Category Archives for eBooks
Defining what I do: What makes a technology emerging or disruptive?
“I’m the Emerging Technologies Librarian at UNC.” “So what does that mean?” Every time I meet someone new at work, that’s how the conversation goes. My response usually consists of arm flailing and a disjointed summary of my duties. I’m … Continue reading
R.I.P Fictionwise
On Friday morning I received a sad email: Fictionwise is shutting down. Back in the early 2000s (does that decade have a pronounceable name yet?) I took my trusty Rocket eBook Reader everywhere. There weren’t a lot of options to legitimately … Continue reading
Format rot in ebook preservation
Electronic text is hard to preserve. This might seem counter-intuitive – isn’t it trivially easy to make backup copies? Yes, but accessing those copies is another matter. I’ve been cleaning out the darker recesses of my office lately, digging through … Continue reading
Review: Kindle Paperwhite
Based on shipping time alone, the Kindle Paperwhite seems to be a huge success. There’s currently a 5-7 week lead time on ordering one, which makes it already iffy even for a Christmas gift. But if you’re shopping for an … Continue reading
New DMCA exemptions for 2012
Every 3 years since 1998, the Librarian of Congress has been allowed to issue new exemptions to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. The DMCA is the act which (among other things) makes it illegal to circumvent copy protection schemes and … Continue reading
Interesting things I’ve read this week – 10/19/12
Random House Says Libraries Own Their Ebooks (Library Journal) I’m entirely surprised to read this headline and story, but Random House now flat out says that libraries own ebooks that they’ve bought from them. That may seem like an obvious … Continue reading
The Humble eBook Bundle
HumbleBundle.com has a long history of offering wonderful independent PC games at a ‘pay what you want’ price. They recently extended their brand into music, and this week took a step into eBooks. For any price you want to pay, … Continue reading
PaLA Northwest Chapter presentation.
Tomorrow morning I’ll be presenting a workshop for the fine folks at the Northwest Chapter of the Pennsylvania Library Association. Aside from being a good excuse to get back and visit my old stomping grounds, I’m quite excited about my … Continue reading
The forgotten Kindle
I don’t think there’s any consumer product line I’m more conflicted about than the Kindle. As a consumer, my Kindle Touch makes me very happy. At the same time, the Kindle Fire I’ve used made me very sad. (And as … Continue reading
What happens to your iTunes library when you die?
This turned out to be a hoax, but yesterday Bruce Willis was supposedly going to sue Apple for the right to leave his iTunes music to family in his will. Again, it was a hoax. But the story still highlights … Continue reading