06:00 AM by Alexander Turcic in Miscellaneous | Week in Review

Once again, our weekly roundup of highlights from the past seven days of MobileRead:

E-Books - News

• "Dr Who" Knitted Puppet Scandal Rocks the BBC!
• Adobe Digital Edition 1.5 final is available
• Astak Mentor at IDPF conference

E-Books - Content

• HTML-to-Epub Online Converter available

E-Book Devices - Bookeen Cybook Gen3

• Cybook Gen3 New Edition: More Memory, Improved Button

E-Book Devices - Amazon Kindle

• Kindle Case - There are other options-DIY

Mobile Devices - General Talk

• Is the Palm OS dying?

10:34 AM by Nate the great in E-Book General | News

Where to begin?

Fictionwise wasn't at the conference. At least, I didn't see them and the Astak rep didn't think they were there. So I couldn't get solid info about Ereader support, but I was told that Fictionwise should be ready to announce Ereader support in June. The Astak rep didn't know whether Fictionwise's device would be locked down or what other features it would support.

The 5" model came in several different colors. Not all worked because they hadn't been flashed yet. One did, so this is fine. It only read the PVI/Netronix STK format. I did get a picture of the menu. As you can see, it's different from the 6". Also, look at the position of the buttons. They bear a striking resemblance to the position of the buttons on the Jetbook.

The functional 6" models were obviously the OEM from Netronix. The other is their design, and doesn't work yet. It's an engineering mockup they just receive a few days before. I wonder if the menu on the 6" Mentor is the same as on the EB-100? Actually, I think the 6" readers were EB-100. I was told they would only have the 5" Mentor because the others weren't ready yet.

The 9.7" was a preproduction model. If I hadn't told them I was coming, I doubt they would have brought it. It did have touchscreen, but the software was refusing to work that day. I know many here are disappointed by the lack of a hands on review, but I didn't expect to see it at all. Don't complain too loudly.

There were a number of other questions that people wanted me to ask, and most of the answers are on Astak's website. One thing I forgot to check is the format of the ebooks I was reading.

08:07 AM by Hadrien in E-Book General | News

Adobe released a final version of Digital Editions 1.5 yesterday.

According to the DE official blog:

Adobe has updated its popular Digital Editions software, a lightweight, rich Internet application for reading, acquiring and organizing digital books and other publications. Version 1.5 features enhanced DRM flexibility through named activation so that users can move content across platforms and mobile devices using an Adobe ID. In addition, ADE 1.5 is localized in French and German and has support for Mac® OSX 10.5 (Leopard). Adobe Digital Editions supports both PDF and IDPF EPUB, a standard format designed to reflow for the screens of mobile reading devices, which has gained broad acceptance among book publishers.

Adobe Digital Editions has over 1 million installations since the June 2007 launch. The new software will be automatically provided to users who have installed Digital Editions 1.0, and is available at the product site .

Adobe has also released an updated Digital Editions installer and launcher for distributors of eBooks. The installer is used to detect and install the latest version of ADE for retail or library customers of Adobe eBooks. The software is free to use and available with implementation instructions .

I've experienced some troubles updating DE on one of my computer, and a few users are experiencing the same bug: http://www.adobeforums.com/webx/.59b53d03

To fix this:

I've found a workaround. I downloaded the zipped exe file available from the following link and replaced the existing digitaleditions1x5.exe file.

http://www.adobe.com/go/kb403051

I assume that this exe is designed Vista, but it works fine on XP Pro.

Any thoughts on DE from Mobilereaders ? Now that DE 1.5 is ready, when can we expect support on mobile devices ? Will publishers start to massively support ePub now ?

07:26 AM by HarryT in Miscellaneous | Lounge

Another triumph for copyright law over evil unscrululous money-grabbing profiteers:

A Doctor Who fan is embroiled in a row with the BBC after she published knitting patterns for the sci-fi drama's monsters on the internet.

The patterns of Ood and Adipose were removed from her website after the BBC's commercial arm complained that they breached its copyright.

But the woman said the corporation was "making an example of her".

BBC Worldwide said it acted because finished figures were being sold by others on auction website eBay.

It also denied threatening legal action and said it had offered to consider marketing the designs itself.

For more details, see:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7400268.stm

09:38 PM by RWood in E-Book Readers | Alternative Devices

A recent article in The Washington Post raises a question that has been posed here at MobileRead for some time, "Is the Palm OS Dying?" Written by James A. Martin of PC World, the article includes quotes by several business leaders concerning their views of the future of the Palm OS.

It is interesting that he cites features that are missing from the Palm offerings (other than a long time since the last major update) and also identifies features in the Palm that are not offered by competing devices.

09:24 PM by Alexander Turcic in More E-Book Readers | Bookeen

Lo and behold, fresh into our tattle box, Bookeen tips us with the release of a new edition of the Cybook Gen3 e-reader!

Cybook Gen3 New Edition offers three two improvements over the original Gen3 release:

• More internal memory: the Cybook internal memory reaches 512MB now (480MB is available for storage)
• A new firmware: Firmware 1.1 offers more stability, a longer battery lifetime and a more reactive button interface (the upgrade is also available for the original Gen3)
• A revised housing: the navigation button offers a soft hand feeling with a tactile feedback

Prices remain the same (Standard $350, Deluxe $450), and as for availability, Bookeen estimates an average shipping delay of 12 days.

02:29 PM by FrankN in E-Book Readers | Amazon Kindle

I'm amazed at the number of complaints regarding the Kindle case and the limited options for replacement. The majority of the discussion generally centers around the lack of ability to comfortably read with the device in the case. After a futile search for the ultimate case, I simply made my own.

While thousands have taken the razor and Velcro approach to the original case, the only objective reached is that the device no longer falls out. It remains uncomfortable to hold in a natural position while reading. Others have gravitated to the leather "not named" commercial case with pockets to hold stuff. The fact remains that although attractive and business like, it dosen't feel like a book, the device is losely supported by a flap, and there is no practical reason to store business cards in your book (extra pockets).

I took a different approach in making my own, that of holding a book comfortably in any position. I suggest the primary objective in hundreds of thousands of these devices purchased was to enhance the reading experience with limitless access to reading material. When considering an aftermarket cover, sleeve, or pouch reflect on why you purchased your Kindle. I predict that the market will eventually be flooded with expensive designer models that perfectly match your briefcase or shoes yet remain unnatural to hold and read.

Ask questions and try before you buy, don't let fashion override functionality. We have evolved to this point from stone tablets, papyrus, Microsoft Reader and become conditioned to comfortably holding a book in any position while reading.

I've attached a few pictures of covers I have either made for myself or friends simply to stimulate thought. I hope to eventually post instructions for self made covers on my web site. Enjoy.

11:53 AM by Nate the great in E-Book Formats | ePub

Book Glutton has recently added epub conversion to their website. This is all weel and good, but is there any program that reads epub yet?

It currently accepts only single HTML files. You can find it here.