Posts Tagged ‘nook’
Jeff Bezos on the Inevitable Obsolescence of Books [Blockquote]
Posted by: Gadget Boy in Gadget News, Technology on December 28th, 2009
Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos tells Dan Lyons, aka FSJ, just how deep his "missionary zeal" for spreading the gospel of the Kindle runs: One day, it's going to kill books entirely. The full quote:
Lyons: Do you think that the ink-on-paper book will eventually go away?
Bezos: I do. I don't know how long it will take. You know, we love stories and we love narrative; we love to get lost in an author's world. That's not going to go away; that's going to thrive. But the physical book really has had a 500-year run. It's probably the most successful technology ever. It's hard to come up with things that have had a longer run. If Gutenberg were alive today, he would recognize the physical book and know how to operate it immediately. Given how much change there has been everywhere else, what's remarkable is how stable the book has been for so long. But no technology, not even one as elegant as the book, lasts forever.
Also, Bezos isn't afraid of the Apple tablet, even if it does do all that stuff everybody thinks it will, because the Kindle's so darn good at the book thing. A dedicated device for reading? Sounds like a shorter shelf life than books. [Slate]
Jeff Bezos on the Inevitable Obsolescence of Books [Blockquote]
Posted by: Gadget Boy in Gadget News, Technology on December 28th, 2009
Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos tells Dan Lyons, aka FSJ, just how deep his "missionary zeal" for spreading the gospel of the Kindle runs: One day, it's going to kill books entirely. The full quote:
Lyons: Do you think that the ink-on-paper book will eventually go away?
Bezos: I do. I don't know how long it will take. You know, we love stories and we love narrative; we love to get lost in an author's world. That's not going to go away; that's going to thrive. But the physical book really has had a 500-year run. It's probably the most successful technology ever. It's hard to come up with things that have had a longer run. If Gutenberg were alive today, he would recognize the physical book and know how to operate it immediately. Given how much change there has been everywhere else, what's remarkable is how stable the book has been for so long. But no technology, not even one as elegant as the book, lasts forever.
Also, Bezos isn't afraid of the Apple tablet, even if it does do all that stuff everybody thinks it will, because the Kindle's so darn good at the book thing. A dedicated device for reading? Sounds like a shorter shelf life than books. [Slate]
E-reader privacy policies compared: Big Kindle is watching you
Posted by: Gadget Boy in Gadget News, Technology on December 27th, 2009
[Thanks, Tom]
E-reader privacy policies compared: Big Kindle is watching you originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 27 Dec 2009 16:04:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink |
EFF | Email this | Comments Is Your Kindle Spying On You? (Yes.) [Ebooks]
Posted by: Gadget Boy in Gadget News, Technology on December 27th, 2009
If you don't want other people to know what you read, you probably shouldn't own an ereader. And you really shouldn't get a constantly connected Kindle or Nook, at least according to the EFF's eye-opening guide to ebook privacy.
The Kindle and Nook are tied to Amazon and Barnes & Noble's respective bookstores, meaning every purchase and every book search is recorded. Amazon's license agreement for the Kindle, for instance, notes that the Kindle's software "will provide Amazon with data about your Device and its interaction with the Service...and information related to the content on your Device and your use of it (such as automatic bookmarking of the last page read and content deletions from the Device)."
The Nook is obviously capable of phoning home in a similar manner, but it's unknown whether or not it does, at least for now. With Google Books, it's clear that what you're actually reading is logged, down to the specific page.
On the other hand, since Sony's Reader lacks 3G for a constant connection and isn't as tightly integrated with their ebook store, there's less opportunity for data collection, particularly if you stick w/ sideloaded books. Better still, says the EFF is the open-source FBReader. But you can't download books from anywhere in 3 seconds over 3G, and the experience isn't as nice.
It's the classic tradeoff: Less privacy for more convenience and a better experience, or greater privacy for a bigger hassle. What side are you on? [EFF]
Nook fails to communicate, download purchased ebooks
Posted by: Gadget Boy in Gadget News, Technology on December 26th, 2009
[Thanks to all who sent this in]
Nook fails to communicate, download purchased ebooks originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 26 Dec 2009 08:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink |B&N book clubs | Email this | Comments Are B&N Nook Downloads Failing the Xmas Rush? [Ebooks]
Posted by: Gadget Boy in Gadget News, Technology on December 26th, 2009
I've got a bunch of complaints coming in about the Nook's e-book purchase servers being robust enough to take your money but the downloads are not going so well since new xmas owners came online. Any info, Nookers?
Nook shipping update assures pre-orders arriving on time
Posted by: Gadget Boy in Gadget News, Technology on December 23rd, 2009
"We're happy to report that all customers who pre-ordered nooks and were given a pre-holiday estimated shipping date will be sent their nooks in time to receive them by Christmas. As you know, there's been an overwhelmingly positive response and unprecedented demand since Barnes & Noble announced its new eBook reader on October 20th. Customer demand continues to be strong and new orders will be fulfilled beginning February 1, 2010. "
Happy, happy holidays!
Nook shipping update assures pre-orders arriving on time originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 23 Dec 2009 16:09:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | | Email this | CommentsNew Nook Orders Backed Up to February [Nook]
Posted by: Gadget Boy in Gadget News, Technology on December 23rd, 2009
If you've been promised a Nook for Christmas, no worries, it's in the mail. But if you're ordering one now, Barnes & Noble has stated, "Customer demand continues to be strong and new orders will be fulfilled beginning February 1, 2010." And there's no rush shipping in the world that can save that holiday wish.
Nook 1.1 doesn’t affect hacks, root still possible
Posted by: Gadget Boy in Gadget News, Technology on December 21st, 2009
[Thanks, Cameron]
Nook 1.1 doesn't affect hacks, root still possible originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 21 Dec 2009 16:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink |NookDevs, Nookaholic | Email this | Comments Nook Firmware 1.1 Is Out, And It’s No Miracle [Nook]
Posted by: Gadget Boy in Gadget News, Technology on December 21st, 2009
According to those lucky enough to have a Nook, firmware 1.1 is live now. Forums are full of sporadic claims like faster page turns and tweaked file handling. Have you noticed anything special? Updated
Because in the words of our own Wilson Rothman, "It feels like not much has changed." The only thing he notices off the bat is that returning to the book you're reading, after going to the main menu, is quicker, though it's still just as slow to load a new book up. As for page turns, he's still seeing the 1-2 second page turns he saw before, and the highlights-and-notes bug he uncovered during his review seems to be unrepaired.
It seems the Nook—a beautiful piece of hardware in its own right—is still in need of one heck of a firmware update. [Teleread Thanks JP!]
Update: According to B&N spokespeople:
This week, we are conducting our first over-the-air update with version 1.1 software. Nook 1.1 enables seamless connection of a customer's Nook in Barnes & Noble stores, providing exclusive content and promotions over our free Wi-Fi connection. This update also begins to provide some core speed and performance improvements and enhances the customer's reading experience by enabling them to begin reading their content sooner. Information can be found at www.nook.com/support. As with any new software, we will continue to optimize and expand Nook's capabilities using seamless over-air-updates which don't require any action by the Nook customer. We expect to conduct a larger Nook software update early next year.
