft (and Linux) will create a set of OS flavors that work consistently across mobile and desktop form factors, further improving the chances of a relatively consistent platform and better battery life. The interface won't look exactly the same, of course, but the capabilities will be the same. Improved multi-platform development frameworks may further help reduce the effort to give consistent e-book support. Nearly instant start up times will show up soon as well.

So, it's just possible that it won't be too long before we see something amazing... Cheap, fast e-book readers in small computing factors, supporting lots of formats and DRM types, and with a long battery life. It doesn't even require e-ink (although that would be pretty great if alternate display technologies improve the picture as well). Finally, in this version of the future, you can choose your favorite reading software, and it will work on all kinds of big and small devices, and all kinds of e-book formats.

Now we're talking! But about those dates...   Bob Russell View Public Profile Find More Posts by Bob Russell Track Posts by Bob Russell via RSS don't discount Google's "Chrome OS" and/or Android...not a lot of adoption yet, but if the price is right it can be a factor.

Otherwise, I agree...we are almost there but right now the biggest issue is either some form of most efficient power supply and/or low power color display that uses no more than current eink does...PixelQi (and there is another I read about and likely others) is a start, but I sense it's just a step along the way. OLED bugs me because of it's limited lifespan even though that is better today than 5yrs ago... __________________
Devices:Sony Clie nx73v -- scored at thrift store for $16 (my fav reader), nice transflective display. Nokia N800 Internet Tablet -- Not my favorite device but it is OK. Still it has a 4.3" display. Kindle 1 -- not much I like about the device, especially the display.   I fail to see what the big revolution is. We've had windows and linux on mobile devices for ages, and look where we are.
Processors keep getting better, and they keep lowering the power consumption - yet we still don't see that effect the battery life. Probably because the extra MHz are being wasted for useless gimmicks that make windows mobile try and look like iPhone OS or Android. The core didn#t change. And it won't, because windows mobile is targeted at nerds who like to manage their servers with PDAs or run BBSs or access Databases and what not.
I think windows mobile needs to split up into a "low-tech" version, which is usable with your finger, just like iPhone OS is, and a "high-tech" nerdy version that mimics a desktop computer.

I'm not saying iPhone OS is the ultimate OS - it is low-tech, you don't have "files", you can't change anything ... it locks you down.

Can't really say much about mobile linux since I haven't used it yet.

Oh yes, and whatever the previous posters said about the display, I agree.   mores View Public Profile Visit mores's homepage! Find More Posts by mores Track Posts by mores via RSS Windows CE (which Windows Mobile is based on) doesn't count, since it's still a completely separate platform from Windows NT/XP/Vista/7. And with Linux there is a lot of variations between the many competing distributions. Though Google just might have the influence to create a true standard between devices. __________________
"All my life I've had this strange feeling that there's something big and sinister going on in the world."
"No, that's perfectly normal paranoia. Everyone in the universe gets that."

RUMOR: Kindle coming to the UK next week

Quote: The Bookseller has heard from authoritative sources that Amazon.com will finally announce the arrival of its e-book device the Kindle in the UK next week. The news confirms the story first reported by The Bookseller in July that publishers were expecting an October release of the device. An announcement is now likely ahead of Frankfurt.

One source told The Bookseller: "The key things they needed to tie up have been tied up. The rumours I've heard are all saying next week." The source confirmed that publishers had signed non disclosure agreements so would not be able to comment on the record. But added: "I've heard it from multiple reliable sources. I think they want to avoid the general kerfuffle of Frankfurt." from here   I think that'll happen regardless. Sony and Kindle maybe the biggest mainstream wise, but they seem content with coming out with product and staying the same for years as opposed to the "little" guys who seem to being evolving and changing every time you look around. It only takes for someone like Astak or whoever to get their own firmware team, to keep fixing all the small issue that keep popping up.

