New Kindle Rumor: Kindle 2.0 in October 2008? - Page 3

jerryleejr · 07-16-2008, 10:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by daffy4u

What is "manga"? I know the Kindle has some .manga files but I don't really know what it is. I tried Google and looks like it has something to do with Anime.

If I am not mistaken Manga is a form of Comic, Usually Japanese Anime focused is can be recognized by the artistic style, (Let's just say teenage boys love it!)

JJ

LazyScot · 07-16-2008, 10:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nekokami

I don't think a screen smaller than the iLiad would work very well for manga, which is very popular with younger readers right now. But I admit I haven't tried it on a 6" screen, because I don't have one. There is that CBZ/LRF converter, so I guess enough people are willing to try it that I may be completely wrong on this... anyone care to share their experiences?

From experience, its both size and greyscale that matters. Looking at, for example, some of the NBC Heroes graphic novels (okay, not manga, but close-ish) they look really good on the iLiad, but more than a little poor on the smaller screens. Some of this is the size -- but I suspect that some of this could be sorted by a different panel arrangement. However the greyscale limits seems to be a significant impact. I'm guessing this is the same reason that most of the Kindle newspapers don't include photos.

On the basis of this, I'd seriously hope the display of v2 (if/when it happens) is at least *able* to do 16-greyscales (even if it doesn't do it most of the time).

nekokami · 07-16-2008, 10:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by daffy4u

What is "manga"? I know the Kindle has some .manga files but I don't really know what it is. I tried Google and looks like it has something to do with Anime.

Black and white comics in the Japanese style. Sometimes it looks something like this:

(Yes, I have the permission of the author to post this here.

)

axel77 · 07-16-2008, 10:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jerryleejr

(Let's just say teenage boys love it!)

Just make sure you don't confuse Hentai with Manga!

daffy4u · 07-16-2008, 11:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jerryleejr

If I am not mistaken Manga is a form of Comic, Usually Japanese Anime focused is can be recognized by the artistic style, (Let's just say teenage boys love it!)

JJ

That's why I didn't know what it was, not being a teen-aged boy or having any.

I did find a Manga Studio for Dummies book in the Kindle store.

daffy4u · 07-16-2008, 11:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nekokami

Black and white comics in the Japanese style. Sometimes it looks something like this:

(Yes, I have the permission of the author to post this here.

)

Thanks, my age is showing because this whole trend has passed me by. I know of Anime and like it but never heard of these comics.

nekokami · 07-16-2008, 11:04 AM

Hentai is a descriptive term that can refer to both manga and anime of sexual nature. Manga is a very broad category in Japan and includes stories popular with girls (shoujo) as well as boys (shounen), and adults as well (and no, I'm not just talking about hentai again).

The reason manga titles are particularly interesting for e ink readers is that they are generally black and white, and use screentones (patterns of dots) instead of grayscale, so they are quite readable on an e ink screen. Reducing the screen size too much can make the dialogue illegible, though, and for obvious reasons, there's no "flow" of the page layout.

nekokami · 07-16-2008, 11:06 AM

"Manga Studio" is the software tool that I-- er, that is, the author of the image posted above-- used for page layout and lettering.

olis · 07-16-2008, 11:07 AM

Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon, in May was interviewed by Walt Mosberg at the D6 all things digital conference.
Mosberg asks Bezos if the recent kindle price cut (from 399 to 359 dollars) is in preparation for a new kindle model. Bezos says it's not, the kindle is selling well and they are extremely happy about it. He also says that there will be a second, a third, a tenth version of the kindle but that the second version is not that near.
The highlights of the interview are here http://d6.allthingsd.com/20080528/bezos/.

daffy4u · 07-16-2008, 11:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nekokami

"Manga Studio" is the software tool that I-- er, that is, the author of the image posted above-- used for page layout and lettering.

You sneaky little kitty!

So we may see the "author's" work in the Kindle store if the new version can handle more gray scale?

daffy4u · 07-16-2008, 11:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by olis

Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon, in May was interviewed by Walt Mosberg at the D6 all things digital conference.
Mosberg asks Bezos if the recent kindle price cut (from 399 to 359 dollars) is in preparation for a new kindle model. Bezos says it's not, the kindle is selling well and they are extremely happy about it. He also says that there will be a second, a third, a tenth version of the kindle but that the second version is not that near.
The highlights of the interview are here http://d6.allthingsd.com/20080528/bezos/.

