“As Apple Inc. prepares to unveil a new digital-textbook service on Thursday, the spotlight is falling on its vice president who is leading core aspects of the new service: Roger Rosner,” Jessica E. Vascellaro reports for The Wall Street Journal.
“According to people familiar with the matter, Mr. Rosner—Apple’s vice president for productivity applications, in charge of its iWork document, spreadsheet and presentation software—is closely involved in developing the new digital-textbook service,” Vascellaro reports. “Apple last week said it was holding an event in New York City on Thursday for an announcement, which people familiar with the matter have said will be around digital textbooks.”
Vascellaro reports, “The announcement isn’t expected to focus on textbooks that exist today, but rather around tools for building digital textbooks, according to these people. That service is expected to be a way for a broad range of schools, publishers and others to develop learning material in a digital format, these people said.”
Read more in the full article here.
Related articles:
Apple to announce ‘GarageBand for eBooks’ to ‘digitally destroy’ textbook publishing – January 17, 2012
Tying Apple’s iWork ’12 to iBookstore and ePUB self-publishing – January 4, 2012
Apple’s special media event to focus on iBooks – January 3, 2012
iPublish — new iWork app.
How about iWork12, including a robust synching feature in Pages, Quicktime functionality in Keynote, and….and…and…dam I just had a Rick Perry moment. 😉
cue the Tea party trolls in 3…2…1…
Cue cliche commentary in 3…2…1…
ha!
Lmao.
What if this is not only about digital ebooks, but also print? Apple already has this in place with the picture books, calendars, cards… What if they are about to offer a way to create book BOTH digitally AND in print? Digital media is not always king. Sometimes print is just a better medium.
Also, it’s about time for Apple to bring iBooks to the Mac.
Here here!
Print textbooks are a huge waste, both in terms of length of service, and environmental impact. Given the hyper digital stimulation that todays youth receive, Interactive, media-rich digital textbooks are seen as a way to capture their attention and foster the learning process.
Ah, but then so are photo albums. I have always been confused about the printing services Apple offers. It just seems like an out-of-place addition to the product line-up. Then I uses Cards, and the recipient was blown away. We have so many ways to digitally view the myriad photos, yet there is something about a printed book. There is something about the way print connects with the person that digital just cannot achieve. And when power is out, or the Internet is down, you can curl up with a good book. (Even with power and Internet, I have yet to hear someone “curl up” with their iPad, laptop or desktop. It’s just different.
If you offer a book that is meant for primarily digital consumption, but some interested party could order the print version directly from Apple? To me it would take desktop publishing to another level. Since Apple is already doing it, and producing amazingly beautiful printed products, this would be something that desktop publishers could do that till now they only dreamed about: beautiful, hard-bound books in print, for an affordable price, even in lots of 1. ARE YOU KIDDING?!?!
So are Libraries…
I believe that libraries, in their past and current form should soon go the way of the ‘Dodo’. These bricks and mortar: or more likely, these granite and steels edifices to political payback or ego. These power gulping, dust gathering, union sustaining relics need to be gently led into the future. A future of technology and thoughtful use of the great inventiveness of man. (women are also welcome).
We now have access to information in ways unheard of just ten short years ago. Access that is at our fingertips, in our pockets; in living, moving color. Smart phones, iPads. Touchy-feely techie tools to take us anywhere imaginable. So why be stuck with books in their past and present form?
Students wouldn’t have to lug great spine-numbing backpacks of heavy books around, they would require just one iPad. The content would change with the class they were taking. No more cutting down forests to make paper pulp, to make it into paper to ship to a factory, to print books, to ship to stores so that people could drive to the store to buy another book……
If the readers of this piece have the desire and the time to investigate the enormous amount of taxes it takes to sustain the State library infrastructure in its present form, they are going to be blown away with the colossal amounts of money spent. It’s in the $billions.
If there are to be libraries in our future, that is: besides those national monuments to pride and self-aggrandizement like the Reagan or the Clinton or the coming Obama library; then they could be humble, comfortable, affordable buildings with desks having built-in iPads.
