Dual display navigation - New Scientist article

[RickyMaveety]

It looks like a great idea for e-textbooks. Especially if you were able to take notes on one screen.

My thoughts about weight are that as long as it weighs a lot less than lugging your physical textbooks around, you are better off.

I also like the two screens idea, if only because it might make it easier to take notes than trying to split your tablet PC's screen.

I also like the idea of the screens being detachable. That way, if you do manage to break a screen, the book itself is still useable, and you only have to replace or repair the broken half.

[Donnageddon]

It seems something similar has already been done 4 years ago... to little success it would seem. I found references to the Toshiba SD-Book in a couple of places.

http://www.technovelgy.com/ct/Scienc...asp?NewsNum=64

http://www.infosyncworld.com/news/n/4725.html



Edit: the Toshiba SD-Book does not look like it had the unique orientation ability that the device of interest in this thread has.

[DaleDe]

Originally Posted by Donnageddon

It seems something similar has already been done 4 years ago... to little success it would seem. I found references to the Toshiba SD-Book in a couple of places.

http://www.technovelgy.com/ct/Scienc...asp?NewsNum=64

http://www.infosyncworld.com/news/n/4725.html



Edit: the Toshiba SD-Book does not look like it had the unique orientation ability that the device of interest in this thread has.

I don't think it was ever marketed. I already pointed out that OLPC has announced a Generation 2 device with dual screens so the idea is not that new. One could even say it was obvious so not patentable.

Dale

[RickyMaveety]

Originally Posted by Donnageddon

It seems something similar has already been done 4 years ago... to little success it would seem. I found references to the Toshiba SD-Book in a couple of places.

http://www.technovelgy.com/ct/Scienc...asp?NewsNum=64

http://www.infosyncworld.com/news/n/4725.html



Edit: the Toshiba SD-Book does not look like it had the unique orientation ability that the device of interest in this thread has.

They certainly never marketed it here. I probably would have purchased one if they had.

[igorsk]

Panasonic's ΣBook also had two screens, though grayscale. I guess it didn't work out too well, since they went with only one screen in Words Gear.

[Panurge]

I'm a bit surprised to discover from some of the comments that habit has already taken over with these relatively new devices called e-books. Obviously, the Maryland prototype addresses a real problem that those of us who use either or both computers and e-books for reading and research purposes have discovered. If you are doing research, you end up doing a great deal of cross-referencing and parallel reading that, in the paper/print world means having a large number of open books, sheets of paper, etc. spread all over the desk. Novel readers are more like tv viewers in that they are focused on one source at a time. But students and their teachers don't necessarily read that way. My Sony Reader has been especially useful for me as a repository for lots of journal articles and whole scholarly books (not necessarily reference books) that I can render portable and consult as a group. So I download a large number of articles on one topic that I can read as a collection; the Reader allows me to make up an anthology or ensemble of articles on one particular topic and take the whole group with me. But the ability to mark up, link from one text to another (especially when one refers to another in a footnote), or simply juxtapose two differing interpretations--these are capabilities that would really make the e-book take off in schools and academic, legal, and even business environments.

[Jadon]

Originally Posted by Panurge

If you are doing research, you end up doing a great deal of cross-referencing and parallel reading that, in the paper/print world means having a large number of open books, sheets of paper, etc. spread all over the desk.

Yes, which suggests that when you need more than one screen, having only two is probably not going to be enough. Probably best to simply have multiple book slates than have dual-screen units. Reminds me of some Star Trek scenes where a character researching something would have a tabletop littered with PADDs...

[pilotbob]

Originally Posted by Jadon

Yes, which suggests that when you need more than one screen, having only two is probably not going to be enough. Probably best to simply have multiple book slates than have dual-screen units. Reminds me of some Star Trek scenes where a character researching something would have a tabletop littered with PADDs...

I never understood the pile of PADDS. Couldn't you just bring up another document on it. Heck Mac has spaces and so does Linux.

BOb

[tirsales]

I guess the best case would be the possibility to attach multiple displays to each other. E.g. two, thee, four, x displays left,right,top,bottom of each other.

Originally Posted by TheJohnNewton

So in other words it doesn't do much for the typical user of a small, portable, reading device like myself.

Quite possible
I like smaller paperback more then large and heavy hardcover - for recreational reading. So I guess we can agree: For the casual / recreational reader a single display is enough. For work, annotating, etc I'd prefer multiple and/or bigger displays.

Being on a site called Mobileread I assume the focus here is on portable reading devices so I'm looking at it from that perspective. Perhaps it has other applications?

One display with a dictionary another with a story?
When I am e.g. learning a new language I like to read books in that language - and I like to have a dictionary nearby

[RickyMaveety]

I suppose it depends on what you are doing. When I'm in a class, I mostly just need the text and something to take notes on. A two screen ebook with a touch screen would work well for me.

If I am doing research requiring severals texts ... again, as long as all of the texts were available in the same format, and that format were readable by my device .... two screens would probably be enough.

The only reason I use more than two screens in my work is that I have to refer to several documents at the same time in order to work effectively. For me, it is common to have a PDF document up on one screen, a speadsheet on another, my note taking program on yet another, while my word processor is taking up the fourth screen.

But then, I don't see an ebook as taking the place of my desktop computer. I do think it would be a valuable addition to classroom work and general research.

[DaleDe]

At current eBook eInk screen prices it would probably be easier to just have multiple eBook readers. The screen cost is more than half the device cost. Would you pay an additional $200 each for 2, 3, 4 screens to add to your existing reader? An how would you determine the active screen? It would get pretty complicated. Another choice would be to be able to have two eBooks open and switch back and forth with 1 button. I find this a useful feature on my ebookwise 1150 but current eInk eBook readers seem to be missing it. A split screen might also be useful.

Dale

[tirsales]

When I wrote "attach multiple displays to each others" I essentially meant "having multiple devices that can be attached two each other". So having two eReaders that can share a single database and function as a single larger display.

[DaleDe]

Originally Posted by tirsales

When I wrote "attach multiple displays to each others" I essentially meant "having multiple devices that can be attached two each other". So having two eReaders that can share a single database and function as a single larger display.

Ah, technically this is a very different thing but would be more useful I think. Maybe a USB cable between devices or wireless.

Dale

[axel77]

Originally Posted by BKeeper

Dual screens mean at least double the cost and make the device unnecessarily complex , bulky, (and breakable).

Actually quite the opposite, a dual screen device which would open/close would make the screens far more protected in closed transportion mode.

Think about a notebook with the screen inside when closed.

[axel77]

Originally Posted by DaleDe

At current eBook eInk screen prices it would probably be easier to just have multiple eBook readers. The screen cost is more than half the device cost. Would you pay an additional $200 each for 2, 3, 4 screens to add to your existing reader?

Yes, I would. The whole eReader market is currently concentrating on the casual reader, the market niche for scientific readers is completly uncovered yet. And yes I guess for most people I know of who are interested into this tech, 1000€ or more might not be that a problem, if the device really lives up to their expectations.