If only ebooks had Custom Firmware heroes like, Dark Alex of PSP fame, or Cyanogen who does Android custom ROMs.   Xerxes View Public Profile Find More Posts by Xerxes Track Posts by Xerxes via RSS That would be the only reason to even think about buying a Kindle. The ability to get a better offering. If they only offer the ugliest reader on the market, and not the selection of books, it's absolutely not worth the trouble over any of the other readers around. Especially as most books stores in Europe are going towards epub, which the Kindle can't read. __________________
Fence sitter Extraordinaire
Can't decide between the IRex Digital Reader, or Sony PRS600. That Plastic Logic device looks good too and the Hanvon WISEreader N518 as well. And don't forget about the Txtr reader! I could also wait for the BeBook2?

Or should I go for the Canon PowerShot SX20 IS? That would be the only reason to even think about buying a Kindle. The ability to get a better offering. If they only offer the ugliest reader on the market, and not the selection of books, it's absolutely not worth the trouble over any of the other readers around. Especially as most books stores in Europe are going towards epub, which the Kindle can't read. It also wouldn't make sense for amazon to sell the kindle if it wasn't being used as a way to sell more books from amazon either.   That is impossible, because of geographic restrictions on ebooks (imposed by authors and publishers).

It will be interesting to see how many titles the Kindle starts out with in the UK. It will be less than in the US, but how many less? Note that the standard DTP contract grants Amazon non-exclusive world-wide rights, and not all ebooks at Fictionwise or Books on Board are restricted in the UK (and can therefore be sold on the UK Kindle just as on the US Kindle). I think it is quite likely that Amazon will start out with a huge lead in titles in the UK, and in part this will be because it does not require ePub. There are legacy titles created before ePub existed and even some recent titles that are MOBI/AZW only.   wallcraft View Public Profile Find More Posts by wallcraft Track Posts by wallcraft via RSS Amazon's policy so far means that small independent non-US publishers like my own wee house had their ebooks (but not paperbacks) removed from all Amazon sites when the Kindle was released, because we don't have registered offices in the United States. If and when the Kindle spreads its wings and enters the rest of the world, it'll be interesting to see what new restrictions and shady deals Amazon will come up with. The company's greed is breathtakingly impressive in the brazenness of its ingenuity, scope and scale. N __________________
In return for friendship and generous advice I've been offered here, visit the website of my own wee publishing house, BeWrite Books (www.bewrite.net), and drop me a line of whatever title/s catch your eye. For the rest of 2009, I'll be happy to send along the ebook versions (only PDF so far, I'm afraid) free of charge as email attachments. ntmarrATbewrite.net (use the @ sign).

Book Club October 2009 Mobile Read Book Club Vote

Help up choose a book as the October 2009 eBook for the Mobile Read Book Club. The poll will be open for 7 days. We will start the discussion thread for this book on October 25th. Select from the following books.

Flash Forward by Robert J. Sawyer
Description from Goodreads:
What would you do if you got a glimpse of your own personal future and it looked bleak? Try to change things, or accept that the future is unchangeable and make the best of it? In Flashforward, Nobel-hungry physicists conducting an unimaginably high-energy experiment accidentally induce a global consciousness shift. In an instant, everyone on Earth is "flashed forward" 21 years, experiencing several minutes of the future. But while everyone is, literally, out of their minds, their bodies drop unconscious; when the world reawakens, car wrecks, botched surgeries, falls, and other mishaps add up to massive death and destruction.
Slowly, as recovery efforts continue, people realize that during the Flashforward (as it comes to be called) they experienced a vision of the future. The range of visions is astounding--those who would be asleep in the future saw psychedelic dream landscapes, while others saw nothing at all (presumably they'd be dead). But those who saw everyday life 20 years hence have to come to grips with evidence of dreams forsaken (or realized). Soon, the physicists who caused the Flashforward are struggling to help the world decide whether the future is changeable--and whether the experiment is worth repeating. Robert J. Sawyer has captured a truly compelling idea with Flashforward, and he fully explores what such an event might mean to humanity. Fans will find this to be his best work to date, although the ending seems rushed after a detailed buildup. --Therese Littleton