Yeah, we've seen that and I've quoted it a few times myself on the Amazon boards but something is in the air. Time will tell.

DaleDe · 07-16-2008, 11:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by daffy4u

What is "manga"? I know the Kindle has some .manga files but I don't really know what it is. I tried Google and looks like it has something to do with Anime.

Your first choice should always be our wiki.

Dale

nekokami · 07-16-2008, 11:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by daffy4u

So we may see the "author's" work in the Kindle store if the new version can handle more gray scale?

No additional gray scale needed. Page size could be an issue-- I should borrow a Sony Reader from my local friend who has one, to test. I doubt I'd ever sell through the Kindle store, at least as long as DRM is a requirement. For now the manga will remain free. Once enough pages are done, I'll bundle them up in CBZ and PDF format for easier offline reading. I think it would be a bit cheeky to charge for a new work from a complete unknown.

JAcheson · 07-16-2008, 11:19 AM

There are a couple things about Japanese manga that make it interesting from an e-book perspective.

Firstly, manga are generally both black and white, and well suited to a small screen. They are usually reprinted in paperback-sized volumes called tankoban, which means that on the normal e-books, they wouldn't have to be shrunk much if at all.

The other thing that makes manga interesting is that they sell a LOT of it, both in Japan and now in the US. In Japan, in particular, the big manga anthologies have circulations that leave both Spider-Man and Reader's Digest in the dust. So getting even a small piece of that pie would translate into big buy rates, possibly the biggest yet.

JAcheson · 07-16-2008, 11:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jerryleejr

If I am not mistaken Manga is a form of Comic, Usually Japanese Anime focused is can be recognized by the artistic style, (Let's just say teenage boys love it!)

There are all kinds of manga, only some is aimed at teenage boys. There is girl's manga, for instance, which sells as much as the boys' stuff, if not more. And the styles are really all over the board.

There are also manga titles aimed at every other possible demographic: businessmen, housewives, little kids, grandparents, mah jonng fanatics, foodies, sports fans, pet lovers, everything.

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07-16-2008, 11:04 AM	#37
nekokami fruminous edugeek Posts: 6,745 Karma: 551260 Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Northeast US Device: iPad, eBw 1150	Hentai is a descriptive term that can refer to both manga and anime of sexual nature. Manga is a very broad category in Japan and includes stories popular with girls (shoujo) as well as boys (shounen), and adults as well (and no, I'm not just talking about hentai again). The reason manga titles are particularly interesting for e ink readers is that they are generally black and white, and use screentones (patterns of dots) instead of grayscale, so they are quite readable on an e ink screen. Reducing the screen size too much can make the dialogue illegible, though, and for obvious reasons, there's no "flow" of the page layout.

07-16-2008, 11:06 AM	#38
nekokami fruminous edugeek Posts: 6,745 Karma: 551260 Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Northeast US Device: iPad, eBw 1150	"Manga Studio" is the software tool that I-- er, that is, the author of the image posted above-- used for page layout and lettering.

07-16-2008, 11:07 AM	#39
olis Zealot Posts: 107 Karma: 369 Join Date: May 2007 Location: Italy Device: prs-500, Nokia N810, Irex dr1000s, Kindle3	Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon, in May was interviewed by Walt Mosberg at the D6 all things digital conference. Mosberg asks Bezos if the recent kindle price cut (from 399 to 359 dollars) is in preparation for a new kindle model. Bezos says it's not, the kindle is selling well and they are extremely happy about it. He also says that there will be a second, a third, a tenth version of the kindle but that the second version is not that near. The highlights of the interview are here http://d6.allthingsd.com/20080528/bezos/.

07-16-2008, 11:19 AM	#44
JAcheson Tech Writer Posts: 211 Karma: 1745785 Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Philadelphia, PA Device: Palm TX, Nook Color, Nook Simple Touch, Vizio Tablet, Nexus 10	There are a couple things about Japanese manga that make it interesting from an e-book perspective. Firstly, manga are generally both black and white, and well suited to a small screen. They are usually reprinted in paperback-sized volumes called tankoban, which means that on the normal e-books, they wouldn't have to be shrunk much if at all. The other thing that makes manga interesting is that they sell a LOT of it, both in Japan and now in the US. In Japan, in particular, the big manga anthologies have circulations that leave both Spider-Man and Reader's Digest in the dust. So getting even a small piece of that pie would translate into big buy rates, possibly the biggest yet.