No offense to the publishers of today, or the librarians, or the library builders; but I feel your days are numbered.
… much more than mere text. The Town Library in Lenox, MA is one example.
It is the one Public WiFi spot in town!
It is quiet, and beautiful
It offers collections of local information not easily – if at all – found on the net
It draws tourists to return! (profit for town, locals)
It displays artifacts at perfect scale (not just pics)
It offers a social space
It is a center for Reading to the Blind
Think of it as a reality museum that offers both a nice environment and financial value. Does the town pay to keep it open? Sure. But it gets good value from the investment. And it offers unique services to the blind and to those without Internet connectivity in town.
So are libraries a colossal waste…
I believe that libraries, in their past and current form should soon go the way of the ‘Dodo’. These bricks and mortar: or more likely, these granite and steels edifices to political payback or ego. These power gulping, dust gathering, union sustaining relics need to be gently led into the future. A future of technology and thoughtful use of the great inventiveness of man. (women are also welcome).
We now have access to information in ways unheard of just ten short years ago. Access that is at our fingertips, in our pockets; in living, moving color. Smart phones, iPads. Touchy-feely techie tools to take us anywhere imaginable. So why be stuck with books in their past and present form?
Students wouldn’t have to lug great spine-numbing backpacks of heavy books around, they would require just one iPad. The content would change with the class they were taking. No more cutting down forests to make paper pulp, to make it into paper to ship to a factory, to print books, to ship to stores so that people could drive to the store to buy another book……
If the readers of this piece have the desire and the time to investigate the enormous amount of taxes it takes to sustain the State library infrastructure in its present form, they are going to be blown away with the colossal amounts of money spent. It’s in the $billions.
If there are to be libraries in our future, that is: besides those national monuments to pride and self-aggrandizement like the Reagan or the Clinton or the coming Obama library; then they could be humble, comfortable, affordable buildings with desks having built-in iPads.
No offense to the publishers of today, or the librarians, or the library builders; but I feel your days are numbered.
Surely you jest? (Surely you jest? – I say it twice, as your double post must mean your serious)
I’m always amazed that the physical word from beyond 2000 BC is still legible today, yet that ebook I bought yesterday may or may not be useable tomorrow. The pursuit of newer, better, faster, cheaper will always mean that what works today may not work tomorrow.
As far as libraries go, I disagree also. Libraries offer free access to services that not everyone can readily afford. FYI libraries aren’t just for physical books anymore – many offer computers to use, electronic books to ‘check out’, etc.
Now hush, while I reread that favorite paperback book of mine that I bought in 1976. You know, the one I let my friends read, let my spouse read, let my daughter read, can read without electricity or the internet or permission from whoever I purchased it from – and, with proper care, will be able to read 20 years from now should I feel so inclined.
‘Libraries offer free access.’
Nothing could be further from the truth. Or, maybe farther.
So.. everyone who pays taxes fund the libraries, so that some can use them – most of whom pay no taxes. Riiiigghht!
Sorry, but this “knowledge” of (most) current, U.S. municipal libraries were established, currently run and funded is woefully ignorant and/or naive… to say nothing of the overall assessment.
Besides, even if it were 100% accurate, the amount of “public” money involved pales in comparison to that burned on pork barrel projects at all levels, let alone overall government waste.
Ahhhh, so as a child you were never introduced to the wonders of a library! I understand your skewed, misinformed, unsubstantiated and uncorroboratable view of libraries now.
Never mind.
I do have a very large physical library of my own, which I paid for.
…that’s what she said? OK, not quite right here, but close, oh so close. ; )
ck12.org!
Sorry. Didn’t mean to post twice.
“The announcement isn’t expected to focus on textbooks that exist today, but rather around tools for building digital textbooks,…”
The more I read, the more I doubt this. I think Apple is simply going to announce some sort of digital publishing/distribution arrangement with textbook publishers and (some) educational establishments.
I don’t think Apple is going to announce some sort of new digital publishing tools.
Wherefore art thou, iWork ’11???