Used under CC from http://www.flickr.com/photos/kesta/2639982875, last accessed 10/22/10

State of the Market

• Association of American Publishers

– Adult eBooks: $99.5M in Jan 2012; $66.6M in Jan 2011; +49.4% increase

– Children’s eBooks: $22.6M in Jan 2012; $3.9M in Jan 2011; +475.1% increase

Two Options

What is EPUB?• A digital container for text and images

that allows the content to reflow based on the size of the screen.

• A standard managed by the International Digital Publishing Forum (IDPF).

• A structured document that used XML, XHTML, and CSS.

Adobe Reader Mobile SDK

• Non-platform specific• Supports both EPUB & PDF • Manages DRM• Robust Language Support• Used with Adobe Digital

Editions and most e-readers

ADE Devices

Apple Products

• Read EPUB & PDF• Uses iBook app• Allow video in EPUB

format• Full-color• Also allow other

readers (Kobo, Nook, Kindle, etc.)

Mobi vs. ePub

Mobi

• Used exclusively on Amazon Products.

• Format owned by Amazon.

• Kindle format is .mobi with DRM added.

• Limited display functionality.

• KF8 launched 2012 for Fire.

ePub

• Used by almost every other e-reader.

• Format managed by IDPF organization.

• Text conforms to the set of standards developed by group.

• ePub3 current version- no reader fully supports.

What about Kindle?• Uses AZW and KF8, both proprietary

formats based on Mobi format.

• AZW based on older HTML standards from 90s.

• KF8 is modern HTML5-based format for the Fire.

Usability and E-readers

• Modeled after the print book.– Linear text divided by the physical limitations of

screen size.– Searchability: fill-text or index.– Organization is by table of contents.– Footnotes, margin notes: end notes– Images and Tables

Options

1. Automated Conversion Program– Closed systems– Introduce errors

2. ePublishers– Handle complete process– Expensive

3. Do it Yourself

Print Workflow

Program Workflow

Ebooks in Workflow

Ebooks in Workflow

I hate to see people not having fun… just because they don't have the right tools--which is not to say they need the prettiest, best, most expensive tools. They just need the tools that are right for them.

~Alton Brown

Image from foodnetwork.com, http://www.foodnetwork.com/alton-brown/bio/index.html, last accessed 9/7/10

Free Tools• Coding

– Notepad++ (PC)– TextWrangler (MAC)– iBooks author (MAC)

• Creating/ Zipping– Sigil– Calibre– ePub Zip from MobileRead

• Quality Checking– Adobe Digital Editions– EpubCheck– Kindle Direct: Gen & Previewer

Distribution

• Amazon Direct- 65% or 30% of price• PubIt! (Barnes and Noble) -65% or 40% of

price• iBooks- 30% of price

• Aggregators– Smashwords, Lulu, Ingram, LibreDigital

Used under CC from http://www.flickr.com/photos/kesta/2639982875, last accessed 10/22/10

Rental/ DRM/ Cross-Platform

• Retail price: purchase or a rental?– Purchase? Can I use it across any device?– No? Then it’s a rental.

• All devices promote DRM to manage device libraries.

• Richard Stallman- Danger of Ebooks

•

Poetry

From the poem Un coup de dés jamais nábolira le hasard, poème

The Other Elephant• “Non-traditional” books (on-demand titles

produced by reprint houses specializing in public domain works and by presses catering to self-publishers and ”micro-niche” publications) are estimated at 2,776,260 titles for 2010.

• This number is a 169% increase over 2009-- which nearly tripled 2008’s output (Bowker). 

Resources• Twitter: #eprdctn• Liz Castro

– EPUB Straight to the Point– Pigs, Gourds, & Wikis

• Mobile Reads Forum• IDPF• DefectivebyDesign.org

Contact

• John_rodzvilla@emerson.edu• John.rodzvilla@gmail.com• @rodzvilla• Rodzvilla.com