The Tide Mill by Richard Herley
Synopsis here: http://www.richardherley.com/TM.html

The Moon and the Sun by Vonda McIntyre
1997 Nebula Award winner
Set in Versailles, France, in 1693, The Moon and the Sun tells the story of a Marie-Josephe, a lady-in-waiting to the niece of Louis XIV -- the Sun King. Marie-Josephe's brother, Father Yves de la Croix, is a Jesuit and also the King's natural philosopher and explorer. He has brought the King a living sea woman and a dead male, both captured on an ocean voyage. So begins a rich tale of conscience, politics, science, history, and love.
Available at http://www.vondanmcintyre.com/index-fiction.html

Verdant Skies by Steven Jordan
The summary is here: http://www.stevejordanbooks.com/novels/verdant.htm

Soul Identity by Denis Batchelder
You can't take it with you...but what if you could? Most people believe their souls outlive their bodies. Most people would find an organization that tracks their souls into the future and passes on their banked money and memories compelling. Scott Waverly isn't like most people. He spends his days finding and fixing computer security holes. And Scott is skeptical of his new client's claim that they have been calculating and tracking soul identities for almost twenty-six hundred years. Are they running a freaky cult? Or a sophisticated con job? Scott needs to save Soul Identity from an insider attack. Along the way, he discovers the importance of the bridges connecting people's lives. __________________
It is desirable that we should have a supply of good books; we cannot have such a supply unless men of letters are liberally remunerated; and the least objectionable way of remunerating them is by means of copyright.
Welcome to the MobileRead Forums.

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. __________________
~Brian

"The test of any good fiction is that you should care something for the characters; the good to succeed, the bad to fail. The trouble with most fiction is that you want them all to land in hell, together, as quickly as possible."

- Mark Twain   AnemicOak View Public Profile Find More Posts by AnemicOak Track Posts by AnemicOak via RSS And I work for the company (very likely) that sends you your bill.
Seriously.

I watch the local news, BBC America news, some History, Science, and Discovery channel shows almost all via Tivo. So yes I was being sarcastic.

But I really don't care much for TV in general. __________________
Kenny A. Chaffin
Art Gallery - Photo Gallery - Print Gallery BOb __________________
It is desirable that we should have a supply of good books; we cannot have such a supply unless men of letters are liberally remunerated; and the least objectionable way of remunerating them is by means of copyright.
-- Thomas Macaulay, 1841   pilotbob View Public Profile Find More Posts by pilotbob Track Posts by pilotbob via RSS My vote goes for Soul Identity...having seconded it's nomination and intending to read it win or lose.

Tide Mill was my first eBook, liked it but not enough to reread. Not being a SciFi/Fantasy fan I won't be spending 10bucks on Flash Forward so if either wins will be skipping October's read.
d   CharlieBird View Public Profile Find More Posts by CharlieBird Track Posts by CharlieBird via RSS Vote for Verdant Skies! It is the best book I've read all year! I like Rob a lot and enjoyed Flash Forward, but Verdant Skies TOTALLY ROCKS!!!!

But that's just my opinion... __________________
Sound really doesn't carry well in the inter-sideral void.

Read the latest Harv and Vera Saga! In a Worlde Gonne Madde! Starts here.

They fight crime! Vote for Verdant Skies! It is the best book I've read all year! I like Rob a lot and enjoyed Flash Forward, but Verdant Skies TOTALLY ROCKS!!!! It does sound good. Personally I'll buy and read FF if that's what wins, but it's about 4th for me on what's up for voting. __________________
~Brian

"The test of any good fiction is that you should care something for the characters; the good to succeed, the bad to fail. The trouble with most fiction is that you want them all to land in hell, together, as quickly as possible."

- Mark Twain   AnemicOak View Public Profile Find More Posts by AnemicOak Track Posts by AnemicOak via RSS And I work for the company (very likely) that sends you your bill.
Seriously.

