iPad is "The Future Of Reading"

[JaneD]

Must be a slow news day, because the LA Times has a giant front-page article about the iPad. It's mostly about the advantages of embedding video in text, but it's a pretty wide-ranging article about how digital gadgets are changing the publishing industry.

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-f...,2712081.story

[Worldwalker]

I don't want video in my text any more than I want text in my video.

[Tpebop]

Originally Posted by Worldwalker

I don't want video in my text any more than I want text in my video.

I take it you've never watched a film that had subtitles in it then?

[Dave Berk]

Originally Posted by Tpebop

I take it you've never watched a film that had subtitles in it then?

I agree with Worldwalker. Unless it is in a language I can't speak I don't want subtitles in my movies..

[Worldwalker]

Originally Posted by Tpebop

I take it you've never watched a film that had subtitles in it then?

Not when I can help it. And while doing so might be an unavoidable necessity at times, I certainly don't like it.

[SameOldStory]

Mostly I agree with Worldwalker. In this case, only somewhat.

If other media interferes with my leisure reading, I agree. But sometimes other media is needed or desired.

I've read, and re-read, W. E. B. Griffin's WWII books. But sometimes you'll hit something that you don't know.


Everybody that knows what a Brewster Buffalo is, raise your hand.

Not too many I see.

Brewster Buffalo

Spoiler:

Need more info on the Corregidor tunnels"

Spoiler:

Malinta Tunnel - Wiki

Narwhal, anyone?

Spoiler:

Narwhals - Wiki

Those examples would be ok in some ebooks and especially in a "text" ebook.

[JaneD]

I know what a Narwhal is. I watch Futurama.

[LDBoblo]

Must be a slow news day to be reporting on Vooks and the iPad again.

There's definitely potential waiting to be tapped, but so far I haven't seen anyone get good vanilla text outside of PDF files. If text is too tough, I'm not going to hold my breath for good multimedia reading experiences, except with perhaps some educational stuff or children's books.

[JaneD]

It's funny, if they had changed the title to "The Future of Teaching" or "The Future of Learning" we probably wouldn't have any argument - it IS great for multimedia information gathering. But because they had to liken it to "Reading", it's going to grate on those of us who really use reading-specific ereaders, which are so much easier on the eyes.

[LDBoblo]

Originally Posted by JaneD

But because they had to liken it to "Reading", it's going to grate on those of us who really use reading-specific ereaders, which are so much easier on the eyes.

EPDs are not much or any easier on the eyes than a backlit LCD.

[Maggie Leung]

Video in books: I'd be interested in it for nonfiction books. I like to read about history, astronomy, art and architecture, for instance, and video could make such books more useful to me. For instance, if I'm reading about Chicago skyscrapers and they talk about how well a building is integrated into its surroundings, a video feature showing a skyscraper's neighboring buildings would be helpful. That's one simple example.

I can imagine video being used effectively in many ways. The idea is to use tech to improve content, not to throw it in just because you can. Integrating it well is key. Of course, there are plenty of books that don't need video, but there's no need to dismiss advances just because they don't apply for all uses.

[kjk]

Seems to me that the article is about how digital is the future of publishing.

[SameOldStory]

Things can improve even if it takes a while.

[Maggie Leung]

Originally Posted by kjk

Seems to me that the article is about how digital is the future of publishing.

Yes. It will be really interesting to see how books evolve. What we consider a "book" is starting to shift.

[LDBoblo]

Originally Posted by SameOldStory

Things can improve even if it takes a while.

Spoiler:

The text in that image is better than can be found in any ebook reader device.