| Amazon has pushed out a massive update for the Kindle Reading application for Android today. It has basically been totally redesigned to mirror the UI of the Kindle Fire Tablet. Your main library gives you a carousel view of all the eBooks you have in it and are swiped for easy access. At the bottom of your main screen you now see a Bestsellers/Recommended mini carousel that will allow you to purchase the books right from main shelf. Finally, there is a main menu that will give you access to popular samples, newsstand, and many more! This is the largest update Amazon has ever given their Android app, and is worth it to download. You can get it right now from the Good e-Reader APP Store. Amazon Redesigns their Android App is a post from: E-Reader News |
Friday, April 26, 2013
Amazon Redesigns their Android App
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OverDrive Media Console compatibility for Linux Users
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Maybe you have dreaded telling the users who come into your library and are wanting help with Linux that OverDrive Media Console was not compatible with their chosen platform. Due to a recent discovery, we have found a way to get OMC on a Linux computer. Things are about to get nerdy, so stick with me.
Many Linux users are familiar with a program called Wine – not the popular libation, but a "translator" that allows Windows native applications to run in the Linux environment. Wine takes a Windows Application's calls, and translates them to the corresponding Linux calls. The result is an environment where Windows applications run in the Linux environment as if they were written for Linux. Let me be clear and note that it's not perfect – some results may vary, giving you the ability to use the core features of an application, while also preventing other features from working.
When OverDrive Media Console is installed on a Linux PC using Wine, you will gain the capability of playing OverDrive MP3 Audiobooks, and even returning them through the software. On the other hand, some features are not available, including support for WMA Audiobooks and WMV Videos, and the ability to transfer to MP3 players. The reason some features are not supported in Linux is the inability to install the latest version of the Windows Media Player security upgrade required for use with Windows Media formats.
In addition to this recent discovery, Open EPUB books should work as long as you have an eReader program installed, OverDrive Read titles will also work on Linux since the format is browser-based, and not tied to external programs like Adobe Digital Editions. Kindle Titles are also available to Linux users using the Kindle Cloud Reader. And you can also use Adobe Digital Editions 1.7 with Wine. To all Linux users out there, let's hope this is the beginning of more things to come!
To download and install ADE with Wine, please see the Wine project’s App Database (appDB) entry for Adobe Digital Editions.
If you would like to download and install OMC with Wine, please see the Wine project's App Database (appDB) entry for OMC. If you don’t have Wine or you aren’t sure how Wine works, try these links:
Justin Noszek is a Support Specialist for OverDrive.
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Txtr eBooks Cost 60% more than Amazon in New Zealand
| Txtr made a big announcement a few days ago on the expansion of their online bookstores in Australia, New Zealand, Canada and many other countries. The eBooks they sell on average are close to 60% more then they sell for on Amazon and other leading digital websites. Deadly Seas just published on 13 April is NZ$32.99 on txtr and only NZ$17.43 on Amazon. Secret History of our Streets:London is NZ$39.95 on txtr and only NZ$21.53 on Amazon. Finally, the The Religion of Technology costs $32.99 on txtr and $11.72 on Amazon. Finally, Amazon allows users to get a sample preview to evaluate the book before purchase, while txtr does not provide this service. Obviously with the high price point, many customers who want to hunt around for deals might do better then dealing with txtr in New Zealand. Txtr eBooks Cost 60% more than Amazon in New Zealand is a post from: E-Reader News |
Amazon Kindle Lending Library Surpasses 300,000 titles
| The Amazon Kindle Lending Library has just surpassed 300,000 titles, according to the company’s Q1 Financial Report. The service is an integral part of Amazon Prime, which allows users to borrow one ebook a month for free. The Amazon Lending Library burst onto the scene in early 2011 and launched with a paltry 5,000 titles. Since then, it has grown as many self-published authors and mainstream publishers have contributed their works. You can find the entire Hunger Games and Harry Potter books available on this platform. One of the benefits that the Lending Library provides is the extra revenue authors receive when their books are borrowed out for free. Unlike traditional libraries, Amazon has a pool of money that it distributes to authors every month. Whenever a book is borrowed, authors receive royalties. We have heard in many cases that authors make more money giving their book away for free, than they do selling it for .99. It also hooks readers on a series of books, and customers are more likely to purchase the next books in a trilogy than wait a whole month to borrow the next book for free. Amazon Kindle Lending Library Surpasses 300,000 titles is a post from: E-Reader News |
IDPF Digital Book 2013 Is Just a Month Away!