I watch the local news, BBC America news, some History, Science, and Discovery channel shows almost all via Tivo. So yes I was being sarcastic.

But I really don't care much for TV in general. Do you work for Tivo? Gah that's one of my most favorite things I own! I could be completely desititute and I'd be clutching that thing so tight...and yes I pretty much pay $15 a month to have the little Tivo guy record things it thinks I *might* like. Ahhh Tivo.

MobileRead Week in Review: 09/19 - 09/26

Ok kids, time for the weekly roundup of what we've covered this week: *E-Book General - News and Commentary* * Microsoft Reader for WM6.0 & WM6.1 devices is now available (http://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=57023) * Is all reading good? (http://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=57048) * Ectaco jetBook to add DRM format (http://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=57198) * Neolux demonstrates epaper con badges (http://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=57235) * eReader to be Ported to the Palm Pre (http://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=57246) * 5%, or 100,000 copies, of "The Lost Symbol" were sold as e-books (http://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=57248) * July ebook sales figures announced (http://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=57342) * iriver Story on pre-order now - 290 USD aprox (http://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=57376) * Steve Jordan to appear in NY Times tomorrow (http://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=57399) * Introducing Inkmesh (http://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=57446) * Hanvon N518 coming to Germany (http://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=57467) *E-Book General - Reading Recommendations* * October 2009 Book Club Nominations (http://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=57124) *E-Book Software - Calibre* * Calibre V0.6.13 adds support for LRF conversion (http://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=57061) * Fame at last! (http://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=57257)

Hanvon N518 coming to Germany

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A MobileRead member just noticed that Hexaglot, a German tech company, will soon be importing the Hanvon N518. You can read the announcement here.

It doesn't say much (other than having an exclusive on handwriting recognition), so I dug up a review on the Chinese language ebook site MobRead. I'd recommend that you read it; it has a lot of useful information and quite a few pictures.

Edit: The product page is here. The list price is 279.90€, and the N518 does have Adobe DE support. Last edited by Nate the great; Today at 04:24 PM.

Introducing Inkmesh

Hi folks,

We are a couple of ebook aficionados who grew tired of clicking through multiple websites to find ebooks in the right format and at the right price. Being software engineers, we decided to try and improve things, and the result is Inkmesh - an ebook search engine. Inkmesh aggregates and analyzes data from multiple ebook and audiobook sources (including MobileRead!) and makes it available for search. In its first version, Inkmesh also allows browsing ebooks by subject and filtering results by price and content type (ebooks, audiobooks, magazines etc). All search results display compatibility with the most popular reading devices and platforms, and individual ebook pages display detailed availability, formats and pricing.

But we're just getting started. The only people who have used Inkmesh so far are the two of us and our significant others, so obviously, Inkmesh is a bit rough around the edges. We think many of you will find the current set of features useful right away, but we are still thinking through all the different directions future development can take. There are some things we definitely need to do, like adding more sources, crawling them more frequently, and providing more filtering options. But beyond that, our feature set depends entirely on our users. And we don't think we can find a better set of initial users than the folks here at MobileRead, from whom we've already learned so much.

So, we request you to give Inkmesh a try - we think you will like it. And we would really appreciate your suggestions for features that you think will be most useful to add to the product. Please let us know through this thread or through the feedback tab on the right edge of all pages on inkmesh.com. Inkmesh is going to improve every day, and your feedback is going to help us work on stuff that matters most.

Thank you!

anurag/bmd
team@inkmesh.com   anurag View Public Profile Visit anurag's homepage! Find More Posts by anurag Track Posts by anurag via RSS Looks good, seems to have more sources and works faster than ebookprice.info. However, one thing I like about ebookprice.info is the overview table which lists all stores and formats. Your table is rather big spaced and often needs scrolling; I also would like to see icons for the file formats and/or devices - that gives better visual feedback.
P.S. found first bug - Anathem is listed as free from Fictionwise, while it's $14.99 when you follow the link. __________________
Yet another reverse engineering blog
Like to chat? Join #mobileread GRiker: Thanks. The wish-list feature will be one of the first thing we will add when we add user registration capabilities to Inkmesh.

queentess: Thank you! We will be adding more audiobook sources going forward.

