February 16, 2013

Consider the Source: Changing on the Fly

Skaters playing hockey

In his latest “Consider the Source” column, Marc Aronson compares recent developments in digital publishing to hockey’s “change on the fly” technique.

Ebooks 2013: New leasing models, cheaper devices, more content

Ebooks 2013: New leasing models, cheaper devices, more content

“School libraries, I believe, will be the coming focal point for ebook licensing,” write Chris Harris. “We have strong relationships with our K–12 publishing partners, but now we must reach out to the trade houses. As the print market weakens, the time is right for schools to present a new business proposal.”

National Federation of the Blind to Take Protest to Amazon, Denouncing School Kindle Use as Discriminatory to Blind Students

National Federation of the Blind to Take Protest to Amazon, Denouncing School Kindle Use as Discriminatory to Blind Students

Due to their longstanding frustration with Amazon’s failure to make Kindle ereaders accessible to people who are blind, officials from the National Federation of the Blind will be protesting outside Amazon’s Seattle headquarters on December 12.

Is Amazon Whispercast Enough?: Doubts Remain on Kindle’s Adoption by Schools

Is Amazon Whispercast Enough?: Doubts Remain on Kindle’s Adoption by Schools

Amazon’s newest service, Whispercast, attempts to make Kindles more tempting to librarians by letting them control multiple Kindles from a single access account. However, many librarians have doubts, and there are remaining unanswered questions.

Kindle for iPad Now Supports Children’s Books, Graphic Novels

Amazon’s iPad and Cloud Reader apps now support more than 1,000 children’s books, comic books, and graphic novels in full color. Titles include Ian Falconer’s Olivia (Atheneum, 2000), Donald Crews’s Freight Train (Greenwillow, 1993), the popular “Sesame Street” and “Curious George” series, Neil Gaiman’s “The Sandman” series, and comics featuring DC superheroes such as Batman, [...]

Amazon Offers Harry Potter for Free Through Lending Library

Potter fans can download all seven books in the J.K. Rowling series starting June 19, following Amazon’s deal with Pottermore to make the titles available through the Kindle Owners’ Lending Library.