e reader – Tech Today w/ Ken May

E-Reading Rainbow: Hachette to bring entire e-book catalog to public libraries

If you’re still balking at the cost of download-to-own e-books, and would rather stick to the tried-and-true library lending system , then this Hachette news is for you. Come next Wednesday, the entirety of Hachette’s ebook catalog — over 5,000 titles — will be made available to nonprofit libraries throughout the US. The announcement and finalized pricing model follows two years worth of pilot testing, during which the publisher examined ebook consumption and lending habits at select libraries. Under the currently set terms of sale, e-books that bow in tandem with print editions will run three times the price of their physical counterparts for “single-user-at-a-time circulations, ” with prices falling to just one and a half that of the hard copy one year later. By Hachette’s own admission, this pricing scheme is not entirely set in stone — the company plans to continually reevaluate the model on a per-year basis. So, there’s hope yet the publisher will gouge libraries a bit less for the perks of e-borrowing. Comments

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E-Reading Rainbow: Hachette to bring entire e-book catalog to public libraries

AAP reports e-books now account for over 22 percent of US publishers’ revenue

It’s well off the triple year-over-year growth that e-books saw a few years ago , but the latest report from the Association of American Publishers shows that e-books did inch up even further in 2012 to account for a sizeable chunk of overall book sales. According to its figures, e-books now represent 22.55 percent of US publishers’ total revenue — up from just under 17 percent in 2011 — an increase that helped push net revenue from all book sales up 6.2 percent to $7.1 billion for the year. As the AAP notes, this report also happens to mark the tenth anniversary of its annual tracking of e-book sales; back at the beginning in 2002, their share of publishers’ net revenue clocked in at a mere 0.05 percent. The group does caution that the year-to-year comparison back that far is somewhat anecdotal, however, given changing methodologies and definitions of e-books. Comments Via: The Next Web Source: AAP

Hacker turns Kindle Paperwhite into wireless Raspberry Pi terminal

The Raspberry Pi is all about low-cost computing, which makes this particular hack quite fitting, as it allows you to make a terminal for your lil’ Linux machine out of something you may already have at home: a Kindle Paperwhite . Displeased with the glare from his laptop’s screen on a sunny day, Max Ogden was inspired to find something better and ended up with this Paperwhite hack . It builds on the original “Kindleberry Pi” method for the Kindle Keyboard , although Ogden had to massage it for the newer model and added some extra hardware to make the setup as wireless as possible. You wouldn’t call the end result a monitor, as such — the Paperwhite logs into an SSH session running on the Pi, so it “pretty much only works for terminals.” That’s probably for the best, as Ogden guesses the lag between wireless keyboard and e-ink screen is around 200ms, but at least it has portability, battery life and sunlight readability in the ‘pros’ column. Details of the project can be found at the source below, meaning only time (and probably, a few peripherals) stands between you and the ultimate hipster coffee shop machine . Filed under: Misc , Software , Amazon Comments Via: Raspberry Pi Source: Max Ogden

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Hacker turns Kindle Paperwhite into wireless Raspberry Pi terminal

Popslate launches iPhone 5 case with four-inch E Ink screen (video)

This is pretty darn cool. It’s called Popslate — an iPhone 5 case with a four-inch E Ink screen on the back — and it’s launching right now on Indiegogo for $79 in two colors. Combined with a bespoke social imaging app, it lets you take and share pics, then “pop” them to the back of your phone. Better yet, the always-on, ultra low-power, black and white display becomes a canvas for notifications, sports scores, maps, lists and notes, all just a glance away. An open API allows third-party developers to design custom apps for Popslate — including accelerometer support to interact with the backside screen by tapping on it. Imagine a micro e-reader app which uses the E Ink display instead of the main panel to conserve battery. The company is still in the early stages of development and sadly didn’t have a prototype to show us, but it’s already gathered a team of talented designers, engineers and developers. It’s also secured a partnership with E Ink to use the latest in ruggedized e-paper technology and is hoping to raise enough funds to make Popslate a reality. Two colors are available at launch (black and white) with prices starting at $79 for the first 500 supporters, then $99 and up. Hit the break for the demo video and IndieGogo link. Continue reading Popslate launches iPhone 5 case with four-inch E Ink screen (video) Filed under: Cellphones , Mobile Comments

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Popslate launches iPhone 5 case with four-inch E Ink screen (video)

Penguin and Random House merge, promise a brave new e-book future

The pressure of digital transitions can lead traditional media companies to circle the wagons — for better or for worse — and book publishers certainly aren’t immune as e-books take hold. Bertelsmann and Pearson are worried enough to be merging their respective Random House and Penguin publishing wings into a joint venture, not-so-creatively titled Penguin Random House, that they hope will better survive “long-term trends” like the shift away from paper-centric business models. While the two are engaged in the usual corporatespeak of creating “synergies” (read: resource cuts), we’re more interested in talk of the union being a springboard for digital efforts: Penguin Random House wants to be “more adventurous” with e-book models like self-publishing . Whether the merger leads to a renaissance for established publishers or just reduced competition when the deal closes in the back half of 2013, we’re bracing ourselves for the possibility of a Fifty Shades of Jamie Oliver crossover. Continue reading Penguin and Random House merge, promise a brave new e-book future Penguin and Random House merge, promise a brave new e-book future originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 29 Oct 2012 10:15:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink | The Guardian | Email this | Comments

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Penguin and Random House merge, promise a brave new e-book future

Amazon Q3 2012 earnings: $13.18 billion revenue, net loss of $274 million

Amazon has just released its earnings for the third quarter of the year and it looks like it’s slightly off analysts’ expectations. The company reported $13.18 billion in revenue (a growth of 27 percent) and an operating loss of $28 million, with net income standing at a loss of $274 million. As Amazon notes, though, a chunk of that, some $169 million, comes from losses resulting from its investment in LivingSocial — it says the figure is “primarily attributable to its impairment charge of certain assets, including goodwill.” Expectedly, the company still isn’t offering any specific numbers for device sales, noting only that the Kindle Fire HD is the number one selling product across Amazon worldwide, and that the next two bestselling products worldwide are the Kindle Paperwhite and the $69 Kindle. As for its outlook for the next quarter, the company is expecting net sales of between $20.25 billion and $22.75 billion, and operating income of anywhere from a loss of $490 million to a profit of $310 million. You can find the company’s full breakdown of all the numbers at the link below. Continue reading Amazon Q3 2012 earnings: $13.18 billion revenue, net loss of $274 million Filed under: Tablets , Internet , Amazon Amazon Q3 2012 earnings: $13.18 billion revenue, net loss of $274 million originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 25 Oct 2012 16:07:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink | Amazon | Email this | Comments