Hellmark: Smashwords is high on our TODO list. We will check Waterstones out. We know about ebookprice.info, but we think Inkmesh is more than just a price comparison site - our goal is to help discover ebooks people might not even know about; price comparison is a logical addition.

igorsk - Format icons are a very good suggestion, we've been hunting down format logos ourselves. We will also figure out how to minimize scrolling on individual ebook pages. Re: Fictionwise - we display the rebate prices for them (which is why the cost is zero) Should we display regular prices instead?

Lady Blue: Thank you, we would appreciate further feedback.

Wetdogeared: Thanks for pointing that out. The Year Of The Flood was added on September 22, just after we last crawled Sony & Amazon. We will be increasing our crawl frequency so new releases show up sooner. See reply to igorsk for format icons.

lunged: We are already talking to Shortcovers to obtain a feed; if we can't get it soon we will start crawling their site because we agree they're an important new retailer.

A big thanks to all of you for taking the time to comment. A lot of your suggestions are already on our list (which is great because it tells us we're not complete morons); we just wanted to get the product out ASAP and see if people liked it enough for us to keep going. Your feedback is very encouraging - we are going to keep improving. __________________
Discover and compare prices for ebooks from across the web on Inkmesh I tried it and like it. I like the way the books are presented. BUT I do have a couple of suggestions.

1. We should be able to filter by format.

For example, I only read ebooks on my Sony 505 so I am not interested in books for the PC, cell phone, or Kindle. I would like to be able to filter out responses that are not compatible with my Sony.

Filtering by format would allow that. I could choose BeBB, LRF, and ePub ADE, for example, whereas someone with a Kindle could choose AZW.

If filtering by format is not possible, then by device would be useful. I, for one, am not interested in responses that do not include eInk devices (i.e., responses that include only PC, cell phones, PDAs, and the like).

2. We should be able to sort by price.

Yes, you provide filtering such as "less than $5" but sometimes that isn't what I want. I would prefer to be able to sort by price (low to high and hight to low) because the low price books might be for cell phones only, where as the midrange price books might be for eInk devices. __________________
Richard H. Adin
www.wordsnSync.com
bringing editing into the 21st century

www.freelance-editorial-services.com
when only the best will do

A book a day keeps illiteracy away! The rebate price is only good if one is a member of Fictionwise. I bought a few books from Fictionwise before becoming a member and I suspect I'm not the only one. In addition, one can buy in a manner that doesn't get one the rebate so the rebate price would be meaningless. It would be good to show regular prices instead of the rebate price or in addition to the rebate price, but not the rebate price alone.

Also, if not part of the mix, prices at B&N would be helpful (I didn't check whether B&N was included). __________________
Richard H. Adin
www.wordsnSync.com
bringing editing into the 21st century

www.freelance-editorial-services.com
when only the best will do

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If something does have a rebate, you should note that, incase someone isn't able to get the rebate due to where they live or some other disqualification. Most places I've seen that show a rebate, they'll state the rebated price in a different color, and the normal price in parentheses.

Filtering based on format would be great, and wouldn't be difficult to do since you already have the info.   I love it! It's clean and it's very simple to use. Unlike other sites the pages aren't chockerblocked with visual distractions! And search results are returned very quickly.

My only suggestion would be more/better synopses of books, especially the classics. I'm not so much interested in biographical info for the author as I am reading a short summary of the book to see if it's something that interests me enough to read!

