October 21, 2009

Nooked !

Coverage from Wired's Gadget Lab on the Nook, Barnes and Noble's first e-book reader is VERY positive: "Sleek, stylish and runs Google's Android OS. What's not to like about Barnes and Noble's new e-book reader? Despite the odd name, the Nook looks like an eBook reader that would actually be a worthwhile investment.




Best feature? The ability to loan e-books you have downloaded to other Nook owners.

The reader looks a lot like Amazon's white plastic e-book, only instead of the chiclet-keyboard there is a color multi-touch screen, to be used as both a keyboard or to browse books, cover-flow style. The machine runs Google's Android OS, will have wireless capability from an unspecified carrier, and comes in at the same $260 as the now rather old-fashioned-looking Kindle."

Now, how long has it taken for the Kindle DX to become "rather old-fashioned-looking?" Three months or so? I have a hunch that Nook will be called something similar when Apple's rumored iTablet hits the shelves next year.

Here is the B&N Nook site, which is still not visible on their front page. It still has a few non-working links. See how the comparison page takes dead aim at the Kindle?

Among the advantages in Nook's column you'll find: Wi-Fi, expandable memory via microSD, MP3 player, and PDF compatibility.

However I'm old enough to remember B&N abandoning ebooks once, six years ago. Here is to wish them much more luck this time around!

October 8, 2009

Something IS Flashy in Denmark: The UniFlip Online Flip-page Publisher

UniFlip takes your books, catalogs, magazines, reports as PDF, Word, Powerpoint, and RTF files and publishes them into the Flash multi-media format, that looks like a physical binded book with pages that actually flip!




Your publications do look and read like traditional books and magazines with flip-through pages. The search functions allow your readers to find key words, phrases, or sentences; a convenient index and hyperlinks help them locate information quickly; a zoom function keeps the pages crisp, smooth, and easy to read. Zoooom is really cool!

It requires no software installation - everything takes place online, including distribution via your web site, blog, email, Facebook, Twitter, etc. Publishing does not get easier than that...at least the production part of it....

Mind you, UniFlip is not free. The price starts at US $79/title up to 4 titles and progressively decreases with your number of titles. We, of course, plan to evaluate it. If it works as advertised, you'll be able to flip-through our ebooks...errrr flipbooks soon.

October 1, 2009

What Is a Vook?

A vook is the latest innovation in reading - from, you guessed right, Vook.com - that blends a beautifully laid-out book, high-quality video, and the power of the Internet into a single, complete story.


You can read your book and watch videos at the same time, that enhance the story. Plus, you get to connect with authors and your friends through social media all on one screen, without switching between platforms.


Vooks are available in two formats: As a web-based application you can read on your computer and a mobile application for reading on the go. With the web-based application you don't have to download programs or install software. Just open your favorite browser and start reading and watching in an exciting new way. You can also download and install the mobile applications through the Apple iTunes store and sync them with your iPhone or iPod.


Well done, Vook!


P.S. We've contacted them to get our latest and upcoming titles made into "Vooks." I'll report back on our progress.