| The schedule for IDPF Digital Book Conference is set for May 29th to the 30th at the Javits Center in New York. This event transpires every year right before the start of Book Expo America. It is the most definitive gathering of stalwart digital heroes and focuses on the trends in ebooks, self-publishing, e-readers, and what companies are doing. The incredibly rich 2013 speaker list ranges from bestselling authors like Malcolm Gladwell, Sylvia Day, and Jennifer Armentrout; media masters like Brad Stone of Bloomberg Businessweek, Laura Hazard Owen of paidContent, Jeremy Greenfield of Digital Book World, and Phil Sexton of F+W Media; top executives from the Big 6 houses; the Author's Guild and the US Department of Justice; top children's and educational publishers like Scholastic, Cengage, and Houghton Mifflin Harcourt; industry visionaries, such as Matt McInnis of Inkling, Allen Lau of Wattpad, Kristen McLean of Bookigee, Richard Nash of Small Demons, Corey Pressman of Exprima Media, Mark Ury of Storybird, Hugh McGuire of PressBooks, Craig Mod, John Ossenmacher of ReDigi, Anne Kubek of InScribe Digital, Josh Schanker of BookBub, and more; and finally, industry giants Barnes and Noble, Kobo, and Google. There are just too many speakers to mention, but the complete list can be seen here: http://idpf.org/digital-book-2013/speakers. Paid admission to IDPF Digital Book 2013 includes free admission to the BookExpo America trade show and exhibit hall, including the Digital Discovery Zone by IDPF. Early bird rates are in effect through May 1, 2013. Registration is available at an incredible rate: $389 ($259 for IDPF members / $329 non-profits). To register, please visit: http://idpf.org/db13. Follow event updates on Twitter @digitalbook13. IDPF Digital Book 2013 Is Just a Month Away! is a post from: E-Reader News |
Rob, Bacon
| Our very own Justin Bieber, Rob Bishop, was at the world’s best-named conference last week. Bacon (www.devslovebacon.com) is a London conference on things developers love, like Raspberry Pi, Go, rockets, close-up magic…and preserved meats. The video of his talk was just released yesterday. Rob says, on watching it: “Man, I need a haircut.” Rob’s good at this stuff, isn’t he? |
Amazon Announces America’s Top “Reading” Cities
| Amazon has recently begun sharing information on book sales by US region, and for the third year in a row has created its “best dressed” list of cities who purchase the most books, magazines, and newspapers in print and digital editions. While the February list focused specifically on the romance category to coincide with Valentine’s Day, the news this week is compiled over every category of book sales. For the second year in a row, Alexandria, Virginia topped the list as the most well-read city in the US based on book buying habits of its residents. The number two spot was held by Knoxville, Tennessee, who also was the city with the biggest jump up the list from the previous year–number twelve to number two–and was the most “romantic” city in the country based on the February romance category list. What should come as no surprise is that Cambridge, Massachusetts is the city whose readers bought the most books in the business and investing category, which can safely be assumed is the result of also being the home of Harvard University. The top twenty list includes: 1. Alexandria, Va. "The results of our annual Most Well-Read Cities list is proof that people across the country are reading, and also that we're still seeing the popularity of Fifty Shades of Grey," said Sara Nelson, Editorial Director of Books and Kindle, in a press release. "It's fun for us to see facts like the citizens of Cambridge are buying the most books in the business category or that one of our favorite novels of 2012, Gone Girl, is the best-selling book in the Most Well-Read City, Alexandria."
Amazon Announces America’s Top “Reading” Cities is a post from: E-Reader News |