93terp View Public Profile Find More Posts by 93terp Track Posts by 93terp via RSS

Steve Jordan to appear in NY Times tomorrow

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I have just been made aware that Steve Jordan, science fiction author and good friend of MobileRead, is being featured in a New York Times article tomorrow. It's exciting to see that both his e-book insights and his name as an author will be made known to such a wide audience. I'm sure he will pick up quite a few new fans as a result.

The article, called Before Choosing an E-Book, Pondering the Format, is already available online, and will appear in the New York Times print edition tomorrow.

Be sure to share your congratulations and encouragement with Steve, who is not only a great writer, but puts his e-books where his mouth is relative to DRM. His entire collection is available at very reasonable prices, in many formats, with no DRM.

Check out the web site at SteveJordanBooks, as well as additional coverage at TeleRead Blog, where he is a senior writer. Last edited by Bob Russell; Today at 01:44 AM. Reason: Spelling & clarity __________________
"Men...no more dreamt of a seat in the House in order to benefit humanity than a child dreams of a birthday cake that others may eat it." Sir Lewis Namier   Sparrow View Public Profile Find More Posts by Sparrow Track Posts by Sparrow via RSS Grats to you Steve! And hopefully you'll get some "business" coming your way thanks to this.

But as always.... Whenever there is an article like this, it's always Kindle, Sony or iPhone. Not a single mention of the fact that there are a bunch of dedicated ereaders NOT associated with any of those brands *sigh*

To quote Pete Seeger and Joe Hickerson:

"When will they ever learn, when will they ever learn..." __________________
Jesus saves, Allah forgives, Cthulhu thinks you'd make a nice sandwich.

Minister of The Large Dogs Of Infinite Peace And Absurdity. Excellent show, Steve. Let's hope you see a sales peak. Good luck. Neil __________________
In return for friendship and generous advice I've been offered here, visit the website of my own wee publishing house, BeWrite Books (www.bewrite.net), and drop me a line of whatever title/s catch your eye. For the rest of 2009, I'll be happy to send along the ebook versions (only PDF so far, I'm afraid) free of charge as email attachments. ntmarrATbewrite.net (use the @ sign).   neilmarr View Public Profile Visit neilmarr's homepage! Find More Posts by neilmarr Track Posts by neilmarr via RSS

iriver Story on pre-order now - 290 USD aprox

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iriver is now accepting orders for its ebook reader. Shipping is for October 6th. The price is not that good, but at least they include many extras (SD card, case, 2 free book downloads). One of the interesting things is that the menu is available in 15 languages, so I think that they will launch overseas soon.

Check the link for more info:
http://shop.iriver.co.kr/product/pro...e=001000000000 Last edited by Nate the great; Yesterday at 08:49 PM. iriver is now accepting orders for its ebook reader. Shipping is for October 6th. The price is not that good, but at least they include many extras (SD card, case, 2 free book downloads). One of the interesting things is that the menu is available in 15 languages, so I think that they will launch overseas soon.

Check the link for more info:
http://shop.iriver.co.kr/product/pro...e=001000000000

July ebook sales figures announced

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The Association of American Publishers (AAP) just released the sales figures for the domestic US market (press release). The total net book sales are up 2% at 1.54 billion dollars. Ebook sales, on the other hand, are up 213% over last July at 16.2 million dollars. (Ebook sales in June were 14 million dollars.)   Nate the great View Public Profile Find More Posts by Nate the great Track Posts by Nate the great via RSS I keep hearing how ebooks are such a small percentage of the market that the publishers don't care about them but I must be interpreting this wrong. I have to assume that most of the ebooks that are sold are in the adult category.

Adult Hardcover sales were $88.7 million vs $16.2 million so 18.2% of hard cover sales

Adult Mass market sales were $68.2 million vs $16.2 million so 23.7% of mass market sales __________________
I didn't actually go back and look, but it seems like ebooks are gaining 1-2% market share every month or two. __________________
~Brian

"The test of any good fiction is that you should care something for the characters; the good to succeed, the bad to fail. The trouble with most fiction is that you want them all to land in hell, together, as quickly as possible."